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| June 16, 2005 | Thursday | Jumadi-ul-Awwal 8, 1426 |
Opposition for curbing army’s political role
ISLAMABAD, June 15: Leaders of major opposition parties on Wednesday vowed to continue their struggle against military dictatorship and called for unity on a one-point agenda of permanently eliminating the role of army and intelligence agencies in politics. Speaking at the launching ceremony of jailed ARD President Makhdoom Javed Hashmi’s book Haan Main Baghi Hoon, they held the military responsible for the crises in the country.
Paying tributes to Mr Hashmi for his struggle for democracy, supremacy of the constitution and sovereignty of parliament, they said he was facing hardships only because he had openly opposed the military.
Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan said he had realized his mistake of initially supporting Gen Pervez Musharraf and said he would not even support an angel if he came in the military uniform. He also referred to the derogatory Washington Times cartoon and said Gen Musharraf had become a policeman of US President George Bush. He said Gen Musharraf was giving an impression that only terrorists lived in Pakistan.
The PTI chief said the PPP and the PML-N should announce that they would never compromise on the independence of the judiciary and the election commission. He stressed the need for unity among the ARD and the MMA to get rid of the military rule.
Awami National Party (ANP) Senator Asfandyar Wali said the country was facing a situation worse than that of 1971. He said practically there was a presidential system in the country. Criticizing the role of the National Accountability Bureau, he said its only achievement was that it provided 10 MNAs to Zafarullah Jamali to form his government.
Chief of the Pakhtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party Mehmood Khan Achakzai said there was anarchy in the country as there was no rule of law. He said it was the right of Nawaz Sharif as the prime minister to remove Gen Pervez Musharraf from the army chief post. He said when Mr Sharif removed Gen Jahangir Karamat and appointed Gen Musharraf it was a constitutional act, but when he removed Gen Musharraf, the same became illegal.
Mr Achakzai said after the passage of the budget, they would make a strategy and boycott the National Assembly sessions till the issuance of Mr Hashmi’s production order.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan regretted that all political parties have forgotten Mr Hashmi who is still seeking justice. He said it was for the first time that Punjabis had suffered in the hands of army generals. For the first time, a Punjabi has become a rebel, he said.
“Enough is enough”, Chaudhry Nisar said, adding that all political parties had decided to save the nation from those who robbed them by violating the Constitution several times. He said not only the politicians but also generals, judges and bureaucracy were responsible for the present crisis.
Opposition leader in the Senate Raza Rabbani said the government had made parliament a rubber stamp. He said the regime was still making efforts to change the loyalties of the opposition members.
He said time had proved that the policy adopted by the ARD at the time of the passage of the 17th Amendment was right. He said parliament had itself eroded its sovereignty by passing the 17th amendment. He criticized the formation of the National Security Council and said the PPP would never accept any military role in politics.
He said the speaker had added a black chapter in the history of parliament by giving a ruling on the LFO and by not issuing Mr Hashmi’s production order.
Deputy parliamentary leader of the MMA Liaquat Baloch said the conviction of Mr Hashmi was the worst example of military dictatorship. Moreover, he said, the arrest of the ARD leader was also affecting the army’s prestige.
He said the military rulers had always declared politicians a security risk through a propaganda campaign. He said by taking u- turns on Afghanistan and Kashmir, the military rulers had themselves become security risk. He said the country’s nuclear assets were also facing threat from its own army.
Maimoona Hashmi, MNA, said her father was picked up by the agencies personnel in a shameful manner and at a time when the National Assembly was in session. She said the speaker had no powers which was evident from the fact that he did not issue Mr Hashmi’s production order.
PML-N Secretary-General Iqbal Zafar Jhagra asked the higher courts to provide justice to Mr Hashmi. He regretted that the high court was not fixing any date for hearing the appeal of Mr Hashmi. He said NGOs were raising voice for Mukhtaran Mai, but remained silent on Mr Hashmi’s case.
PPP MNA Naheed Khan, PML-N information secretary Siddiqul Farooque, Syed Zafar Ali Shah, Samia Raheel Qazi, Pir Sabir Shah and Abdul Rauf Mengal also spoke on the occasion.
Meanwhile, a ruling party senator from Balochistan, Muhim Khan Baloch, who also attended the ceremony, paid tributes to the jailed ARD leader.
Senator Baloch of the Balochistan National Party (Awami), who had also voted with the opposition members on the motion to cut defence budget on Monday, said Mr Hashmi was not the only rebel in the country as Baloch were also considered rebels.
“The Baloch were rebels yesterday, they are rebels today and it seems the situation will remain the same in future,” he said. He said when they (the people of Balochistan) would be given due recognition, only then they would say “Pakistan Zindabad.”
Despite sitting on treasury benches, Mr Baloch said, he had been raising the issues of the depressed and deprived people of his constituency. He also paid tributes to Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan.
Mr Baloch praised the PML-N leader and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif for removing the amendments introduced by Gen Ziaul Haq to the Constitution.
He said the parliament should be sovereign and allowed to carry out legislation independently. He also said the judiciary should also be independent in the country.
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