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| November 13, 2007 | Tuesday | Ziqa’ad 02, 1428 |
KARACHI: Bar extends boycott of PCO judges
KARACHI, Nov 12: A general body meeting of the Sindh High Court Bar Association on Monday extended until Nov 16 the boycott of “persons” who took oath as superior court judges under the Provisional Constitution Order, while lawyers boycotted court proceedings for one hour at the City Courts.
A resolution adopted by the meeting said that the PCO and the proclamation of emergency amounted to the imposition of martial law and no person subscribing to the rule of law could be party to the termination of constitutional rule. It complimented the judges who declined to take oath under the PCO. The resolution described as a “fraud on people” the holding of polls during the subsistence of emergency and the induction of caretaker cabinets at the centre and in the provinces.
Condemning an amendment to the Army Act to bring civilians under the purview of court martial proceedings, the meeting also decided to resist any change in the Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils Act to take away the councils’ authority to enrol members, grant licences and take disciplinary action for misconduct. It also deplored media curbs and restrictions on the entry of journalists into the Sindh High Court.
The association urged all political parties to launch a joint struggle against the emergency and other undemocratic measures and appealed to civil society to participate. The international community was also urged to support the campaign started by lawyers. The meeting was presided over by former SHCBA president Akhtar Hussain, a member of the interim committee running the association’s affairs during the detention of its office-bearers, and addressed by former Supreme Court judges Nasir Aslam Zahid and Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim.
Speaking at the occasion, Mr Ebrahim told lawyers that the struggle was one for the Constitution and the rule of law. “The line has been drawn and that is between those who support the Constitution and those who don’t,” he stated, calling for a boycott of all those opposed to this simple precept. He urged the legal fraternity to maintain unity and not allow any divisions to stand in the way for the cause which, he said, was the restoration of the Constitution as it stood before 12 Oct, 1999. “We are not doing this for any personal gain but are in fact performing our constitutional duty,” he said, pointing out that under Article 5 of the Constitution, the judiciary is obligated to uphold the Constitution of Pakistan.
Paying tribute to the courageous and principled stand taken by all those who did not take oath under the Nov 3 Provisional Constitution Order, Mr Ebrahim called for political parties and civil society groups to join hands in non-violent protest. “In six months, we will see a new Pakistan, a positive one,” he assured the gathering, pointing out that despite the tremendous pressure being put upon them, judges were not agreeing to take oath under the PCO. He reminded lawyers that they were supported by civil society and the media, and that there was no room for despondency since change for the better was round the corner.
“They call us terrorists but we have no weapons. The only thing we are armed with is the Constitution,” he stated. “Since when has the Constitution of Pakistan or the rule of law become a weapon of terror?”
Meanwhile, lawyers at the City courts on Monday boycotted court proceedings for one hour in line with the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) call in protest against the imposition of emergency rule and the removal of the judges of superior judiciary.
A member of the Karachi Bar Association said that the one-hour boycott of court proceedings in the City Courts would continue until Nov 16. After that, a future strategy would be adopted in light of PBC deliberations.
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