September 06, 2008	Saturday	Ramazan 05, 1429

ISLAMABAD, Sept 5: Political and civil society activists staged a protest rally here on Friday against US incursions in Waziristan.

Scores of Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf and Awami Jamhoori Ittehad workers and civil society representatives also chanted slogans against PPP presidential candidate Asif Zardari for his failure to reinstate deposed judges.

Led by PTI chief, Imran Khan, the protesters carrying placards inscribed with slogans against US and Mr Zardari marched from Islamabad hotel towards the Parliament House.

Standing on a truck, speakers took turns to address the gathering of men and women.

“Pakistan is in deep trouble,” shouted former civil servant Roedad Khan into the loudspeaker. “The president should be a man of character and integrity,” he said.

Loud cheering welcomed Imran Khan on the stage who urged people to eradicate corruption and to stand for truth and justice.

“Corrupt politicians will never allow judiciary to be independent which is a prerequisite of true democracy,” Mr Khan said.

Condemning US incursion in tribal areas the cricketer-turned politician criticized Mr Zardari for allowing US military to set foot on Pakistani soil.“Zardari is sacrificing Pakistan to save his own skin. We will continue to present a real challenge to Mr Zardari until he restores the deposed judges and stops taking dictations from the US,” the PTI chief said.

PRM: The People's Rights Movement (PRM) has condemned the Nato’s forces incursion into South Waziristan and the missile attack near Miramshah in North Waziristan, demanding the government to end the Musharraf-era policies.

In a statement issued here on Friday, the movement said that supporting the imperialist’s `war on terror' would decline the popularity of the government.

The PMR also reiterated its demand for complete withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan and warned that violence and fragmentation would increase as long as these troops remained in the region.

“The recent attacks in Waziristan make a mockery of the notion that Pakistan is a sovereign state in which Parliament decides its foreign and strategic policies,” the statement said.

In fact, Pakistan has turned into a virtual American satellite state, while its own army is engaged in all kinds of intrigue in the “no man's land that is Fata,” the PRM said.

The statement said that until the elected government reclaimed control over strategic and defence policy from the Americans and the army, the democratic process would remain vulnerable and subject to paralysis.