LONDON, March 16: Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has commended his party workers and the people of Pakistan for protesting along with lawyers against the onslaught of General Pervez Musharraf on the judiciary.

In a statement released here on Friday, the PML-N leader said that every citizen who exercised the democratic right to protest today was a hero and he was particularly proud of his workers who had shown great courage in facing the brutality unleashed by the administration and police. He said that others would now take courage from these workers and more people would protest the next time around.

Mr Sharif said that this was now a national struggle to fight for rule of law and to end dictatorship in Pakistan forever.

He said that in ordering an unprecedented and highly condemnable attack on the offices of Geo television, President Musharraf had in fact declared war on the media -- the fourth pillar of the state. Earlier the general had tried to conquer the executive, the judiciary and the parliament and the time had come for the people to hold him accountable, he added.