LAHORE, March 9: An all Pakistan lawyers’ representatives’ conference on Saturday demanded immediate restoration of political activity, release of all political prisoners and appointment of a new chief election commissioner to ensure the credibility of the proposed general election.

The conference, held in the Lahore High Court Bar Association’s Karachi Hall under the auspices of the Pakistan Bar Council, was attended by the members and office-bearers of the PBC, the provincial bar councils, the Supreme Court Bar Association and the high court bar associations.

It was addressed, among others, by PBC vice-chairman Hadi Shakeel Ahmad, SCBA president Hamid Khan, LHCBA president Chaudhry Muzzammil, Punjab Bar Council vice-chairman Ramazan Chaudhry, Sindh Bar Council vice-chairman Kazi Abdus Sattar, Sindh High Court Bar Association president Abdul Inam, NWFP Bar Council vice-chairman Shaukat Ali Khan, Ali Ahmad Kurd, Kazi Abdur Rahim, Abdul Haleem Pirzada, Rana Ijaz Ahmad Khan, Chaudhry Ashraf Wahla, Tariq Aziz Malik, Arif Chaudhry, SCBA secretary Anwar Hameed and LHCBA secretary Shahid Mahmood Bhatti.

Calling for the removal of former chief justice Irshad Hasan Khan as CEC, the conference proposed the names of Justices Fakhruddin G Ebrahim, Ajmal Mian and Zafar Husain Mirza as former judges of unimpeachable integrity and credibility. Appoint-ment of any of them as CEC would make the electoral exercise credible.

Another resolution adopted by the conference reiterated the lawyers’ resolve to resist creation of anti-terrorism courts with military officers as their members. The ordinance providing for the induction of army officers as judge was termed ‘unconstitutional.’

The conference vehemently opposed the proposal to hold a referendum instead of presidential election to enable Gen Pervez Musharraf to continue as president. It said the military government had no authority or mandate to amend the constitution, least of all to create more provinces.

The conference condemned the killing of Muslims in India, US air raids on Afghanistan, presence of US troops in Pakistan and Israeli atrocities against Palestinians.

It strongly criticized the recent elevations to the Supreme Court from the Lahore High Court and to the latter itself. It called for early filling up of vacancies in the LHC and the Sindh High Court in accordance with the law as interpreted in the 1996 Judges Case. It opposed the re-employment of judges after their retirement.

The conference called for the restoration of the provision of statutory bail under Sections 426 and 497 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which was recently withdrawn by an amendment.