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HYDERABAD, Jan 2: Speakers at a seminar entitled ‘Future of Democracy in Pakistan’, held here on Wednesday, opposed the new formula for the election of the Senate.
They said National Assembly members should not be allowed to vote to elect Senate members.
Blaming the generals for political instability in the country, speakers, belonging to various religious, nationalist and political parties, vowed to struggle for the restoration of real democracy.
The seminar was organized by the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, Hyderabad.
Speaking on the occasion, Sindh JUI-F president Dr Khalid Mehmood Soomro, who presided over the seminar, said the 1973 Constitution was best suited to the country as it was a unanimous document and added only parliament could amend it.
He criticized the appointment of Dr Ishratul Ibad as the Sindh governor, saying he was on the top of the list of wanted men in the province.
About the activities of the FBI in the country, Dr Soomro said if anyone was found involved in anti-state activities, he or she should be tried in our own courts.
He said the areas, where the US bases had been established, had become ‘no-go’ areas.
The Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal’s parliamentary leader in the Sindh Assembly, Maulana Umer Sadiq, said certain political parties, that always paved the way for dictators, were responsible for endangering the future of democracy in the country.
He urged the people to struggle for restoring real democracy.
The chief of the Awami Tehrik, Rasool Bux Palijo, said it was quite ridiculous that those who were branded criminals yesterday had been appointed on top slots.
Sindh Democratic Party chairman Yousuf Leghari said the country had been facing a state of emergency since 1988.
He said fundamental rights were not respected in the country and added even the Supreme Court Bar Association had stated in the apex court that it did not expect justice from the judiciary.
RESOLUTIONS: The seminar urged political and religious parties to launch a joint struggle for restoration of genuine democracy in the country.
It opposed the appointment Dr Ishratul Ibad as the Sindh governor as he was involved in many criminal cases and demanded of the rulers to reconsider their decision in this regard.
It also urged the rulers to respect the independence and sovereignty of the state by curtailing the role of the US in Pakistan.
The seminar demanded equal rights for the provinces.
It resolved to hold a demonstration in Hyderabad on Jan 3 to protest the US aggression against Iraq.
