The bad news of the day is that in Pakistan nine babies are born every minute. The good news is that after two years in power we have a man at the helm of affairs who does not think or say that he has the divine right to rule, or that he hears voices from on high, or that he wishes to be an Amir-ul-Momineen.

President General Pervez Musharraf is what is generally accepted as a 'normal' man, who wishes to lead a 'normal' life, and who has unequivocally declared, without fudging or feinting, that he will remain the president of this country. He heads the most disciplined and organized party of the land which gives him its unrestrained backing.

So far, he has his feet on the ground and has taken the correct actions. He has realized that our extremists, the bigots amongst the people, must be restrained, which has been accorded approval by our international backers. Unless fate in a violent form intervenes he should be with us for many years.

Allah be praised, after fifty-four years we are now in the process of resurrection.

Musharraf was a toddler when Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the maker and builder of Pakistan, intended to be a progressively modern state, stated on February 19, 1948: "But make no mistake: Pakistan is not a theocracy or anything like it.... "Later that month, he reiterated: "In any case, Pakistan is not going to be a theocratic state to be ruled by priests with a divine mission.....".

On March 7, 1949, Musharraf was still a toddler when the Objectives Resolution was moved and adopted on the first day of the fifth session of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan, meeting in the Assembly chambers at Karachi, at four of the clock in the evening. The official report for that day's debates records:

"The Honourable Mr Liaquat Ali Khan (East Bengal, Muslim) : Mr President, Sir, I beg to move the following Objectives Resolution embodying the main principles on which the Constitution of Pakistan is to be based.

"In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful;

"Whereas sovereignty over the entire universe belongs to God Almighty alone and the authority which He has delegated to the state of Pakistan through its people for being exercised within the limit prescribed by Him is a sacred trust;"This Constituent Assembly, representing the people of Pakistan, resolves to frame a constitution for the sovereign independent State of Pakistan;

"Wherein the state shall exercise its powers and authority through the chosen representatives of the people;

"Wherein the principles of democracy, freedom, equality, tolerance and social justice, as enunciated by Islam, shall be fully observed;

"Wherein the Muslims shall be enabled to order their lives in the individual and collective spheres in accord with the teachings and requirements of Islam as set out in the Holy Quran and the Sunnah;

"Wherein adequate provisions shall be made for the minorities freely to profess and practise their religions and develop their cultures;

"Wherein the territories now included in or in accession with Pakistan and such other territories as may hereafter be included in or accede to Pakistan shall form a federation wherein the units will be autonomous with such boundaries and limitations on their powers and authority as may be prescribed;

"Wherein shall be guaranteed fundamental rights, including equality of status, of opportunity and before law, social economic and political justice, and freedom of thought, expression, belief, faith, worship and association, subject to the law and public morality;

"Wherein adequate provision shall be made to safeguard the legitimate interests of minorities and backward and depressed classes;

"Wherein the independence of the judiciary shall be fully secured;

"Wherein the integrity of the territories of the Federation, its independence and all its rights, including its sovereign rights on land, sea and air, will be safeguarded;

"So that the people of Pakistan may prosper and attain their rightful and honoured place amongst the nations of the world and make their full contribution towards international peace and progress and happiness of humanity."

Now to quote from Liaquat's subsequent address to the President, the Honourable Mr Tamizuddin Khan, a quotation which must bear constant and frequent repetition:

"...the people are the real recipients of power. This naturally eliminates any danger of the establishment of a theocracy .... In the technical sense, theocracy has come to mean a government by ordained priests, who wield authority as being specially appointed by those who claim to derive their rights from their sacerdotal position. I cannot overemphasize the fact that such an idea is absolutely foreign to Islam. Islam does not recognize either priesthood or any sacerdotal authority; and, therefore, the question of a theocracy simply does not arise in Islam. If there are any who still use the word theocracy in the same breath as the polity of Pakistan, they are either labouring under a grave misapprehension or indulging in mischievous propaganda.

"..... Therefore, there should be no misconception in the mind of any sect which may be a minority in Pakistan about the intentions of the state. The state will seek to create an Islamic society free from dissensions, but this does not mean that it would curb the freedom of any section of the Muslims in the matter of their beliefs. No sects, whether the majority or a minority, will be permitted to dictate to the others and, in their own internal matters and sectional beliefs, all sects shall be given the fullest possible latitude and freedom. Actually, we hope the various sects will act in accordance with the desire of the Prophet who said that the differences of opinion amongst his followers are a blessing. It is for us to make our differences a source of strength to Islam and to Pakistan and not to exploit them for our own interests which will weaken both Pakistan and Islam.

".... We believe that no shackles can be put on thought and, therefore, we do not intend to hinder any person from the expression of his views."

Now, in 2001, we address the first in the line of succession after the president, the honourable chief justice of Pakistan, Irshad Hassan Khan, who, all going well, will retire on January 6, 2002. The new Supreme Court of Pakistan building designed by Kenzo Tange was consecrated in March 1993 by the prime minister of the day, Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif, the same Sharif who in November 1997 desecrated the building and the institution of the judiciary by masterminding the storming of the court so as to save himself from being convicted of contempt of court by a stubborn shortsighted chief justice. It is a matter of eternal shame that our judicial system, despite the cold hard evidence on record, found itself unable to convict Sharif and his co-accused for their contemptible crime.

At the consecration of the building, Sharif declared that not only had the text of the Objectives Resolution been affixed in gilded lettering on the walls of the highest court of the land, both in English and Urdu, but that it was imprinted in the hearts of every loyal Pakistani. But, whereas the Urdu version was an accurate translation of the original English version, the English version had one glaring omission from the original. In the paragraph dealing with minority rights, the original version as recorded in the annals of the Constituent Assembly read: "Wherein adequate provision shall be made for the minorities freely to profess and practise their religions and develop their cultures;"

On the walls of the honourable Supreme Court the word "freely" was deliberately omitted from this paragraph. A crime, would one not say?

Chief Justice Afzal Zullah, during whose term the building was inaugurated, was informed of this omission and asked to have it rectified. He did not do so. Then came our one chief justice who possessed a great sense of humour, Nasim Hassan Shah, who was also reminded on more than one occasion to have this criminal ommission rectified. He also chose to ignore it. Chief Justice Sajjad Ali Shah followed; he had both plaques removed. They remained removed throughout the terms of Chief Justices Ajmal Mian and Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, and they remain so now during the term of Irshad Hassan Khan.

During the month left to him, will our bold chief justice, whose words and records of his deeds have been spread over three continents, have the decency and good judgment to order that the engraving on the English version of the Resolution be corrected so that the word "freely" is inserted where it should be, and then have both plaques reaffixed on the walls of the entrance hall of our Supreme Court. No tall order, this!