They were speaking at a joint public meeting organised by different political parties to mark the protest day observed to express solidarity with the legal community. Provincial leaders of the People’s Party Parliamentarians, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, Awami National Party, Jamaat-i-Islami and Tehreek-i-Insaf spoke at the meeting which was held at the Kabuli Chowk.
Carrying banners, party flags and pictures of their leaders, slogan-chanting workers of the PPP, ANP and PML-N recalled the struggle against military dictator Gen Ziaul Haq.
The participants of the public meeting earlier assembled at the Hashtnagri Chowk, formed a big procession and, after marching through various city roads, reached Kabuli Chowk where a big public meeting was held.
Speaking on the occasion, ANP leader Haji Ghulam Ahmed Bilour said all democratic forces were now united against the military regime of Gen Pervez Musharraf and his hand-picked “non-political entities” having different backgrounds.
He said the ANP had always been in the forefront of the movements against dictatorial regimes and said it had never lent support to a dictator. He demanded of the rulers to allow PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto and PML chief Nawaz Sharif to return to Pakistan, play their political role and take part in general elections.
He said any election excluding both national leaders would be a “fraud”.
Congratulating the lawyers’ community, PPP provincial chief Rahimdad said that genuine political forces would frustrate the designs of the establishment against civilian rule in the country.
He said all political parties were part of the lawyers’ struggle for the rule of law, withdrawal of presidential reference against Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and an end to military rule in the country.
He said their struggle was not confined to the removal of Gen Musharraf. Instead, he said, it was aimed at bringing to an end President Musharraf’s dictatorship.
He asked all political parties to shun their petty differences and forge discipline in their ranks as they had to wage a long movement against what he called unconstitutional and unlawful rulers of the country.
“We can defeat despots and their agents only through our unity, discipline and steadfastness. The rulers cannot face real democratic forces, because they have no legal or moral ground to rule the country.” He demanded free, fair and transparent elections under the supervision of an independent election commission.
Pir Sabir Shah said that Gen Musharraf had destroyed all institutions of the country and he would have to face the law of the land in future. He congratulated lawyers for challenging what he called the arbitrary decision of a military general against Justice Chaudhry. He said his party was opposed to any kind of political rapprochement with the present regime.
Barrister Bacha, a renowned lawyer, thanked all political parties for their support to the lawyers’ community in its struggle for the rule of law in the country.