Three prominent lawyers who spearheaded the movement of lawyers, were again arrested and detained for a further month under the maintenance of Public Order Ordinance (MPO). Mr. Aitzaz Ahsan, President of the Supreme Court Bar Association, Mr. Ali Ahmed Kurd, former vice president of the Pakistan Bar Council and Mr. Justice (retired) Tariq Mahmood, former president of the Pakistan Supreme Court Bar Association were released from detention of three months on January 31, 2008 but only two days after their release they were again detained for one month.
The detained persons are also the counsels of deposed Chief Justice Mr. Iftekhar Choudhry and had been detained since November 3, 2007, along with several judges of higher courts, when General Musharraf imposed a state of emergency and virtually took over the control of higher courts, including the Supreme Court of Pakistan. About 60 judges were suspended and were kept under house arrest. Several judges remain under house arrest including the Chief Justice Mr. Iftekhar Choudhry who, from time to time has been denied basic amenities such as water. His entire family, were detained along with him and his children are not allowed to attend schools. They have even been forced to have their annual examinations from home.
Mr. Aitzaz Ahsan, president of the Supreme Court Bar Association, was also served notice banning him from entering the Sindh province when he was boarding a plane to Karachi. Mr. Aitzaz wanted to have a service at the grave of Ms. Benazir Bhutto, the former prime minister who was assassinated in a target killing on December 27. Mr. Aitzaz was also manhandled and beaten by the police when he was attending a gathering that assembled outside his residence following his release after his 90 days of detention.
The method by which the government is dealing with the lawyers and judges of the higher judiciary is similar to those methods used on terrorists. Surely the political absurdity of such treatment should dawn on any reasonable leader. The very fact that President Musharraf deals with judges and lawyers as if they are terrorists exposes the abysmal contradictions of present day politics in Pakistan. The re-arrests of the lawyers is a condemnable as further attempts to restore rule of law, supremacy of the judiciary and the restoration of the constitution are now considered as the aspirations of terrorists. Whereas the lawyers movement is as strong as it was from the day one, at this moment all the civil society and political groups are involved in lawyers movement. The lawyers movement has been sustained since November 3, and they are continuously boycotting the judges of higher courts who have taken oath under army tailored Provision of Constitution Order (PCO). Such a lengthy boycott itself is an act of historic proportion demonstrating the determination of the democratic minded people of Pakistan to safeguard the basic institutions of law and justice at a great sacrifice to themselves.
It is also deplorable that Mr. Aitzaz was prohibited from entering Sindh province. The grounds given by the Sindh government was that his presence would create a law and order situation implying that the people who want rule of law and democracy in Pakistan would rally round him. This itself is a recognition that the movement for the restoration of the rule of law is alive in the Sindh province. The Supreme Court Bar Association of which Mr. Aitzaz is the president is a nationwide organization and banning his entry members of the Bar are prevented from meeting their elected leader. This is a clear violation to the right to assembly guaranteed under article 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The military regime under President Musharraf has been engaged in one of the most brutal repressions against the movement of lawyers and judges who merely want the restoration of the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary. How can any state which so blatantly engages in attempts to suppress the most law abiding sections of society hold any form of legitimacy? The United States which has supported this regime which is so belligerent in its attempt to wipe out the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary needs to reassure the people of Pakistan that they do not support such attempts of this regime. All forces in the world that support rule of law and democracy need to condemn these belligerent acts against the very elements of society that treasure law, justice and democracy.
This regime should be forced to restore the judiciary to its pre November 3, position, all arrested lawyers and judges must be released forthwith and the independence of judiciary must be restored.
