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Bloody Civilians
By Barrister Amjad Malik
General Pervez Musharraf defended imposition of emergency in his interview to western media this week and he is up for a constitutional ballot whether he stands fit to be elected as a Member of Parliament and or trial for abrogating the constitution. Being a law student I have too requested the court (Const.Pet No.16/2013) to determine his qualification as to me. General Musharraf has no love & respect for democracy and true parliamentary form of govt as enshrined in the constitution of Pakistan 1973. He has no realisation the conflict he has in his acts and doings and the regrets he never has as to what good he could have done after imposing a ‘coup’ and nation has not heard any regrets as to what he has done to the country.
Let’s see why so much animosity about his intentions to stand for Parliament. He dismissed an elected parliament meagrely on the eve of 12 October 1999 and detained then Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif with his aides and other members of Parliaments, and his colleagues and for nearly a decade ruled the country at will as a military dictator. He not only breached his oath of loyalty to state and its constitution but further blatantly disregarded any moral aptitude when he filed for his candidacy as a president in violation of the constitution of Pakistan 1973 and his service rules which forbid an army chief to stand for a public office whilst in uniform. He ridiculed trial judges and stood election in defiance of an angry society, lawyers and judiciary. He by hook & crook held those presidential elections under self direction and got elected under the shadow of his 3 November 2007 emergency.
His unconstitutional attitude is unethical, immoral, unlawful mala fide visible disqualifying him from his election to sacred chamber as he never rendered himself to the writ of law, courts and or the constitution. He takes oath on one hand and then blatantly breached it with complete and utter impunity until 9 March 2007.
The dictator has no respect for rule of rule & independent judiciary. On the unfortunate day of 9 March 2007 he tried to subdue the then and current Chief Justice of Pakistan Lord Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhary and upon his refusal he detained him with his family and younger children along with other judges who refused to bow down. (A FIR is pending lodged by a SC advocate Ch Mohammad Aslam Ghumman before Islamabad police for investigation & prosecution a case against the dictator to detain the Apex court judges). He filed a reference against then Chief justice and levelled dubious allegations and compromised the independence of judiciary, the same was quashed by LJ Ramdey on 20 July 2007 in a full court reference filed by many applicants including that of the writer ( Barrister Amjad Malik) Under ref Const petition ref of 15 SC 2007. Gen Musharraf further installed an acting Chief Justice in the presence of a fit and well Chief Justice of Pakistan which shows his disrespect for the high office of the supreme adjudicator.
General Musharraf never from his heart respected the judgement of the Apex court and created havoc contemptuously in the country on 3 November 2007 emergency when an injunctive order was issued by a bench of the Apex court forbidding him from taking any unconstitutional action. He installed justice A H Dogar LJ when most of the judges refused to take oath under his Provisional Constitutional order 2007 No.2. He again detained the Chief Justice and under the case of taka Iqbal Mohammad khan (PLD 2008 SC 178) tried to legalise his emergency and mini coup of 3 November 2007. Same was not sanctified by parliament and Apex Court in a larger bench and Court declared that emergency an unconstitutional & ultra vires act and it was declared a treasonable offence on 31 July 2009 (Sindh High Court Bar Association vs Federation of Pakistan (PLD 2009 SC 879). General Musharraf was kindly declared a ‘usurper’ a title which he will carry with him all his life.
During his unconstitutional tenure Pakistan’s foreign policy was mortgaged to foreign powers and two major political figures were eliminated from the scene. Former governor and Chief Minister Right Honourable Akbar Bugti was killed ultra constitutionally whose murder case is registered and pending against Gen Musharraf who is co-accused with others. Benazir Bhutto's murder still awaits just and equitable disposal as international level leader was eliminated under his leadership and no one moved an inch, no one accepted responsibility no heads were rolled and no resignation as a result and the world saw the washing away of the crime scene so obstinately as if nothing major has happened but just a mere killing of a civilian. Damadola missiles, drones, missing persons 12 May massacre and Lal Masjid (Red Mosque) operation case is yet to be mentioned and all requires in depth & a detailed enquiry to ascertain his role in all those disasters.
To my further anxiety is a statement whereby General Musharraf further incited and promoted the concept of an army coup in recent days by issuing verbal statements and interviews supporting military intervention. General Musharraf gave an interview to CNN also published by Pakistan daily on 16 December 2010 titling’ Army could intervene if country continues to decline: Musharraf' and he opined in his last paragraph that, "You have to remember, in Pakistan, the armed forces play a very big and important role," he said. "It is strong and well-administered and wherever there is turmoil, the people run to the army. I have always been of the opinion the army should have a role in the constitution, so it can voice its opinion and influence what happens in the country. The whole world thinks that is politicising the army. It isn't."But he added that the army chief always had the quandary of upholding national security, ensuring the survival of the state, as well as balancing that against upholding democracy. "This is the question that arises. And the army is in between. The army is the saviour. The army can save the state. It cannot save democracy." (Article was not retracted by the General).
That is the conflict General Musharraf faces in his personality, he says something else takes oath differently and believes in quite to the opposite. ‘Sadiq’ and ‘Amin’ are not confined to solemn pledges under the religion alone. Literally a society will be barren if the societal norms of goodness and ingredients of nobility in character, and believable conduct are ignored. It is not justice which is seen to be done if poor are prosecuted, tried and punished and hanged till death and richer with titles of a land owner, General, Lord Judge, Police Commissioner, former Secretary and or member of so and so institution walk away from our courts free of retribution, guilt or conscience with complete and utter shameless impunity without justice and fair play. As a law student this amounts to a discrimination of a cause and is unconstitutional under the law (Art.25 of the Constitution of Pakistan 1973). If that happens then all at sundry are not discharging their duty of a loyalty to state under Article 5 (duty to state is higher). In that case, even society a large by remaining quiet is failing to own such duty to rise and shine till glory.
Court has declared him a ‘Usurper’. The title turned him into an entity an endangered species as a very few like him are living in this world. Unless General Musharraf crosses that bridge of an ultra constitutional entity and completes the path to a common man, he will remain disqualified from acting as a normal human being in the eyes of a law student. That crossing will be either by appealing the judgement of (Sindh High Court Bar Association vs Federation of Pakistan (PLD 2009 SC 879) whereby he has been turned into this fictitious personality an ultra constitutional and supernatural entity or by facing the state of Pakistan’s prosecution under Article 6(3) trial whereby a court of law exonerates him from any wrong doing. Until then he will remain a mystery man, and he can swear as many a times to the ‘bloody civilians’ but those civilians will not let him enjoy the audience of the parliament he despised for four years as a President.
Barrister Amjad Malik is a Solicitor Advocate of the Supreme Court of England and is a Chair of the Association of Pakistani lawyers and was named ‘young human rights lawyer of the year 2000’ by Liberty , Justice & Law Society Gazette in UK -
9 April 2013
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For links:
Barrister Amjad Malik
Chair APL
Tel: 00 44 7770983308
Email: amjadlaw@hotmail.com
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