The Emergency Times Dec 6th, 2007 1

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The Emergency Times

Quote of the Day

“In order to conquer, what we need is to dare, still to dare, and always to dare.”
- Georges Jacques Danton

Updates on the Student Movement

Lahore 05.12.2007 -

Despite intimidation by the police, LUMS students continued their protest today (Wednesday). A sit-in was
held at 1 pm outside the PDC. Students and faculty members made speeches, condemning the FIRs
registered against members of the LUMS community and asking the protestors to continue their fight for
justice. The eviction of Justice Shahid Siddiqui from his residence and the disgraceful treatment meted out to
US peace activists Medea Benjamin and Tighe Barry were also strongly condemned. Students from LUMS
were present at Justice Siddiqui's residence at 2 am this morning and during the day today (Wednesday),
forming part of a human shield to prevent the police from entering the premises.

Student Representatives from the LUMS Action committee along with prominent human rights activists,
PMDC members, Lawyers, students and civil society members, attended a debate organized by The Campaign
for Democracy and Rule of Law, at the Lahore Press Club today. The debate was held between the
aforementioned groups and party members from most of the political parties to discuss party stances
regarding the upcoming elections. Other than the ANP and PPP, party representatives confirmed that they
would be boycotting the elections under the present circumstances.

A talk took place this evening on campus, followed by a screening of the documentary 'Missing People'.
Recent achievements and activities of the students were discussed as were present and future strategies, the
importance of maintaining the movement at all costs was emphasized. Later the horrific account of the
missing people left a stunned and stricken audience to silently contemplate the tragedy and trauma of the
many families left broken by the arbitrary abductions of their loved ones by Government agencies. The LUMS
Student Action Committee has also organized a protest to be held on campus tomorrow.

Disclaimer: This publication is not affiliated with or does not endorse any political party or social group. It is a humble
effort to inspire and make aware- for we together can make a difference in these troubled times.
Write to us at theemergencytimes@gmail.com. Our online version is on pakistanmartiallaw.blogspot.com
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Justice Siddiqui suffers angina attack!

Dear all,

Late last night/early this morning, the police did, in fact come to Justice Siddiqui's house in Lahore and
removed the barricades ( i.e. chairs, bedding etc. placed by the protesters) in preparation of the eviction.
Justice Siddiqui suffered an angina episode and was admitted at the Punjab Institute of Cardiology. Please
send notes, flowers to show your continued support for him in this ordeal. For those outside the city or
country, you can e-mail your letter of support to concernedpakistan@gmail.com - we will make sure the letter
reaches him.

Thanks & God bless you all

In Complete Solidarity

CCP (Concerned Citizens of Pakistan Team)

Black Day to be observed on 10th December

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan calls upon all members of civil society to observe the Universal
Human Rights Day as a "black day". The worst human rights abuses, in the history of the country, were
recorded in 2007. The rights of ordinary people have been violated by the government with impunity. More
than 400 people have been picked up by security forces and many remain missing. The Musharraf regime
obstructed the Supreme Court in providing justice to those who remain disappeared, as well as those who
recorded their statements of having suffered extreme forms of torture at the hands of the security forces.
Reports of torture, threats, intimidation, and arbitrary arrests run into thousands. Incidents of extrajudicial
killings continue to be reported but never investigated.

The situation has now reached alarming proportions. The coercive apparatus of the State are being blatantly
used against all sections of civil society. The media is chained and free expression censured. Thousands of
lawyers, journalists, students, teachers and human rights activists were arrested. A number of them remain
incarcerated under deplorable conditions. Lawyers and others have been accused of offences falling under the
Anti-Terrorism Act. Thirty-five judges of superior courts have been put under house arrest. The family of the
Chief Justice of Pakistan is also confined to their residence. This is unprecedented.
The rights of the people are being usurped on the pretext of curbing terrorism. It is the people who are
suffering terrorism; both at the hands of non-state militants and state agents. The government has failed to
bring militants to justice or to disarm them. On the contrary, at several occasions, the government and its
agents have patronized or in the least, ignored criminal acts carried out by militants acting in the name of
Islam.

HRCP warns that the claim made by Musharraf of moving towards a transition to democracy is a total farce.
The assertion is yet another smack on the face of the people of Pakistan. Amendments to the Legal
Practitioners and Bar Council Act as well as the Army Act are only a few examples of the government's grand
plan to subjugate the spirit of peaceful members of civil society. Much more is to follow.
HRCP, along with other civil society groups, will organize a black day on the 10th of December. Black flags
and bands should be displayed on this unworthy occasion. In order to record the laudable struggle of the
legal fraternity of Pakistan HRCP will award the best documentary film made on this movement. All entries
are to be submitted by 30 June 2008.

Asma Jahangir
Chairperson Human Rights Commission of Pakistan
Disclaimer: This publication is not affiliated with or does not endorse any political party or social group. It is a humble
effort to inspire and make aware- for we together can make a difference in these troubled times.
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15 Baloch Students arrested from a Quran Khawani

Courtesy- Dawn News

QUETTA, Dec 4:

The Baloch Students Organisation (BSO) has alleged that police have arrested 15 students of the Lasbela
University of Agriculture, Water and Marine Sciences in Uthal for organising a Quran Khwani on the campus
for Baloch leader Nawabzada Balaach Marri who was killed few days ago. Addressing a news conference on
Tuesday, BSO’s central executive committee member Farida Baloch accused police of torturing the students.
She said atrocities would not compel the Baloch people to give up the struggle for their rights. Balochs had
been facing the excesses of rulers for 60 years, she added. She said that forces were not only targeting BSO
members but also implicating members of their families in false cases.

(We strongly condemn this despicably brutal act by the police upon innocent students gathered for a somber
and religious cause. If the state cannot even respect religious customs, it is sad evidence of the fact that they
have renounced every ounce of humanity that could possibly remain. It is baffling as to how sheer tyranny
and bigotry of this sort can even be tolerated, let alone ordered by any government. It is a stark reminder of
the fact that the Musharraf regime is the only real extremist around and is an evil that must be rooted out at
all costs. We reach out to our fellow Baloch Students in support and solidarity and solemnly pledge to remain
committed to our cause for civil freedom, liberty and rule of law, until we, the citizens, are no longer subjected
to further such state brutalities. We recognize that the Baloch's have been targeted by despotic rulers for
many decades now, and it is only very recently that we have received a taste of what they have endured for so
long. We salute them for their strength and resilience and reach out to them in these times in complete unity.)

The Emergency Times- Eds

People’s Resistance condemns government crackdown on peaceful

dissent
KARACHI, Dec 5:

The People's Resistance, a coalition of civil society organization and individuals, strongly condemns the
government's hard-line and brutal actions against peaceful dissent. These recent actions only betray the
governments own weakness:

The Law Ministry's notification about the retirement of the judges who did not take oath under the PCO, and
the attempted eviction of such judges from their official residences, in particular Justice M.A. Shahid Siddiqui
in Lahore.

The FIRs registered against LUMS faculty members for wall-chalking -- Rasul Bakhsh Rais, Aasim S. Akhtar
(who is not even in Lahore), Osama Siddique and Farhat Haq (who has not been at the university for past two
years) and adan student.
The brutal lathi-charge on the huge student-led demonstration in Islamabad on Dec 4.
The arrest and deportation of two American peace activists who were in Pakistan to express their solidarity
with the people. This action and the way it was carried out, by armed, plainclothesmen, further tarnished the
image of Pakistan.

We demand:
- The Law Ministry should immediately withdraw its shameful notification about the judges' retirement.
Caretaker Law Minister Afzal Haider needs to stand up for constitutionality and legality as he is duty bound
Disclaimer: This publication is not affiliated with or does not endorse any political party or social group. It is a humble
effort to inspire and make aware- for we together can make a difference in these troubled times.
Write to us at theemergencytimes@gmail.com. Our online version is on pakistanmartiallaw.blogspot.com
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to do.
- The immediate withdrawal of the FIRs against the LUMS faculty and student.

We call on the democracy-loving people of Pakistan to join in the struggle for justice. We invite people to form
a physical barrier at the homes of those judges who are being evicted, as the courageous activists of Lahore
have been doing. We reiterate our refusal to accept the current dispensation with its curbs on the media and
the judiciary.

People’s Resistance calls for meeting at the Karachi Press Club

Friends,

This is an open call issued by members of the People's Resistance group to all activists in Karachi to attend a
meeting at the Karachi Press Club

Venue: Karachi Press Club

Date: 6th Dec 2007
Time: 5:00pm

Agenda:

A number of civil society groups, laborer's, student bodies and political parties are invited to join hands to
plan and issue a call for a city wide protest in the near future (13th or 14th Dec) [decision pending]. It must
be remembered that People's Resistance would also like to also issue a unified stand on the present political
situation during the meeting, and we anticipate a total consensus amongst the participating organizations,
founding the basis of our future protests and coalition, which are as follows

1) We consider the PCO to be unconstitutional and all actions taken under this, as illegal.
2) We demand the immediate repeal of the PCO, Army Act 2007, PEMRA Ordinances 2007, and demand the
restoration of the judiciary and complete freedom of the media.
3) We reject army rule - overt and covert
4) We reject the holding of elections under the Musharraf regime
5) We reject Pervez Musharraf as an illegal and illegitimate entity.

Please remember this is just a meeting, with no intention of agitation or protests, and would strongly urge all
activists in Karachi to show up in numbers and be a part of this important process. Request to please help
propagate this message to a wider audience. In Complete Unity for Pakistan

“Not Without My Khakis”

He said it. He probably could not control his emotions on the day when he bid farewell to the army in a
ceremony reeking of pomp and excess, but Musharraf summed up, in one sentence, the supreme military
psyche: “Without this army, the entity of Pakistan cannot exist” [emphasis added].

Right. And we lost East Pakistan partly because this glorious army surrendered when it most mattered that
they put up a fight! Thanks to this very army the “entity of Pakistan” is struggling to stay alive today. Its
interference, time and again, in the political process-not to mention its other ambitious money-making
schemes- has done irreparable damage to the country’s institutions (in addition to that caused by some
politicians).

Pakistanis too, are fast developing an intense dislike for the country’s army. Only the other day someone

Disclaimer: This publication is not affiliated with or does not endorse any political party or social group. It is a humble
effort to inspire and make aware- for we together can make a difference in these troubled times.
Write to us at theemergencytimes@gmail.com. Our online version is on pakistanmartiallaw.blogspot.com
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remarked “Show me an army officer, and I’ll show you a real estate agent.” What a shameful image the
institution has created for itself.
What sham democracy are we heading towards, where the general-turned-president firmly believes that the
army is the ‘be all and end all’ for the country, that our “existence” (no mild choice of words, mind you)
depends on an institution that has, time and again, proved itself hungry only for power and wealth.

One is astounded at the audacity of the former general as he callously reduced Pakistan to a mere “entity”
whose past and future rests on the shoulders of this bungling mob of soldiers called an army. And, to give
credit where it is due, for so many months now and with many a heavy heart, the lower ranks of the military
have been fighting fellow Pakistanis. While we empathize with them, we cannot ignore the fact that they are
part of an institution that has rarely served the country faithfully. This cannot have been what armies were
created for.
It is but natural then that, in these unfortunate times, Pakistanis all over the world should gasp for a breath
of fresh air, and struggle to revive that document which almost every other country in the world believes is the
real key to a nation’s existence – the constitution. Surely, in the 21st century, the life of any nation does not
depend upon its army? And yet, in Pakistan our civilian president proclaims that his heart will remain
inundated with love for the army. We only hope he can get his head out of the murky waters of military-style
politics before his policies spell total ruin for Pakistan. Nevertheless, be warned all those who err to believe
that Mr. Musharraf will be a force for positive change in Pakistan: you can take the man out of the army, but
you will never take the army out of the man.
The struggle must continue. Musharraf may have shed his “skin” but there may be others conspiring to seize
the much-coveted throne, illegally and extra-constitutionally. We can no longer allow the army, or any single
person, be it a general or a politician, to attach to himself the label of indispensability. They must know that
they are accountable to the people of Pakistan and, no number of self-constructed halos over their heads will
detract from the oppression and misery they have wrought on Pakistan for sixty years!
We do not accept the sherwani in place of his khakis. Musharraf, the time has come for you and your beloved
army to surrender your rein on power and make a full retreat!

Maria
Islamabad, Pakistan
December 2007

The Throne of Pakistani Government =)

The National Art Gallery in Islamabad is currently showing this art display titled “The Throne of the Pakistani
Government”. It consists of several lotas joined together! Art can simply never be muzzled.

Disclaimer: This publication is not affiliated with or does not endorse any political party or social group. It is a humble
effort to inspire and make aware- for we together can make a difference in these troubled times.
Write to us at theemergencytimes@gmail.com. Our online version is on pakistanmartiallaw.blogspot.com