ISLAMABAD: The former Attorney General Justice (Retd.) Malik Mohammad Qayyum has welcomed the restoration of the deposed judiciary including Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry. Talking to media men here on Wednesday, he said that the restoration took place due to the nation’s aspirations.

He said that the restoration of the deposed judges could not be done through an executive order or a notification but it was the nation’s pressure which compelled the government to do so. While congratulating to the nation and the deposed judges, he said it was not a time to issue any confronting statements.-SANA

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari’s Spokesperson Farhatullah Babar on Tuesday said that President Zardari restored deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry as the Chief Justice of Pakistan consequent upon the retirement of the present Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar on March 21, 2009. According to the notification, Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry will stand restored to the position he was holding immediately before the November 03, 2007.

The Spokesperson said that President Asif Ali Zardari also restored with immediate effect the following deposed Judges of the Supreme Court to the position they were holding immediately before the 3rd November, 2007, Justice Javed Iqbal, Justice Khalil-ur-Rehman Ramday, Justice Raja Fayyaz Ahmed and Justice Chaudhry Ijaz Ahmad.

The following deposed Judges of the Lahore High Court have also been restored with immediate effect to the position they were holding immediately before the 3rd November, 2007, Justice Khawaja Muhammad Sharif, Justice Ijaz Ahmed Chaudhry and Justice Iqbal Hameed-ur-Rehman

The President has also restored with immediate effect the following deposed Judges of the Sindh High Court to the position they were holding immediately before the 3rd November, 2007, Justice Mubshir Alam and Justice Maqbool Baqar

The President has also restored Mr. Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, deposed Judge of the Peshawar High Court to the position he was holding immediately before the 3rd November, 2007, Farhatullah Babar said. Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry will assume office as Chief Justice with effect from 22 March on the retirement of Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar Chief Justice of Pakistan. All other deposed judges shall assume office with immediate effect, the spokesperson said.-SANA

Yousaf Raza Gillani’s early in the morning address to the nation restoring the remaining including the Chief justice of Pakistan Mr. Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chowdhary was a sigh of relief to the nation. Alas, President Zardari’s advisors could not foresee the repercussions of his decisions not to restore CJ and imposition of Governor rule and he had to see this day. The same mistake was made of the aide of Gen. Musharraf on 9 march 2007 when they advised him to sack the very judge who was lauded by millions in the country for his fairness and bravery. In any event, in the end common sense prevailed and politics won on the day. PM’s decision to seek review of the decision of Supreme Court of 25 February 2009 is the key to promote tolerance in the state, and harmony amongst provinces. This review will also keep the little left respect of the supreme court intact too, as parliamentary action would have promoted confrontation between both. This is the victory of the whole nation which is alive and conscious of the situation it is in, and the whole nation including all section of society whether political workers, civil society, media, lawyers, and lay men, women, and children deserve to be applauded for their forbearance and free expression of their will by participating in the long march.

One must wonders that due to lack of foresightedness, the rulers provided an opportunity to the slept lion Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif to show his bravery and defiance on principles, and popularity which is devastating for the Govt at this early juncture of their 5 years slot. But it will be unjust if we forget the steadfast lawyer leadership, UN intimidated media and robust civil society with thousands of unnamed supporting characters who brought the rulers to their knees and won fruit on the day of long march. They stood on the ground like they did on 3 November 2007 at the time of emergency. Govt of Gillani deserves to be appreciated for listening and meeting public demands, respecting the will of the people as Lawyers and civil society were on streets since 9 March 2007. Army command deserves applause for nipping their lust for power when they bore patiently with the inefficiencies of our today’s rulers who blindfolded threw the nation into a turmoil and flared the hatred when the spirit of reconciliation was in the air. This is the time when Pakistani people have a chance to regroup and make this country a mirror image of the aspirations of millions of those who decided to join this new land at the time of independence in 1947 in a dream come true style by sacrificing nearly 4 million souls. Nation was jubilant in May 1998 after becoming an atomic power and now the nation has a cause to be overjoyed after seeking victory on a principled point of restoration of Chief Justice who defied a military dictator.

If the political forces wishes to move forward from the stalemate of 25 February, then implementation of ‘Charter of Democracy’ and free judiciary are they key ingredients to restore true democracy in Pakistan and this can only restrict military intervention(s) and nip the ‘law of necessity’ in the bud. 20 July 2007 when CJ was restored first, I wrote that one judge does not secure independence of judiciary but is a first step towards right direction. We saw the lawyers reaction, when necessary expectations were not met when SC gave a decision dismissing dual offices case against the Qazi Hussain Ahmed & orders were torn apart. I still hold the same view and political will, consultation and joint collaboration is required to effect this process to conclusion. The whole institution of judiciary needs to be revamped and If these dreams are to be translated in reality then spade work by Supreme Court Bar Association must start now to give a road map on crucial topics such as appointment of judges via non political and unbiased commission, non controversial non political future lawyers who in the end become judges, politics free bar, training of lawyers and judges, accountability of top judiciary, financial autonomy of top judiciary, protection of judges, and separation of administration from judiciary coupled with safe guards to prevent judiciary turning into another military style unbridled power which parallels the executive . These are the questions which needs to be addressed by Lawyer representatives so that Parliament could do positive legislation in days to come.

It was disturbing when we saw a popular political party taking similar actions what we witnessed on 12 May 2007 by a military dictator i.e imposing s.144, blocking channels, exclusion orders for certain leaders, closing borders and usage of containers are a few examples of many. Suspension basic human rights is against the law of the land and international law and Society endorsed and encouraged the freedom of expression, and tolerance as enshrined in Pakistan’s 1973 Constitution (art15,19, and 25) and nation considered the right of people of free speech as inalienable that is why they came in huge numbers when channels were blocked. The welcoming role of sensibles of PPP including Raza Rabbani, Aitzaz Ahsan, Safder Abbassi and Sherry Rehman, Minister of Information who resigned at the time when curbs against Pakistani media were directed acted like a fresh air in a very suffocated atmosphere. It is for the PPP to decide to bring those to books who were truly responsible to bring the country to a total standstill and for adverse administrative measures and imposition of Governor rule, though the public has given their verdict already.

In the current geo political situation in the country option of reconciliation with the people and political forces of Pakistan is the best route possible to curb radicalization and invasion of extremism and as current situation desires all heads of constitutional tracheotomy to observe extreme patience and wisdom and be visionary to avoid conflicts which have serious repercussions for the state of Pakistan. Government of the day must operate a policy of listen and learn and ensure implementation of the ‘Charter of Democracy’ in its letter and spirit, as that’s the dying wish an pledge to the nation of their leader of Shaheed Mohtarma BenNazir Bhuttoo, and a recipe to avoid disaster. The whole nation needs an appreciation for their patience, bravery and ruler’s mischiefs. Well done Pakistan.

ISLAMABAD: Local business community in a meeting presided over by Mian Shaukat Masud, President Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry hailed the government’s timely decision to restore all deposed judges which have averted the country from any major tragedy. They said this decision will go a long way in bringing normalcy and stability in the country which was must for economic revival.

They said the business and economic activities were being badly hit by the prevailing atmosphere of instability and uncertainty and this phenomenon had created more concerns in domestic and international business community about future business prospects while investors were also shying away from coming to Pakistan.

They said our economy was already in troubled waters due to many factors like global recession, high interest rates, high cost of doing business, power shortage while the new developments were adding fuel to the fire causing further economic slump adding to common man’s problems. However they said the government’s timely move to go for reconciliation have rekindled the hopes for better times to come which will facilitate businessmen in their efforts for economic revival.

Businessmen stressed that people mandate should be respected at all costs while efforts should now be focused on stabilizing the economy.

They said it was high time that government should take all possible steps to revive the confidence of investors. They said political stability, improved law & order situation and environment of harmony will create better environment for luring foreign and domestic investment in the country which was essential for boosting up the economy.

They said country was confronted with big challenges like rising poverty, unemployment, security issues, economic downturn, militancy & extremism and added that these challenges call for concerted efforts from all stakeholders to pull the country out of problems. They assured the government of the full cooperation and support in all its decisions and efforts taken for the larger national interest.-SANA

ISLAMABAD: PML-N leader Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif has expressed the confidence that restoration of judiciary would help provide real justice to common man and ensure promotion of democracy and strengthening of institution.

Addressing a public meeting at Gujranwala on Monday, he announced termination of long march and said the nation has achieved the target. He congratulated President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to bring out the country from the long crisis.

He said all political forces including Jamat-e-Islami, Tehrik-e-Insaf and lawyers community are on board in this decision. Mian Nawaz Sharif assured the President and the Prime Minister that his party would work with PPP for implementation of Charter of Democracy.-SANA

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League N (PML-N) Quaid Mian Nawaz Sharif has said no talks with government before restoration of the deposed judiciary. Nawaz Sharif asked the Prime Minister Gilani to come forward to solve the present crisis. He said that President Zardari had not sent him any offer for dialogue adding that there is no secret meeting of Shahbaz Sharif with PM Gilani.

Talking to the senior journalists at his Raiwand Farm, Nawaz Sharif said that he wanted reconciliation among political parties but for this President Zardari must have to fulfill his promises made with PML-N. He said that he wanted that President Zardari to complete his constitutional term of five years but it could not be possible without fulfilling the promises regarding the restoration of deposed judiciary.

He regretted over the behavior of Governor Punjab Salman Taseer adding that restrictions on media and imposition of section 144 could not stop people’s struggle. Nawaz Sharif reiterated his commitment to make success the lawyers’ long march on all costs. He hailed the role of media during the present political crisis in the county adding that his party wanted reconciliation but it would not conducted on the political grounds.

He asked the government to solve the present crisis before the country lead towards the mid-term elections.
Nawaz Sharif said that Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Kayani is trying to solve the present crisis in the country.-SANA

ISLAMABAD: Twenty two former Ambassadors and diplomats of restoration of judiciary, annulment of Governor Rule in Punjab and repealing of 17th amendment.

In their statement issued on Friday, 22 former Ambassadors and diplomats including Akram Zaki, former Secretary General ,Shamshad Ahmed, former Foreign Secretary, Riaz H. Khokhar, former Foreign Secretary ,Dr. S. M. Koreshi,, Touqir Hussain, K. K. Ghori ,S. Azmat Hassan, Mian Qadruddin, Amin Jan Naim ,Mansoor Alam, Amir Usman ,Javid Husain, Mushtaq M. Mehr ,Asif Ezdi, S. Shafqat Kakakhel, Mazhar Qayyum ,Saleem Nawaz Khan Gandapur, Aslam Rizvi, Kamran Niaz , Javed Hafiz, Rashed Saleem Khan and Ayaz Wazir reiterated the call for the restoration of judges removed from their posts by an unconstitutional and illegal act of the Chief of Army Staff, the annulment of Governor’s rule in Punjab, the repeal of the Seventeenth Amendment and bringing General (Retd.) Pervez Musharraf to justice.

They called upon the federal government and the provincial governments of NWFP, Punjab and Sindh to immediately end their crackdown and take all necessary steps to facilitate the Long March and sit-in.

“A special responsibility for ending the grave situation facing the country rests with the Prime Minister and we call upon him to exercise his constitutional powers to take Pakistan out of the present crisis and to put it back on the constitutional path from which it was derailed by General (Retd.) Musharraf” they added.

They further said in the statement that they undersigned former Ambassadors and diplomats were seriously concerned at the steps taken by the Federal Government and the Provincial Governments of NWFP, Punjab and Sindh to stop the Long March and sit-in for the reinstatement of the country’s lawfully constituted judiciary as it existed before the unconstitutional steps taken on 3 November 2007 by the then Chief of Army Staff.

“We remind the Federal Government and the concerned Provincial Governments that the imposition of ban on assembly under Section 144, the detention of lawyers, political leaders and workers and representatives of civil society, the use of force against peaceful demonstrators and other repressive and restrictive measures are a violation of the constitutional guaranteed rights of assembly and expression and of democratic norms” they noted.

They pointed out that these steps further exacerbated the constitutional and political crisis facing the country and threaten to plunge it into deeper turmoil and chaos.-SANA

KARACHI: Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has said that all deposed judges will be restored, however, no deadline can be given in this regard. Talking to media-persons on his arrival at Karachi airport, he said that strengthening of democracy, maintenance of law and order improving the country’s economy are the main priorities of the government. Read the full story

ISLAMABAD: The coalition parties have decided to initiate impeachment proceedings against President Pervez Musharraf and restore all deposed judges strictly in accordance with the Murree Declaration immediately after impeachment of the President. This was stated in a joint communiqué read out by PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari at a joint news conference with PML-(N) leader Mian Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad on Thursday following three days of their deliberations in Islamabad and Karachi. Read the full story

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister, Shahbaz Sharif Thursday demanded of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) to fulfill its promise made in the Murree Declaration and restore the deposed judges. This he said during his meeting with PPP leader Raza Rabbani and Senior Sindh Minister Pir Mazharul Haq here at Chief Minister House. Shahbaz Sharif said the deposed judges should have been restored after the mandate of February 18 but the matter has clearly been shelved. Read the full story