Re: Govt to withdraw cases against MQM
According to Mushrraf forgiving criminals is the best part of national reconciliation.
http://thenews.jang.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=10490
MQM main beneficiary
By Rauf Klasra
ISLAMABAD: General Pervez Musharraf’s use of sweeping powers on Friday to set up “review boards” at Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Quetta and Peshawar to re-examine all criminal cases against the political workers would straightaway benefit 25,000 workers of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) against whom FIRs and court cases are pending in different police stations and courts since 1986.
Although, the widespread perception in the public is that Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari would be the main beneficiaries of the new ordinance as corruption cases pending against them in the courts would be withdrawn and terminated, yet one of the clauses of the ordinance reveals that apart from the PPP, the MQM would be the major beneficiary of this new law.
These 25,000 police cases against MQM workers were registered since 1986 and would now be simply put before the review board being set up at Karachi. A retired judge of the Sindh High Court would head the board.
MQM Minister Babar Ghauri too was given a confirmation by Law Minister Zahid Hamid during the cabinet meeting on Friday, called to stamp its approval of the ordinance before its promulgation by President Musharraf, that the ordinance would benefit MQM workers who are facing criminal cases both in courts and police stations.
As dramatic details of the ordinance start unfolding, the MQM emerges as the major beneficiary of the reconciliation process. MQM is the one political party of the country against whose workers the highest number of cases was registered in the past on charges ranging from kidnapping for ransom to murders.
Parliamentary leader of the MQM in the National Assembly Farooq Sattar, MNA, confirmed on Friday in a Geo talk show “Parliamentary Cafeteria with Asma Chaudhry” that about 25,000 workers of the party were booked during the last many years which, according to him, were cooked-up cases. The talk show will be aired on Geo today (Saturday) during live transmission on presidential elections.
This correspondent also tried to contact Farooq Sattar for comments but he did not attend the call. Federal Minister Babur Ghauri, too, was not available. When contacted by The News, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Dr Sher Afgan Niazi, who briefed the cabinet members on the salient features of the ordinance, said that all cases pending against political workers, including those of the MQM, would be reviewed by the boards being set up under this ordinance.
Earlier, President Musharraf approved the setting up of review boards to reconsider the entire record of the cases and furnish their recommendations. The board, in case of the federal government, shall be headed by a retired judge of the Supreme Court with attorney general and federal law secretary as its members and, in case of provincial governments, it shall be headed by a retired judge of the high court with advocate general or prosecutor general and provincial law secretary as its members.
The board undertaking review of a case may direct the public prosecutor or any other concerned authority to furnish to it the record of the case. Earlier, Farooq Sattar explained in the talk show that MQM workers were greatly discriminated and targeted in the last two decades as about 25,000 FIRs were registered against them “without any justification”.
He also said that MQM had pointed out that only top politicians should not be given the facility of reconciliation by getting cases withdrawn against them. He said the MQM was of the view that the workers of political parties, who have been suffering at the hands of the establishment, should also be given a chance to get their cases reviewed by the boards. He said MQM had also advocated the use of powers by President Musharraf to convert the death sentences of such persons into life imprisonment.