What to do of this internal betrayal?
Why does our ‘citizenry’ ANNOUNCES to the WHOLE WIDE WORLD
that we are NOT UNITED, and that COME beat US??
Dushi
Subject “We are tired of military rule” - A statement by some concerned Pakistani citizens
Wow.
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“We are tired of military rule”
A statement by some concerned Pakistani citizens
Greatly alarmed at the current state of affairs in the country, we,
the undersigned, members of civil society, are addressing the people
of Pakistan.
It is sad that even after 48 years after the first military coup, we
are back to square one. Civil society lies at the feet of the army. At
a time when leadership is desperately needed to cope with matters of
vital importance and put the country back on the democratic path,
Pakistan is ruled by a General in uniform who lacks both legitimacy
and credibility.
Seven years after General Musharraf toppled an elected government and
captured political power, the nightmare is not over yet. The result is
the mess we are in today. A sense of defeat hangs over Pakistan. Today
Pakistan has a disjointed, lopsided, topsy-turvy, hybrid political
system - a non-sovereign rubber stamp parliament, a General in uniform
as “President”, and a figurehead Prime Minister - General Musharraf’s
calls “pure democracy”. The people of Pakistan did not deserve this
government because they had no choice in the matter.
The bottom line is becoming inescapable: thanks to corrupt,
unprincipled politicians, ever ready to do business with the military
ruler, General Musharraf will continue to rule 160 million people of
Pakistan as a dictator with a democratic fatade.
The foundations of the 1973 Constitution have been shaken by a
power-hungry General with the help of corrupt politicians and a pliant
judiciary. He has turned the parliament and the judiciary into a
fig-leaf for unconstitutional and illegal practices.
In an effort to acquire political support, General Musharraf, has
openly identified himself and the Pakistan army with one political
party. The Pakistan army is a people’s army. It is not so much an arm
of the Executive branch as it is an arm of the people of Pakistan. It
is the only shield we have against foreign aggression. It is the only
glue that is keeping our fragile federation together. Why politicise
it? Why expose it to the rough and tumble of politics? Why use it as
an instrument for grabbing and retaining political power Today the
biggest single burning issue before the country is how to reclaim the
army from its abuse by a power-hungry junta who want to use it as an
instrument for retaining political power.
Instead of extricating the army from the Waziristan quagmire where the
American-led war against “terrorists” has resulted in the killing of
innocent men, women and children, including security personnel, and
the permanent alienation of Wazir and Mahsud tribesmen, General
Musharraf jumped into the Baluch quicksand and opened a second “Front”
against his own people in Baluchistan resulting in the tragic death of
Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti, Similarly the much trumpeted accountability is
a farce. Today, known corrupt holders of public office are General
Musharraf’s political allies and members of his cabinet. Even the
economy shows little perceptible sign of recovery. Poverty has
deepened. Educated unemployment is on the rise. Investors’ confidence
has not been restored, partly because the law and order situation
shows no sign of improvement and nobody knows what the future shape of
things will look like.
It is now abundantly clear that free, fair and impartial elections
cannot be held in this country, if General Musharraf remains in power.
We believe that Pakistan cannot survive except as a democratic state
based on the principle of sovereignty of the people. Pakistan cannot
survive except under a constitution which reflects t he sovereign will
of the people, not the whims of one individual person. Pakistan cannot
survive except under a system based on the supremacy of civilian rule.
Pakistan cannot survive except as a federation based on the willing
consent of all the federating units. Pakistan cannot survive if the
rule of law gives way to the rule of man. Pakistan cannot survive
under military rule, with or without a civilian fatade, because
military rule lacks legitimacy and is an anachronism in the 21st
century. There are times in the life of a people or a nation - when
the political climate demands that we overtly take sides. We believe
that such times are upon us. A time bomb is ticking in Pakistan. The
country is in deep, deep trouble. General Musharraf is not in tune
with the zeitgeist of Pakistan. There comes a time when people get
tired. We say today to those, who have ruled us so long without our
consent, that freedom from army rule is not negotiable; that their
interest and the interest of Pakistan do not coincide, that we are
tired of military rule, tired of tyranny, tired of being humiliated,
tired of being deprived of our right to elect our rulers. We say to
them: enough! enough!
We have no alternative but to stand up and fight. for a new Pakistan -
free, open, democratic, and a dynamic, developed, and steady country,
standing on its own feet, in control of its destiny, genuinely
respected by its neighbours and the democratic world. A country with a
future. We can wake up today or we can have a rude awakening sooner
than we think.
- Sher Baz Mazari
- Justice (Retd.) M. A. Samdani
- Justice (Retd.) Tariq Mahmood
- Hamid Khan, Former President Supreme Court Bar Association
- Dr.Pervez A. Hoodbhoy
- Dr. Kaiser Bengali
- Ahmad Faraz
- Mairaj Muhammad Khan
- Masood Mufti, Civil Servant (Retd.), Author
- Barrister Baachaa
- Ambassador Amir Usman
- Ambassador Mansoor Alam
- Safdar Siddiqui, Author
- Roedad Khan, Civil Servant (Retd.), Columnist, Environmentalist
