By Shayne R. Burnham
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – The Pakistani government has arrested or detained at least 300 opposition activists led by the Pakistan Muslim League since March 10, 2009. Authorities hope to prevent the demonstration set in Islamabad, where they will end their march. Activists demand that the government reinstate judges who they claim were illegally fired under former President Perviz Musharraf.
Nawaz Sharif, former Prime Minister who resigned because of Musharraf’s deposing of judges, has rallied Pakistanis to join the march. Sharif and the Pakistan Muslim League demand the restoration to office of Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudry, the Supreme Court chief justice.
In response, the government has banned protests in the Punjab and Sindh provinces.
Among the activists are many Pakistani lawyers who also demand the reinstatement of judges. “These images have raised the passions of everyone who wants an independent judiciary,” said Aitzaz Ahsan, a spokesman for the lawyers.
Human Rights Watch, among other humanitarian groups, calls for the immediate release of the opposition activists.
“It’s a disgrace for elected public officials to mimic the discredited military government by using old and repressive laws to stifle political expression,” said Ali Dayan Hasan, senior South Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The protesters who were arrested should be freed right away and allowed to demonstrate peacefully without fear of violence or arrest.”
There has been a sharp political division in Pakistan as of February 25, when the Supreme Court upheld a ruling that banned Sharif from elections. The Court also dismissed Sharif’s brother, Shahbaz Sharif, from continuing in his capacity as chief minister of the Punjab province. As a result, Sharif has declared a “rebellion” against the government and urges Pakistanis to join the march which will converge in Islamabad on March 16.
“Pakistan’s transition to democracy is imperiled by the government reacting to a political dispute with unnecessary force,” said Hasan. “Regardless of political differences, rights-respecting leaders don’t lock up people for trying to participate in their country’s political process.”
For more information, please see:
AP – Pakistan: Opposition Should Seek Reconciliation – 13 March 2009
Human Rights Watch – Pakistan: Free Detained Opposition Activists – 11 March 2009
Times Online – U.S. and British Diplomats Scramble to Defuse Pakistan Crisis – 12 March 2009
