Thousands battle Pakistani police

[rodeodance]

Source: ap



Thousands battle Pakistani police

By MUNIR AHMAD, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 15 minutes ago

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Police fired tear gas and battered thousands of lawyers protesting President Gen. Pervez Musharraf's decision to impose emergency rule, as Western allies threatened to review aid to the troubled Muslim nation. More than 1,500 people have been arrested in 48 hours, and authorities put a stranglehold on independent media.


Musharraf, who took power in a 1999 coup and is also head of Pakistan's army, suspended the constitution on Saturday ahead of a Supreme Court ruling on whether his re-election as president was legal. He ousted independent-minded judges, stripped media freedoms and granted sweeping powers to authorities to crush dissent.

Though public anger was mounting in the nation of 160 million people, which has been under military rule for much of its 60-year history, demonstrations so far have been limited largely to activists, rights workers and lawyers. All have been quickly and sometimes brutally stamped out........

At a news conference in the West Bank on Monday, Rice urged Musharraf to follow through on past promises to "take off his uniform."

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071105/ap_on_re_as/pakistan;_ylt=AgAZeln100lZoRNkegwEcV.s0NUE

[...of J.Temperance]

1. Why are they "threatening to review aid"?

Any other nation, any other "leader" rather that pulled the crap that Musharraf's just pulled would be told that ALL aid was IMMEDIATELY getting cut off.

Why are they STILL treating Pakistan with kid-gloves and pussy-footing around?

Oh wait, I know....apparently only to the DELUSIONAL of course, Pakistan is considered an "Ally"....yeah with so-called friends like Pakistan, who needs enemies.

[Kagemusha]

5. I keep hearing people say that over and over again but...

Let's say Pakistan adopts something like studious neutrality towards Al Qaeda. Not the mislabeled Iraq branch, but actual Al Qaeda and its extremist friends in the belt along the Afghanistan border. Pakistan rejects all US aid, relies on the army's penetration of the civilian economy and on little things called taxes, and finds it needs far less money when it's not fighting rebels in horrid terrain, anyway.

What does the US *do*?

[...of J.Temperance]

6. Well, in the event of that happening

One would hope it would happen post-January 20th 2009, so that there's at least an occupant in the WH who's got a brain and can think outside the box.

I must admit, that at this very moment, I can't think off the top of my head what I'd suggest be done.

This Pakistan shit is going to get scarier and uglier real soon though I fear.

[ContraBass Black]

17. The same thing the US did with North Korea:

Do a little finger wagging in public, take no significant punitive measures, and quietly look for a Clinton-era policy to re-implement.

[EV_Ares]

10. Possibly they are saying with a wink "restore democracy" but then

when they are saying they will review aid, they are basically approving of what is going on. Who knows, arresting lawyers and the political opposition, could be a test run.

[...of J.Temperance]

13. The hypocrisy of the W Administration is amazing

Could you imagine WHAT would happen if the Iranian President Mahmoud Whatshisname pulled this crap and then had bunches of lawyers and the political opposition arrested?

[ozymandius]

2. C'mon Bub! Take it off!

[...of J.Temperance]

4. W's got socks

Stuffed into the crotch of that there flight suit....WHO does he think he's kidding?!

[Jim__]

3. "...thousands of lawyers protesting ..."

Wow! People who understand the meaning of democracy. How many American lawyers (or American people) protested the de facto suspension of habeas corpus?

[rodeodance]

7. Police Battle Lawyers in Pakistan

Source: nytimes




Police Battle Lawyers in Pakistan


By JANE PERLEZ and DAVID ROHDE
Published: November 6, 2007

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Nov. 5 — Police armed with tear gas and clubs attacked thousands of protesting lawyers in the city of Lahore today, and rounded up lawyers in other cities as the government of the Pakistani president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, faced the first signs of concerted resistance to the imposition of emergency rule.

An estimated 150 lawyers were arrested in Lahore after a pitched battle between police and lawyers who stood on the roof of the High Court throwing stones at the police below. Some of the lawyers had bleeding heads as they were shoved into police vans, and some fainted in the clouds of tear gas.

In Multan, another city in the province of Punjab, two new judges who had taken the oath of office under emergency rule Sunday were forced to leave the courtroom after hundreds of lawyers threatened to throw eggs at them.

"We threatened them saying: ‘You’ve taken an unconstitutional oath, if you don’t go we will throw eggs at you.’ They left,” said a lawyer from Multan, Riaz Gilani. ...........

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/06/world/asia/06pakistan.html?hp

---

see photo at site:



Police officers beating a lawyer outside provincial High Courts in Lahore today.
Arif Ali/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Pakistani riot police arresting a lawyer in Lahore today.

[NC_Nurse]

8. It's hard to picture lawyers here doing anything that brave.

Might mess up there suit or something. ;)

[chelsea0011]

9. How long before Bush comments on Pakistan?

[...of J.Temperance]

14. When pigs fly maybe n/t

.

[Brrrp]

15. WH says likely no change in funding for Pakistan

RAMALLAH, West Bank - President Bush's top national security aides say U.S. financial backing for Pakistan's counterterrorism efforts likely will go uninterrupted despite the administration's unhappiness with President Pervez Musharraf's declaration of a state of emergency.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071105/ap_on_re_as/us_pakistan

[Deny and Shred]

11. Democracy in Midast a double-edged sword

One the one hand, democracy is considered a good thing, one of many steps toward 'progress', 'freedom', or a variety of other goals widely deemed positive.

On the other, U.S. policy is anti-terror. When elections put groups like Hamas in power, we must choose to accept that the poeple have spoken, or opt to reject the popular voice because they elected a group seen as purveyors of violence and terror.

Now that the Islamist movements have 'spread to the Capitol' of Pakistan, do we allow elections, with the possibility of creating a legitimately elected Islamist regime - if not an Islamist election majority now, then in a future election? Bear in mind, Pakistan does have nuclear weapons. It is also the main staging area for men an materiel into Afganistan in the War on Teror.

The U.S. supported yet another 'strongman' and has a very difficult line to walk.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071105/ap_on_re_as/pakistan;_ylt=AkHj2pwg.UVw.FFRFkM3kTKs0NUE

[Doctor_J]

12. Pakistanis, Ukranians, French, Venezuelans all stand up

We change the channel. :-(

[IronLionZion]

16. I think it's interesting that lawyers are doing this

and they've done it before. I wonder what the other professions are doing?

Somehow I doubt American lawyers would do the same.

Anyway, Musharraf is hanging on by a thin thread. It's been said that all he has is Allah, America, and the Army, but now it looks like he might just have Allah.

[Roy]

18. George Bush is Soooooo... JEALOUS........

(snip)
"Pakistan - Police fired tear gas and battered thousands of lawyers protesting President Gen. Pervez Musharraf's decision to impose emergency rule, as Western allies threatened to review aid to the troubled Muslim nation. More than 1,500 people have been arrested in 48 hours, and authorities put a stranglehold on independent media.


Musharraf, who took power in a 1999 coup and is also head of Pakistan's army, suspended the constitution on Saturday ahead of a Supreme Court ruling on whether his re-election as president was legal. He ousted independent-minded judges, stripped media freedoms and granted sweeping powers to authorities to crush dissent."
(snip)

[cliss]

19. Here are some photos ~

from swedish newspapers Svenska Dagbladet and Dagens Nyheter.








It seems Europe understands how explosive this situation is.