The Hindu : Front Page : Emergency will go in a month, says official

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Nov 11, 2007
ePaper

Front Page

Front Page

Emergency will go in a month, says official

Nirupama Subramanian

Imran Khan … rallying protesters

ISLAMABAD: The Emergency in Pakistan will be lifted in a month, the country’s senior-most legal official said on Saturday, as President Pervez Musharraf met the Army’s Corps Commanders for the first time since he took the extreme step. The General explained that the decision was in the country’s best interests.

Meanwhile, the former Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, declared she would go ahead with a “long march” from Lahore to the capital for the restoration of the Constitution and the holding of elections.

Attorney-General Malik Qayyum told state-run PTV that the Emergency would be lifted within a month as it was not a permanent solution to the issues facing the country. But in an indication that even the highest echelons of government were not clear about how the situation would unfold, Mr. Qayyum added that the Emergency would be lifted “whenever the law and order situation improves.”

Chairing the 103rd meeting of the Pakistan Army’s Corps Commanders, General Musharraf told them that he wanted to hold free and fair elections “as early as possible.”

According to a military release, President Musharraf said he had taken the “tough” call to impose Emergency “to ensure effective governance, maintain impetus in efforts to root out extremism and terrorism, and provide for a stable political transition.”

Ms. Bhutto made a dramatic appearance with supporters on Saturday at the former Chief Justice, Iftikhar Chaudhary’s home and unsuccessfully tried to break through the barricades to meet him. “He is the real Chief Justice,” she declared, speaking to a crowd of supporters over a megaphone.

Benazir plans march

Ms. Bhutto announced called on lawyers, journalists, civil society activists, trade union leaders and others to join her on November 13 for a planned “long march” from Lahore to Islamabad.

Geo TV reported from Dubai that Pakistan Muslim League (N) leader Nawaz Sharif had written to Ms. Bhutto setting terms for joining an all-party conference (APC) that the PPP leader wants. Mr. Sharif reportedly said the APC must demand the restoration of the Constitution as it was in October 1999, when General Musharraf overthrew him, the reinstatement of the Chief Justice, lifting curbs on the media, and the holding of free and fair elections.

Imran’s call

Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Imran Khan, who evaded house arrest last Sunday and went underground, has made an e-mail appeal to the people to come out on the streets in protest against the Musharraf regime. The former cricket star is reportedly backing efforts to mobilise students against the regime.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Front Page