Embattled Pakistani judge acclaimed in Lahore(10's of thousands march)

[maddezmom]

Source: AFP

LAHORE, Pakistan (AFP) - Tens of thousands of people gave Pakistan's sacked top judge a resounding welcome on Sunday as he took his protest to Lahore for the first time since he was fired by President Pervez Musharraf.

Supporters waited overnight on the lawns of the Lahore High Court premises as Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry arrived to address lawyers waging a campaign for his reinstatement.

En route from Islamabad, Chaudhry was cheered by large crowds including lawyers, political party workers and students who showered fresh rose petals on his convoy of vehicles.

Small towns and cities reverberated to chants of "Go Musharraf, go" and "Justice for Chief Justice."



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070506/wl_asia_afp/pakistanprotestjustice

[Kagemusha]

1. I have to admit, I have absolutely no idea if this is a good man or not.

Obviously the process that removed him would not be tolerated in 'real democratic countries' with lifetime appointments (like the US - we can expect 40!! more!! years!! of current chief justice). But aside from that and general loathing of Musharraf I have no idea if this judge has any virtues to defend or not.

[maddezmom]

2. just reading what's been going on lately, I think this guy

is one of the good ones. :shrug:

~snip~

Many say the charges against him are politically motivated.

Chaudhry has drawn the ire of the government because "he began to take the constitutional guarantee of judicial independence too seriously and began to poke the judicial finger into holy waters," said Babar Sattar, an Islamabad- based lawyer.

Chaudhry had caused considerable embarrassment to the government by overturning the much-publicized privatization of a steel mill. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz was tainted for approving the underpriced sale of a major national asset.

The chief justice also took up cases of "forced disappearances" — people believed to have been picked up by the country's powerful intelligence agencies without due process of law.

Human rights groups have expressed concern over the disappearance of at least 400 people in that manner since Pakistan joined the U.S.-led effort to curb terrorism in 2001.

In addition, a number of politically charged cases are likely to come before the Supreme Court in the next few months. Those cases are expected to include one challenging the legality of Musharraf's holding the posts of president and army chief simultaneously and one in which the court is asked to rule on whether the present Parliament can re-elect the general as president.


http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/03/15/news/pakistan.php

[JCMach1]

3. Things continue to get messier... there are rumours of Bhutto

cutting a deal with Musharaf... Imran Khan was screaming about this the other day.

I might point out that ALL of the major players discussed in the elections are CROOKS, LITERALLY...

At this point it is difficult to see where the lesser of all the evils lie...


I will be going to Lahore and Islamabad in a few weeks and will report back when I return about what people are thinking.