Kargil: another view

Kargil: another view

The fact remains that the Kargil Heights were on the Pakistan side of the ceasefire line since 1949 and so was the Siachin glacier
until Indian forces moved there.

The Kargil Heights not only commanded the confluence of the supply line from Srinagar and Leh but, more importantly, provided access to Baltistan in the north, which India claims as their ‘atoot ang’.

As late as Aug 9, 1998, Defence Minister Fernandes reiterated: “The part of Kashmir under the control of Pakistan will have to be reclaimed”. He talked of finishing the ‘unfinished business’ of 1971.

The Indian occupation of the Kargil Heights was cause for worry.

In 1982 the Indians sneaked into Siachin (NW of Kargil). The world kept blatantly silent. Siachin adjoins the Chinese border, even they said nothing.

But in May 1999 when our forces moved into the Kargil Heights exactly like the Indians had done in Siachin, there was an
uproar.

It was a brilliant, well-planned move. Logistical support; and strategic depth was provided from the ridges in the north to the well-dug in positions on inaccessible high ground.

There is much ado about who was actually fighting. Call them ‘Pakistan-supported forces’ or ‘Kashmiri guerillas’, what’s in a name! They were fighting to take back what was theirs.

The Indians threw in four divisions of their elite troops with full air support but could not dislodge the Pakistanis.

They tried and tried for nearly two months, longer than any India/Pakistan war. Action on our international border was out of question, a nuclear deterrent was now well in place.

Hundreds of bodies were arriving at Indian homes. Exhaustion was setting in. A plea for ceasefire was imminent. Mr Bajpai tried the last trick in his bag. He sent an SOS to the always ready to help: president Clinton.

Nawaz Sharif was summoned to Washington. Even if he was kept in the dark about Kargil earlier, he was definitely advised this time by his generals to accept a ceasefire but under no condition concede to a pullback. That was the strategy. ‘Finders keepers’ was the prevailing law.

In Washington at the Blair House Nawaz Sharif and president Clinton were the only two persons present, other than Bruce Ridal who was taking notes. Our prime minister was no match for president Clinton. He was browbeaten and threatened.

Eventually he acquiesced.

Alas! A war that we had won hands down on the battlefield was lost on the table in Washington.

Later in March 2000, while addressing the Indian Parliament, Mr Clinton asserted: “It was not India but the US which intervened and forced Pakistan to withdraw from Kargil “.

While the Indian government and the media supported their armed forces to the hilt, our prime minister was telling the world: “I didn’t do it, it was my army chief’.

CAPT S. Afaq Rizvi
Karachi

This post appeared in Dawn: http://www.dawn.com/2011/12/05/kargil-another-view.html

Musharraf will wait for his political comeback. An interesting story

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

By Shaheen Sehbai

KARACHI: General Pervez Musharraf has finally broken down and has accepted defeat, whether fully on his own terms is not yet clear, but he has set a very precious and respectable precedent for future of Pakistani politics and democracy.

By resigning in a constitutional way and allowing a non-violent, smooth and dignified transition, he has broken the tradition of past military dictators who would never quit, unless forcibly pushed, assassinated or removed unconstitutionally.

Of course the stage was set for this ultimate defeat by the political parties through their votes of no-confidence in the provincial assemblies, yet Mr Musharraf could have become a big spoiler, if he had so wanted. He had all the powers to do so, as he said in his final departing address.

But his last words gave away a lot of what remains as an active thought process in Musharraf's mind. The way he presented a long list of his achievements and successes it appeared that he was making the pitch, as if in an electoral contest, for his political comeback, believing firmly that he had, and would like to have, a future political role in Pakistani politics.

This role is not yet available to him but much will depend on how the coalition partners and major political parties behave in the next few months and years. If the six months after the Feb 18 elections are any guide, the omens are not very encouraging but politicians have to rise up to the occasion if they have to survive.

Musharraf had very obviously and conveniently devised the wait and see strategy after the elections as he expected, somewhat rightly, that the PPP and the PML-N would not be able to keep the coalition together and once they break up he and his supporters will again get a breakthrough and regain the initiative. He came perilously close to achieving his goal, of course through efforts he could make as the man occupying the presidency.

Yet Mr Asif Zardari and Nawaz Sharif stood together, demonstrating that they have understood one core and fundamental fact for their political survival and success ñ their sticking together for the common cause, as enunciated in the Charter of Democracy. It is that core value which defeated Musharraf and all his machinations.

Musharraf's insistence that he would stay in Pakistan is again based primarily on the calculation that until the two major parties break up he should be provided a safe stay and when they break up, he would re-launch himself, probably as a leader of the Karachi-led Mohajir population, with or even without, the blessings of Mr Altaf Hussain.

This streak of leading the Karachi political scene was more than evident in his recent visits to Karachi where he tried to create his own lobby of businessmen and mohajir leaders, almost to the exclusion of Altaf Hussain and his hard core supporters.

Musharraf's address one night a few weeks ago to a select group of Karachi businessmen, where his strong supporter Governor Ishrat ul Ebad was present and Karachi Mayor Mustufa Kamal made his famous, but mysterious, comment that within a few months the geography of Karachi may change, was seen by Altaf Hussain as an attempt to challenge him on his turf.

Within hours of that Musharraf address, his first after months of post-Feb 18 polls hibernation, Altaf Bhai had to arrange his own gathering of Karachi businessmen and address them from London. Why this need for a parallel event felt by the MQM headquarters in London was obvious: Mr Musharraf was trying to hijack his party and Altaf Bhai is not an amateur in fighting turf wars. Soon thereafter both Governor Ebad and Mayor were summoned to London for whatever happens to MQM men when they err.

Yet while it is too early to discuss the future of Musharraf, the coalition has to decide whether they would let him go Scot free, let him enjoy the interim period of absence from the scene, and then bounce back when the people get frustrated with the democratic experience or possible coalition infighting.

The alternative for them is not to allow Musharraf to leave the country, press on the charges that they have been preparing against him, restore the judiciary in its original form and let these independent judges decide whether Musharraf is guilty of any punishable crimes and what sentence should he be handed.

The mid-term strategy to get this possible political threat out of their way would be to get Musharraf convicted in a fair trial on any one or more charges and get him sentenced so that he is disqualified for holding an elected office.

Any indemnity, if offered under whatever domestic or foreign pressures, must be strictly conditional with a definite term that Musharraf would never indulge in politics and would not be qualified to hold any elected office. This could form the basis for a new NRO to be written by Mr Zardari for a fallen dictator who must now be left to stew in his own juices as people of Pakistan celebrate.

Yet if the fallen dictator is given a general amnesty, there is no reason on earth to offer the same to all the corrupt cronies and middlemen, who had descended on Pakistan from all around the world to enjoy power, pelf and perks. These men, like PCB Chairman Dr Nasim Ashraf and his types, must be brought to book and made examples of.

Musharraf will wait for his political comeback

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Not the time to resist, says musharraf

President Pervez Musharraf said political reconciliation needed to be sought for stability of Pakistan not the resistance.

ARY OneWorld Leading News Protal of Pakistan (Urdu - English), Watch Live ARY News,8/14/2008 3:11:34 PM

so mr mush, y r y resisting??? y dont u go home when 3 assemblies have showed no confidence in u??? when will u get unpopular???? when u say tht its not the time to resist, whom r u addressing??? the coalition parties???? y dont u apply ur sayings to urself???

kuch to sharam karein sadar sahab... jab bacha bacha gaaliyan dega tab aapko feel hoga k aap unpolpular honay waalay hain???? chalein sharam na karein, damagh hi istemaal ker lein... ohh sorry! chalein aisa karein kisi damagh walay se mashwara ker lein...

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MQM helps Sindh Assembly pass a unanimous resolution against Musharraf :)

The 168-member assembly of the southern province of Sindh Wednesday unanimously passed a resolution that demanded a vote of confidence on President Pervez Musharraf in the presidential electoral college or his resignation.

One of Musharraf's devout allies, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), staged a walkout as the debate on the resolution started, leaving no one in the house to defend the beleaguered leader.

The Sindh assembly has around 69 pro-Musharraf members from the MQM and three other smaller parties.

Sindh Assembly passes resolution against Musharraf's ouster

PML-Q and MQM should have voted and prevent a unanimous resolution... i mean this is the province where mush could get some support... 60 to 70 legislators could have voted for him n let him feel a bit stronger... but the 'representatives' of ppl of khi, who were blindly supporting mush for last so many years, suddenly turned their back towards the president... will the ppl of khi who kept supportin mush for many reasons includin the 'economic boom' ask their legislators y did this happen??? y did the legislators left their beloved man alone in difficult times??? wht is the stance of mqm??? wht caused them to change their loyalties???

From other provinces, where there was no or negligible support for mush, the resolution could not pass unanimously. Even in punjab, where there r so many critics of mush, PML-Q stood bravely for their leader... But in a province where almost 40% legislators were musharraf's ally, the resolution passed without any resistance... '0' votes against the resolution

the credit goes to 'representatives' of ppl of khi, and PML-Q... well done both parties...

it seems tht mqm is now friends with ppp coz it only needs govt. it only needs incentives... who cares for the ppl n their wishes... will ppl of khi think abt this behavior by their party??? will they ever hold them responsible for anything???

the time is not far when ppl of khi who were the strongest supporters of mush, will have anti mush sentiment... ppl r just waitin for an order from the headquarters, their only leader, the world's only honest man... altaf bhai... this is how mqm proceeds... this wht they call politics

Also see the following:

MQM members’ decision to boycott the session was described by Sindh Information Minister Shazia Mari as "a positive role" and a victory for the people of the province.

Earlier, a joint meeting of parliamentary party of MQM in Sindh Assembly and Rabta Committee late on Tuesday night announced that the party would not support the impeachment resolution against President Musharraf. A statement released by MQM affirmed its support for President Musharraf claiming that the party never ditches its friends.

Khaleej Times Online - Sindh MPAs pass no-trust motion against Musharraf

a unanimous resolution clearly shows tht "MQM never ditches its friends" hehehe... it just shows its back when friends need it... MQM actually is a friend in need... i.e. it is friends with u only if it is in need :)... wht does it need???? govt., power n its hold on khi... thts it!

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Impeachment vs Restoration

Rise of Pakistan

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delayin tactics

I am unhappy with the decision made by the ruling coalition... impeaching and sending mush home is not the solution... they shld had restored the judges... n then decide whatever they want to... the argument tht restoring judges will result in conflict with presidency is invalid... i mean its strange to assume tht mush will hit back if we restore judges but will remain silent n will not hit back if we directly attack him... come on nawaz n zardari... haven't u seen this guy before???? he has couped twice n each time makin an excuse tht there were conspiracies being hatched against me, so for the 'greater good' of the nation n country i took unconstitutional steps...

mr. nawaz the goal is not achieved... u could not stay firm on ur principle stand... do not call this decision a success... u have been fooled once again i guess :) mush will stay there, rather will become even more powerful... n judges issue will b buried :(

u shld had left the coalition on the basis of all the delaying tactics played by zardari n co. ... now mush can refer to the 'neutralized judiciary' for help, n they'll certainly help him... he is their boss... he appointed them for the 'greater good' of the nation n the state... how can they betray their 'constitutional' boss who is not eligible to b president by any law :) ...

in my opinion mush is in a position to handle this impeachment thing successfully n he'll stay there... only an independent judiciary could have punished him for his wrong doings...

American Aims + Revealing Secrets (Part 2)

Nawa-i-waqt

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Revealing Secrets: Mush n AQ Khan

Source:http://nawaiwaqt.com.pk/urdu/daily/july-2008/14/idarati1.php#1

Did Feb 18, 2008 change anything???

Nawa-i-waqt

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Clear orders about not supporting those who betray trust... will our govt. listen to it by any chance?????

^An-Nisa

¹⁰⁵ We have sent down to thee the Book in truth, that thou mightest judge between men, as guided by Allah. so be not (used) as an advocate by those who betray their trust;

¹⁰⁶ But seek the forgiveness of Allah. for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.

¹⁰⁷ Contend not on behalf of such as betray their own souls; for Allah loveth not one given to perfidy and crime:

¹⁰⁸ They may hide (Their crimes) from men, but they cannot hide (Them) from Allah, seeing that He is in their midst when they plot by night, in words that He cannot approve: And Allah Doth compass round all that they do.

¹⁰⁹ Ah! These are the sort of men on whose behalf ye may contend in this world; but who will contend with Allah on their behalf on the Day of Judgment, or who will carry their affairs through?

¹¹⁰ If any one does evil or wrongs his own soul but afterwards seeks Allah's forgiveness, he will find Allah Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.

¹¹¹ And if any one earns sin. he earns it against His own soul: for Allah is full of knowledge and wisdom.

¹¹² But if any one earns a fault or a sin and throws it on to one that is innocent, He carries (on himself) (Both) a falsehood and a flagrant sin.

The Holy Qur'an/An-Nisa - Wikisource

by when will v keep supporting USA on its war on terror????
read 109 and be afraid of the day the ayat is talkin abt...
there is still time, lets return to Allah... read 110... plz return...

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Clear orders about not supporting those who betray trust... will our govt. listen to it by any chance?????

^An-Nisa

¹⁰⁵ We have sent down to thee the Book in truth, that thou mightest judge between men, as guided by Allah. so be not (used) as an advocate by those who betray their trust;

¹⁰⁶ But seek the forgiveness of Allah. for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.

¹⁰⁷ Contend not on behalf of such as betray their own souls; for Allah loveth not one given to perfidy and crime:

¹⁰⁸ They may hide (Their crimes) from men, but they cannot hide (Them) from Allah, seeing that He is in their midst when they plot by night, in words that He cannot approve: And Allah Doth compass round all that they do.

¹⁰⁹ Ah! These are the sort of men on whose behalf ye may contend in this world; but who will contend with Allah on their behalf on the Day of Judgment, or who will carry their affairs through?

¹¹⁰ If any one does evil or wrongs his own soul but afterwards seeks Allah's forgiveness, he will find Allah Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.

¹¹¹ And if any one earns sin. he earns it against His own soul: for Allah is full of knowledge and wisdom.

¹¹² But if any one earns a fault or a sin and throws it on to one that is innocent, He carries (on himself) (Both) a falsehood and a flagrant sin.

The Holy Qur'an/An-Nisa - Wikisource

by when will v keep supporting USA on its war on terror????
read 109 and be afraid of the day the ayat is talkin abt...
there is still time, lets return to Allah... read 110... plz return...

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Those who killed Laal Masjid's innocent students, plz read 4:93

^An-Nisa

⁹² Never should a believer kill a believer; but (If it so happens) by mistake, (Compensation is due): If one (so) kills a believer, it is ordained that he should free a believing slave, and pay compensation to the deceased's family, unless they remit it freely. If the deceased belonged to a people at war with you, and he was a believer, the freeing of a believing slave (Is enough). If he belonged to a people with whom ye have treaty of Mutual alliance, compensation should be paid to his family, and a believing slave be freed. For those who find this beyond their means, (is prescribed) a fast for two months running: by way of repentance to Allah. for Allah hath all knowledge and all wisdom.

⁹³ If a man kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell, to abide therein (For ever): And the wrath and the curse of Allah are upon him, and a dreadful penalty is prepared for him.

a muslim is ordered not to take any action (even) against munafiqeen if they join a group who is friends with u... see ayat 90 for example:

⁸⁸ Why should ye be divided into two parties about the Hypocrites? Allah hath upset them for their (evil) deeds. Would ye guide those whom Allah hath thrown out of the Way? For those whom Allah hath thrown out of the Way, never shalt thou find the Way.

⁸⁹ They but wish that ye should reject Faith, as they do, and thus be on the same footing (as they): But take not friends from their ranks until they flee in the way of Allah (From what is forbidden). But if they turn renegades, seize them and slay them wherever ye find them; and (in any case) take no friends or helpers from their ranks;-

⁹⁰ Except those who join a group between whom and you there is a treaty (of peace), or those who approach you with hearts restraining them from fighting you as well as fighting their own people. If Allah had pleased, He could have given them power over you, and they would have fought you: Therefore if they withdraw from you but fight you not, and (instead) send you (Guarantees of) peace, then Allah Hath opened no way for you (to war against them).

when a munafiq cannot be killed if he/she is with our friends, then how can we justify attackin a group of students -who is inside our country and sitting in a masjid which comes in jurisdiction of the state and does not have ample resources to plot treason- just for keeping some (so called) foreigners with them????

The Holy Qur'an/An-Nisa - Wikisource

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And, who invented daylight saving?

By Salman Rashid

JOHNNY Hart's absolutely hilarious comic strip �BC� has the kid ant asking the dad ant who invented daylight saving. Dad ant tells the kid that it was Edison, but not Thomas as is commonly believed. It was his brother Mason, the inventor of the Mason Jar, who did it.

Every day, so dad ant tells the kid, Mason would go to his workshop, blow a jar as they used to blow glass jars in the old days and set it out in the sun to dry before capping it.

Little did old Mason realise that his jars were filling up with daylight and when he capped them, he got a jar full of daylight. Since blowing glass jars was his business, he soon had a whole great bunch of them all duly filled with daylight. Then one day the expected happened: just about sunset, one of the jars, perhaps too overfilled with daylight, blew the top. And, presto! the world had an extra hour of daylight.

Satisfied, kid ant turns around while dad ant nonchalantly spits out his wad of tobacco and says to himself, �This home schooling could turn out to be a lot more fun than I thought.� This, I suspect, is the sentence with a little variation that some bureaucrat in Islamabad, having high-fived his lesser crony, said.

With the variation the bureaucrat�s sentence would be something like, �Could you believe these moronic politicians would fall for this one so soon again? Making them look like fools is going to be a lot more fun than we thought.�

As the late great Peter Ustinov once said that he suspected there was a room in the foreign office where they taught future diplomats to stammer, so too do I suspect there are several rooms in every department in the Islamabad secretariat where sinister characters concoct such imbecile ideas to be inflicted upon us poor masses via our unthinking herds of politicians. It might work for the West with its high literacy to put their clocks forward by an hour every spring and back every autumn, but in a country of just about 10 per cent actually literate people, it does not.

Go back 19 years and you first find this absurd idea almost being inflicted upon us by the first PPP government. It was the winter of 1989-90 when out of the blue came the announcement that Pakistani clocks were being set ahead � yes, ahead � in a few days� time.

The nation immediately went into turmoil. Thank heavens we only had PTV to tell us how our lives were going to be revolutionised by this one hour of jiggery-pokery. Had private channels been then inflicted on us as now, they would have gone into overdrive screaming about how the Zionist-Hindu lobby had launched the final solution for the unmaking of Pakistan.

Good sense prevailed and the idiotic idea was killed before it could actually be put into practice. Years stumbled by and then we had The Man Who Would Refuse To Ever Know His End Is Come. One summer (was it 2002 or the year after?) it was announced that like most of the western world, we too were to put our clocks ahead by one hour.

Those very same bureaucrats, having sold their crazy idea to generalissimo-politico, were once again sniggering up their sleeves. They could hardly believe that the person who thought he was the smartest thing ever to happen to this sorry land was so easy to fool.

Shortly after we began revelling in the extra hour of General daylight, the people of Sibi being particularly enamoured of it especially when temperatures there hit 52 Celsius, I went cycling around rural Punjab. As I waited for my cup of tea at a village teashop, an elderly woman came along to ask the man what time it was. He told her and she looked a little uncertain as she turned to go. Then she stopped and asked if this was the �real� 10 o�clock or Musharraf�s 10 o�clock.

This woman of rural Punjab, like all those of her kind sprinkled across the villages of the entire country, was a real Pakistani: simple, with little or no education, whose daily timetable was guided less by clocks, more by the rising and setting of the sun.

When she needed to milk her buffalo, she did not give a fig about what the clock said. She milked it when the stars above still blazed and the horizon had just a touch of colour. Summer or winter, it was the sun that set the pace for her chores of the day, the same way it did for those millions of other real Pakistanis.

The foolishness was permitted to persist for a full six months because generalissimo did not want to admit he had made a very foolish mistake. Reversion to Pakistan Standard Time was greeted with a great sigh of relief. Speaking of PST, here�s another gem which shows why we should not indulge in this gimmickry that suits only 100 per cent literate nations. Radio Pakistan and PTV announcers would tell you what o�clock it was Pakistan Standard Time. No one told those morons that the time we were going by was not PST but summer time.

If you have kept your eyes open and watched the pattern of life in Pakistan, you will know that it was the introduction of satellite TV that turned our lives around. Until then, ordinary folks would watch the nine o�clock news on PTV and hit the sack. Then came �The Bold and the Beautiful�, and people who could not understand a word of English stayed awake all night watching the same inanity again and again and again. And so it was since the onset of the Nutty Nineties that our lives were no longer guided by the sun.

Now when the government told the traders to do business on Sunday instead of Friday in order to stagger businesses and offices, the traders duly thumbed their noses at the government. They also told it to go to hell about closing at 9 pm. Why, it was their business and they had every right to carry on until whenever they wished, they are now on record as having said. They have every right to go home about midnight and watch Indian soap operas until the muezzin calls them to their first duty of the day. Saving electricity be damned.

Frankly, if you ask me, I say why settle for just one hour of daylight saving. We can have as many Mason Jars of daylight as we want if we set our clocks forward by, say, five or even 10 hours. Maybe even a few years. Why not claim to be living in the year 2199? Imagine the daylight and the electricity we will save by eliminating the intervening years. No half measures, I say, go the whole hog.

The writer is the author of several travel books.

odysseus@beaconet.net

DAWN - Editorial; June 09, 2008

An interesting piece of writing :)

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Mukhtar on drone attacks in tribal areas

United States (US) troops are not violating the sanctity of Pakistani borders as “they use pilotless drones to hit Al-Qaeda hideouts in Pakistani tribal areas, according to Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar.

The minister, apparently justifying the unmanned drone attacks, told a press conference on Thursday the US had claimed to have killed senior Al-Qaeda operatives in Damadola. A drone attack on the village on May 14 claimed 12 lives, who, according to locals, were children and women, while security forces in Afghanistan claimed top Al-Qaeda militants were killed in the fourth attack on the village.

Mr Mukhtar said the government lodged protest if the US violated the borders. He said Al Qaeda operatives should not use Pakistani territory for their militancy.

The minister said that Pakistan Muslim League-N Nawaz Sharif and other coalition partners were evaluating the constitutional package. He said President Pervez Musharraf should fulfill his promise of quitting the Presidency as the PML-Q had lost the elections.

He said the government was working to improve conventional deterrence against its enemies and the armed forces were doing well within the restricted funds provided to them.

About an inquiry into the Kargil issue, he said that the interview of Lt-Gen Jamshed Kiayni (retd), broadcast on a television channel, was not good because he had served with President Musharraf and enjoyed benefits under his command.

Mukhtar on drone attacks in tribal areas -DAWN - National; June 06, 2008


:(... great justifications

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Article inserted in constitution by Musharraf

The following is the text of Article 270AAA inserted in the Constitution by President Pervez Musharraf last year.

In the Constitution, after Article 270AA, the following new Article shall be added, namely:- “270AAA. Validation and affirmation of laws etc. (1) The proclamation of Emergency of 3rd November, 2007, all President’s Orders, Ordinances, Chief of Army Staff Orders, including the Provisional Constitution order No.1 2007, the Oath of Office (Judges) Order, 2007, the amendments made in the constitution through the Constitution (Amendment) Order, 2007 and all other laws made between the 3rd day of November, 2007 and the date on which the Proclamation of Emergency of the 3rd Day of November, 2007, is revoked (both days inclusive), are accordingly affirmed, adopted and declared to have been validly made by the competent authority and notwithstanding anything contained in the Constitution shall not be called in question in any court or forum on any ground whatsoever.

“(2) All orders made, proceedings taken, appointments made, including secondments and deputations, and acts done by any authority, or by any person, which were made, taken or done, or purported to have been made, taken or done, on or after the 3rd day of November, 2007 in exercise of the powers derived from any Proclamation, Provisional Constitution Order No. 1 of 2007, President’s orders, ordinances, enactments, including amendments in the Constitution, notifications, rules, orders, bye-laws, or in execution of or in compliance with any orders made or sentences passed by any authority in the exercise or purported exercise of powers as aforesaid, shall, notwithstanding anything contained in the Constitution or any judgment of any court, be deemed to be and always to have been validly made, taken or done and shall not be called in question in any court or forum on any ground whatsoever.

“(3) All proclamations, President’s orders, ordinances, Chief of Army Staff Orders, laws, regulations, enactments, including amendments in the Constitution, notifications, rules, orders or bye-laws in force immediately before the date on which the Proclamation of Emergency of the 3rd day of November, 2007 is revoked, shall continue in force until altered, repealed or amended by the competent authority.

“Explanation.- In this clause, “competent authority” means,- (a) in respect of President’s orders, ordinances, Chief of Army Staff Orders and enactments, including amendments in the Constitution, the appropriate Legislature; and (b) in respect of notifications, rules, orders and bye- laws, the authority in which the power to make, alter, repeal or amend the same vests under the law.

“(4) No prosecution or any other legal proceedings, including but not limited to suits, constitutional petitions or complaints, shall, notwithstanding anything contained in the Constitution or any other law for the time being in force, lie in any court, forum or authority against any person or authority on account of or in respect of issuance of the legal instruments referred to in clause (1) and on account of or in respect of any action taken by the Chief of Army Staff, the President or any other in exercise or purported exercise of the powers referred to in clause (2).

“(5) For purpose of clauses (1), (2) and (4) all orders made, proceeding taken, appointments made, including secondments and deputation, acts done or purporting to by made, taken or done by any authority or person shall be deemed to have been made, taken in good faith and for the purpose intended to be served thereby.”

Rise of Pakistan: Article inserted by Musharraf

This article could have been in simpler language if they'd have used the word 'Musharraf' in in place of the bold text in the post. For example the text in clause 4 would look like "... on account of or in respect of any action taken by musharraf in execise or purported..." See, the govt. itself has complicated the text. Such simplifications could have been easier to understand and implement. Those would also have told ppl tht mush is undoubtedly the sole king of a 'sovereign' state. Oh it could even be further simplified by using the following text: "Any thing done by Musharraf in Pakistan since the time he has been living in pakistan has been done validly and notwithstanding anything contained in the Constitution shall not be called in question in any court or forum on any ground whatsoever. Musharraf always does everything in a good faith, whether he does it as a president, or a chief of army staff or in any other role." Be it the 1999 govt. take over or 2007 coup, he did not do anything for himself, it was infact in greater interest of the country. For example removing 60 judges who oppose a single spoiled child is for the greater good of the country. Obviously almost 70% of the judiciary can be wrong but absolute mush cannot be. It is written in the constitution article 270AAA that he does every such thing it in good faith. May Allah bless him and show him the right path. And if he cannot be blessed, then Allah may bless us by removin him from presidency.

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Nuclear scientist Dr. A. Q. Khan criticizes Musharraf

Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, the detained architect of Pakistan's nuclear program, rebuked Pervez Musharraf on Thursday, saying the country has “gone to the dogs” in the last 10 years. Speaking by phone from his Islamabad residence, he told Dawn News television that the test had proved skeptics in the west wrong that “we were not capable of doing anything.” Yet hopes Pakistan could then make progress in economic development after becoming “self-sufficient” in national defence had not been realized, he said. “This has not happened. The last 10 years, the country has gone to the dogs,” Khan said. “People are hungry. You see the (rising) prices and all.” Asked if he blamed Musharraf for the nation's problems, Khan said: “The team leader is to be responsible for the failure of the team but all those who were with him did not assert themselves and (did not) do a proper job.” He was of the view that the new government should be given time to cope with Pakistan's many problems. Dr. Khan told Dawn News that the restrictions on his movements had not been relaxed although he was allowed out of his house to visit the Academy of Sciences this month to mourn a former colleague. Khan said he was free to use the phone but soldiers still guard his house and “only a very few people have been allowed to come and see me.” He also said his health had deteriorated because of his detention, adding that he had suffered many illnesses including deep vein thrombosis and prostate cancer - for which he underwent surgery last year. AFP adds: Asked about Pakistan’s nuclear test, Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan said most of the facts about it were widely known, but there would be further revelations. When asked what was yet to be revealed, he said: “They will be out, there are some things -- they will be out in time, when and appropriate time is there,” adding that there were certain subjects he could not talk about because of the “national interest.”

- DAWN - Latest Stories; May 29, 2008

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’نہ استعفےکا فیصلہ کیا،نہ ایساارادہ ہے‘ main koi ghairatmand hoon???

ایوان صدر کے ترجمان میجر جنرل (ر) راشد قریشی نے کہا ہے کہ صدر پرویز مشرف نے نہ تو اپنے عہدے سے استعفیٰ دینے کا فیصلہ کیا ہے اور نہ ہی وہ ایسا کوئی ارادہ رکھتے ہیں۔

جمعرات کو بی بی سی سے بات کرتے ہوئے انہوں نے کہا کہ صدر کے حکومتِ پاکستان سے اچھے تعلقات ہیں اور وہ قائم رہیں گے۔

انہوں نے بعض اخبارات میں شائع ہونے والی ان خبروں کو من گھڑت اور بے بنیاد قرار دیا جن میں کہا گیا ہے گزشتہ شب آرمی چیف سے ملاقات کے بعد صدر نے مستعفی ہونےکا فیصلہ کیا ہے اور کسی بھی وقت اس کا اعلان متوقع ہے۔

سابق وزیراعظم میاں نواز شریف کی جانب سے صدر پرویز مشرف کو ہٹانے اور ان پر غداری کا مقدمہ چلانے کے بیان پر راشد قریشی نے کہا کہ ان کا بیان تبصرے کے لائق ہی نہیں ہے۔

hahaha More entertainment on BBC :)

Asif supports move to oust Musharraf, claims Nawaz (but zardari to phir mukar jaye ga)

PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif said here on Wednesday that there was no justification for providing a safe exit to Pervez Musharraf and claimed that PPP co-chairman Asif Zardari had agreed with him to remove the former army chief from the presidency.

He said that Musharraf must be held accountable for abrogating the Constitution.

He announced that he would join the lawyers’ march if the pre-emergency judiciary was not restored.

Speaking at a function held here to mark the 10th anniversary of first nuclear tests, Mr Sharif said that during a meeting with him in Islamabad on Tuesday, Mr Zardari had agreed to work with him to oust Pervez Musharraf.

Urging the masses to be prepared for a decision greater than the one they had given on Feb 18, the PML-N leader said that had his party got a clear mandate he would have overthrown Musharraf the following day.

The former prime minister, who was ousted in a military coup on Oct 12, 1999, said he had forgiven Musharraf for the mistreatment and torture he had suffered at his (Musharraf’s) hands.

But, he said, he would not absolve Musharraf from the charges of devastating the country by selling it to foreign powers, carrying out what he called the Lal Masjid massacre, incarcerating nuclear scientist Dr A.Q. Khan and superior court judges and handing over innocent Pakistanis to American agencies in return for dollars.

“I have told Mr Zardari that I will ride the lawyers’ bus for Islamabad if the deposed judges are not reinstated,” Mr Sharif added.

He said his party had quit ministries for the sake of its principled stand on the judges’ issue and it was ready to go even further.

Urging the masses to be ready for a movement for deciding the fate of the country, he said that people had to prove that “they are a living nation”.

The fate of the country should be decided in Islamabad, and not in Washington or anywhere else, he added.

He said India had recognised Pakistan as an independent and sovereign nation when Islamabad detonated the nuclear devices. But, he regretted that an army dictator had pushed the country towards destabilisation, carried out massacre from Karachi to Khyber and given the nation the gift of suicide attacks and lawlessness.

Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Sirdar Zulfikar Khosa, Khwaja Saad Rafiq and other PML-N leaders spoke on the occasion.

Asif supports move to oust Musharraf, claims Nawaz: ‘No justification for providing safe exit’ -DAWN - Top Stories; May 29, 2008

we look forward to see u in the lawyers' bus Mr. Sharif... this act will pull crowds i m sure...

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Musharraf's unlimited capacity to bear indignities

Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

President Musharraf's capacity to bear indignities, provided he is allowed to retain his office, seems to be unlimited. While he has repeatedly said he is willing to work with the new government, he continues to be conveyed through unambiguous gestures that he is not acceptable to the newcomers.

On Monday he administered oath to federal ministers, nine of whom wore black armbands to indicate they would rather see his back than face. They told the protocol officer they would not stand up on the arrival of the president to slight him. It took the ceremony to be over in seven minutes after which they walked out without shaking hands with him. Earlier on March 24, at the election of the new prime minister, the National Assembly had resounded with slogans of "Go Musharraf, Go" and at Mr Gillani's oath taking ceremony, attended by military top brass command and foreign diplomatic corps, there were again slogans that made Musharraf squirm.

On Tuesday there was another embarrassment waiting for him. None of the newly appointed cabinet members turned up at 13th Comstech General Assembly, the first international function attended by diplomats from the Islamic countries after take over by the new government to be addressed by Musharraf. As invitations had been duly dispatched to all the ministers this amounted to a calculated boycott. The unmistakable message was, well, we have other important things to do.

As if to give a lie to Rashid Qureshi's claim that everyone other than Mian Nawaz Sharif was dying to work with Musharraf, all top leaders of the four party alliance boycotted the two oath taking ceremonies. And if this was not enough, he has reportedly been told by Dr Fehmida Mirza that the speaker's chamber in the parliament under Musharraf's use since 2005, would no more be available to him.

For full five years Musharraf refused to address the previous National Assembly despite its having been turned into a rubber stamp. He called it ill-mannered because the opposition which was being constantly steam-rollered occasionally resorted to anti-Musharraf slogans. He felt at home in the meetings of a pliant ruling party that he frequently co-chaired. He wielded the COAS baton like the magician's wand to remove and install prime ministers at will. This is all a dream now. Used to playing with lapdogs Musharraf will have to live with pit bulls.

Majority of those who were administered oath on Monday have been unjustly targeted by Musharraf in the past. The idea had been to change their loyalties through pressure. The prime minister spent five years in jail on false accusations and was honourably acquitted by the court. Navid Qamar spent over a year behind the bars, Ahmad Mukhtar a year and half. Senior Minister Nisar Ali Khan was kept under detention for a year and a half, Ishaq Dar for a similar period, Khwaja Asif for over a year and Shahid Khaqan Abbasi for seventeen months. How can Musharraf build up rapport with his victims who have returned to power against his wishes on the basis of a historic verdict?

February elections have brought a seismic change in Pakistan's politics. Prime Minister Gillani says his relations with the president would be strictly in accordance with the constitution. In other words, the new prime minister would not allow him to make intrusions into his turf as he has been doing in the past. Henceforth the prime minister would deal with Bush, Gordon Brown, Manmohan Singh, Hamid Karzai, Wen Jiabao and others. It is he rather than the president who would address the UN sessions, Davos moots and attend summits. Gone are the foreign junkets and visits abroad to play bridge with friends that cost the national exchequer heavily. The voluntary reduction of expenses of the Prime Minister House by 40 percent is a signal that the presidency too is going to be required to follow suit.

The lawyers have vowed to converge on the Army House after the thirty-day countdown to evict him for being an unauthorised occupant, accusing him of using the premises for conspiracies against the elected government. Their leaders have already accused Musharraf of indulging in games to sabotage the Murree Accord. An unquenchable thirst for power has led Musharraf pocket one insult after another. It remains to be seen if his capacity to take indignities has any limits.

The Emergency Times

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