Senators demand Musharraf’s arrest for supremacy of law

By APP

ISLAMABAD: Lawmakers in the Upper House of the Parliament Thursday demanded action against former President General (retd) Pervez Musharraf for his crimes against constitution, democracy, political leadership and the nation.

They also demanded from the caretaker interior minister to inform the House how he escaped from the court to his residence and “why a former General could not be arrested if the elected prime ministers of the country can be sent to jails.”

Speaking on points of order, the senators claimed that double standard existed in the country in violation of the Constitution which considers every Pakistani equal before the law.

“We have been talking of the rule of law and independence of judiciary. But, today we have seen that it is easy to send an elected prime minister to jail but a former General and military dictator cannot be arrested,” remarked senior PPPP Senator Raza Rabbani.

“In Pervez Musharraf’s case it is test of time. When the court had ordered to arrest him, then why he was not arrested. It’s a question mark,” Rabbani added.

He charged Pervez Musharraf of involvement in the abetment of killing of Benazir Bhutto and Nawab Akbar Bugti, abrogating the constitution and house arresting the judges of superior judiciary.

“Musharraf is a usurper who twice abrogated the Constitution. He was announced to be arrested but he safely fled in connivance with state institutions. The caretaker government was responsible to arrest him and the interior minister should inform the House why the government had not fulfilled its obligations,” Rabbani said.

PPPP Senator Farhatullah Babar said he does not hold caretaker government responsible for his escape. “I have been looking the state apparatus very closely. There are two laws and double standards in the country. If we could not mend it over the time how we can hold the caretakers responsible for these double standards.”

Statement of concern – U.S. senators demand fair treatment for former Amb. Haqqani

By Josh Rogin

Three U.S. senators are calling on the Pakistani government and judiciary to protect former Pakistani Ambassador to Washington Husain Haqqani, who they say has been the victim of “ongoing harassment and mistreatment” since resigning late last year due to the Memogate scandal.

“We are increasingly troubled by Ambassador Haqqani’s treatment since he returned home to Pakistan, including the travel ban imposed on him,” said Sens. John McCain (R-AZ), Joe Lieberman (I-CT), and Mark Kirk (R-IL) in a Thursday statement. “Like many in Washington, we are closely following Ambassador Haqqani’s case. We urge Pakistani authorities to resolve this matter swiftly and consistent with civilian rule of law and to prevent the judicial commission investigating Ambassador Haqqani from becoming a political tool for revenge against an honorable man.” ….

Read more » Foreign Policy (FP)

ANP senators protest pro-army demo in Islamabad

By Asim Yasin

ISLAMABAD: The Senate on Monday echoed with protest over the pro-military demonstration held in Islamabad which the ANP senators saw as a conspiracy against the civilian government and military.

The ANP senators questioned who the demonstrators were and who gave them permission to hold demonstrations to instigate institutions to mutiny against the democratic government.

On a point of order in the Senate on Monday, ANP Senator Haji Adeel raised the issue saying that a few people with the banner of the ‘Amn Committee of Inter-religion Harmony” were raising slogans such as “Step forward Pakistan Army, we are with you’ and “General Kayani is necessary.” Such slogans are a conspiracy not only against the armed forces but also against the civilian government, Adeel said. “Who are these people, what is their purpose and why were the CDA and Traffic Police facilitating them,” he said. …

Read more » The News

Tragically Funny Pakistani Talk shows and Politicians

Pakistani politicians in talk shows. The language of the show is urdu (Hindi).

Courtesy: Aaj Kamran Khan Ke Saath ( special show ) 29th June 2011.

via → ZemTV → YouTube

Focus should be Pakistan not Afghanistan, Sen. Lugar

– US senators see Afghan hope, Pakistan fears

by Shaun Tandon

Excerpt:

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Leading US senators on Tuesday saw momentum for political reconciliation in Afghanistan in the wake of Osama bin Laden’s death and urged a greater shift in focus to fighting extremism in Pakistan. …

…. Senator Richard Lugar, the top Republican on the same committee, questioned why the United States was spending some $120 billion a year in Afghanistan, where some 100,000 US troops are deployed.

“The question before us is whether Afghanistan is strategically important enough to justify the lives and massive resources that we are spending there, especially given that few terrorists in Afghanistan have global designs or reach,” the Indiana lawmaker said.

“To the extent that our purpose is to confront the global terrorist threat, we should be refocusing resources on Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, parts of North Africa and other locations,” Lugar said.

Senators voiced concern about what they saw as support from Pakistan for the Afghan Taliban and Lashkar-e-Taiba, ….

Read more : Yahoo News

via Wichaar

Petition urging 9 senators to join Senator Sanders in stopping the millionaires’ bailout

Block the Millionaire Bailout

Last night, President Obama announced that he’s giving in to the GOP and extending the Bush tax breaks for the rich.

The “deal” President Obama is proposing is an “absolute disaster,” as Senator Bernie Sanders said. So Sen. Sanders said last night he would “do whatever I can to see that 60 votes are not acquired to pass this piece of legislation.”

But Sen. Sanders can’t do it alone. So we’re urging other leading progressives in the Senate to stand with him to block any extension of the millionaire bailout.

Can you sign the petition to leading progressive senators today?

A compiled petition with your individual comment will be presented to Sens. Feingold, Franken, Brown (OH), Boxer, Merkley, Whitehouse, Durbin, Harkin, and Schumer.

Political Action – Sign the Petition : Move On

Sindh’s senators nominated- PPP leadership is deceiving the trust of Sindhis

By Khalid Hashmani

PPP leadership is deceiving the trust of Sindhis by nominating such a large number of non-Sindhis as Senators to represent Sindh. In these critical times when the question of provincial autonomy and decentralization is being vigorously debated in Pakistan and globally, some very crucial votes are likely to take place in various legislative forums of Pakistan. It is imperative that the Sindhi voters are represented by Sindhis to ensure that they will be accountable in Sindh’s history if they hurt the movement towards provincial autonomy and protection of Sindh identity and Sindhi interests. Non-Sindhi senators are not motivated and inspired by the same interests as Sindhi representatives in such matters. Some of these non-Sindhi senators would not even feel guilty by voting for bills that harm Sindhi language, culture, heritage, and identity. At minimum, every Sindhi (even a Sindhi Senator who is motivated more by loyalty to a person than to his/her own people) knows that to vote for constitutional amendments that are against Sindhi interests would be harmful to his/her own personal interests. Many of our fathers and forefathers regretted and continue to regret for their vote to join Pakistan without securing any guarantees for the protection of Sindhi interests and for voting in favor for 1973 constitution that enabled the central government to usurp many of the provincial rights.

Let us hope that this news item is simply a speculation rather than a fact. I do not believe that PPP would be so unwise to make this crucial mistake at this critical juncture and trade away their “own” interests.

Courtesy: Sindhi e-lists/ e-groups.