A
Matter of Profound Joy
By Perwaiz Ahmad
Fullerton, CA
"Free at last, Free at
last, Free at last". These words were uttered
by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr, in his famous speech,
"I have a Dream" delivered 44 years
ago on August 28, 1963, years before his brutal
and insane assassination in 1968 by the bigots
who exist in every part of the world. His speech
reverberates, even today, in the hearts and minds
of many who listen to his recorded address. It
has helped change the mindset of many who could
not fathom a color-blind society where a Black,
White and Brown could live, work and play together.
This country, that is our adopted homeland is
far from perfect but nevertheless it is far, far
better than most of the countries that we all
belong to.
The recent decision (10 -3) by the Supreme Court
to reinstate the Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court, Ch. Mohammad Iftikhar, fully and unconditionally
is a landmark decision in the history of Pakistan.
It is my hope that whosoever occupies the office
after CJ Ch. Iftikhar retires, has the same passion,
courage, feelings and loyalty to the people of
Pakistan, to see Pakistan flourish under the Constitution
that guarantees the rights to all individuals
irrespective of power, wealth, ancestry, connections,
class and creed and that Rule of law shall be
the yardstick, not personal preference or vendetta
Only time will tell how independent the Court
of Law in Pakistan will be in the future but at
the moment the euphoria in every corner of Pakistan
is hard to contain, and why not , since it has
been rendered in the midst of numerous crises
and pressures facing the government, both external
and internal. Our survival with dignity is at
stake, which makes the case for an independent
Court of Law an absolute must.
Thank God, thank God, thank God for this monumental
decision because a nation can only prosper if
the Judiciary is free from any external pressure,
an independent Court of Law is imperative for
any nation that believes in democracy; there is
no two ways about it.
My hats off to President Musharraf (proud to be
an Alma Mater of St Patrick's) for accepting the
decision of the Supreme Court in its entirety
without any reservation and promising the nation
that there shall be no appeals against the decision,
no reprisals or repercussions against any entity
or individual (s) who opposed the President action
against the Chief Justice and came out on the
streets for the basic rights of it populace. It
shows that the President is cognizant of the fact
that putting the nation through frivolous appeals
is not in the long-term interest of Pakistan.
His actions were wrong to begin with because the
matter was not handled in accordance with the
procedures set forth in the Constitution of Pakistan.
All though the President, since assuming the power
has taken many decisions that have fortified the
security of our Nation, he has been wishy- washy
on some real critical matters, such as full accountability
of the powerful elite and the gunpoint robberies
that are still rampant all over, especially in
Karachi, where there is hardly anyone living left,
who does not know a person or relative that has
not been robbed mercilessly and at times killed
for showing any resistance to the thieves loaded
with Kalashnikov. Is this an insurmountable task?
MQM is partly to be blamed because they have been
part of this government for a long time.
The President like any other person is a human
being and human beings do make mistakes. However,
a person becomes larger than life, a legend if
you will, if he or she accepts the decision of
the higher authority with grace and dignity. By
doing so he has sent a strong message to the entire
Nation that no one is above the law, which is
a precedence that Pakistanis were deprived of
for the last sixty years, extremely sad but factual.
I have an inkling that although the President,
who took the blame on himself for mishandling
the case of the CJ's dismissal, is not alone in
this enormous debacle/blunder that had riveted
the nation to the television and other News Media
for the last several months. Just like his predecessors,
Ayub khan, Yahya and Gen Zia, the President is
not fully independent, like the present National
Assembly that has been labeled as the rubber stamp
assembly during his rein.
In other words, to maintain the military at the
helm of affairs, regardless of what the world
at large thinks, he gets his directions through
an invisible body of people, the hands that have
been ruling Pakistan for thirty-two out of sixty
(60) years, who fear that if they loosen the grip
over the ruling class they will be confined to
their primary and only function and that is to
mind the affairs of the border from any external
attacks which is sad but nevertheless true. There
is no justification in the world, neither does
our Constitution allows a man in uniform to stay
at the helm for ten 10, eleven and twelve years
(it seems to be heading that way) in one stretch.
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