News
Monday, July 05, 2010
Militancy, religious bigotry are legacies of dictatorship
* President Zardari says 18th Amend is stinging rejection of dictatorship and warning to all those who reject will of people
Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has succeeded in purging the constitution from the unconstitutional changes made under dictatorship and now the people of the country have to join hands to eliminate the dictatorial legacy of militancy, hatred and religious bigotry, President Asif Ali Zardari said on Sunday.
In a message to the nation, the president said July 5 was one of the darkest days in the history of the country and would be remembered as a “Black Day” for spawning militancy, sectarianism, tyranny and oppression on one hand, and systematic dismantling of the constitutional and legal edifice of the country on the other.
“On this day in 1977, a dictator unleashed a litany of horror and shame, forced his name in the constitution and forced the nation to tread the path of destruction,” he said.
The president said on this day in 1977, the seeds of the deadly Taliban and al Qaeda were sown that plunged the world into chaos. Let us resolve today to banish forever the strategic partners of dictators namely the militants, extremists and religious zealots, he added.
However, the people of Pakistan through the 18th Amendment have restored the constitution to its original form, he said.
Will: The triumph of the people and parliament is a stinging rejection to dictatorship and a warning to all those who reject the will of the people expressed through their elected representatives, the president said.
“I wish to congratulate parliament for rising to the occasion and removing from the constitution the vestiges of dictatorship,” he said.
The president said history showed that dictators have to pay for their deeds and they are eventually punished by the people. “They are punished when the pernicious structure of their personalised rule brought about by destroying the constitution is torn apart by the people with a vengeance,” he added.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk