The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers

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Today in Pakistan, lawyers protested their country’s state of Emergency and were punished for it. Via Bloomberg:

Pakistani police charged with clubs and arrested more than 150 lawyers challenging President Pervez Musharraf’s emergency rule as the U.S. said it was reviewing military aid to the country in response to the decree.

Rioting Lawyers.jpg

Police beat lawyers and used tear gas to disperse protesters in cities across Pakistan. Stocks slumped amid speculation that Musharraf was arrested in a coup today, which the military denied, saying it was a rumor.
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, in Beijing for talks with the Chinese government, called on Musharraf to restore democratic rule. Musharraf suspended the constitution on Nov. 3 for the second time since he took power in a 1999 military coup, saying judicial interference in government affairs had sparked terrorism and extremism throughout the country.

I’m sure Mushie is just petrified after hearing this from Condi:

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in the West bank city of Ramallah today that Musharraf should restore Pakistan’s democratic institutions “quickly and urgently.” She has said the Bush administration will review its financial aid of more than $1 billion a year to Pakistan.

And props to the UN, for reminding us of the obvious:

“A state of emergency should only be used to deal with a dire security threat to the nation, not to undermine the integrity and independence of the judiciary,” the United Nations High Commissioner Louise Arbour said today in an e-mailed statement.

According to the remainder of the article, the number of detainees is in four digits, court is off-limits to lawyers, Imran Khan has gone underground, judges are under house arrest and Pakistanis who are brave enough to lift their voices in protest are being gassed and beaten for doing so.

Citizens and journalists staged a protest outside the Karachi Press Club today, where they wore black armbands and shouted slogans against the government. Heavy contingents of police beat protesters.

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If you want to read The Emergency Times, i.e. what was/is on pakistanmartiallaw.blogspot.com, go here. I’m mirroring the often unavailable blog posts which one of you thoughtfully passed on to me via email, out of solidarity.

Let people know. We Are Resisting. Please Join us.

Unity is mutinous.

56 thoughts on “The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers”

  1. Anna, what’s happening to this site? I refer to comment 32. I was certainly surprised when Amardeep deleted my comment in the post on Guha’s book, but I did not write comment 32! Nor did I ever say “ha ha, you suck, you ABCD brats” or anything remotely to that effect. Wonder if there are two “Indians” lurking here, or someone masquerading and character assassinating me. Must be a communalist angry with my comments. Only they would have time to do such things.

    And Amardeep, who is this troll this site keeps referring to?

    Sorry for going off topic, just had to point out comment 32.

  2. Wonder if there are two “Indians” lurking here, or someone masquerading and character assassinating me.

    No offense, but there are more than two, because that might be one of the most unoriginal handles possible. No one is masquerading as you, someone else (or ten someone elses) thought they were entitled to that handle, too. This is why it’s a good idea to pick something a bit less generic, and stick to it. No one is “character assassinating” you.

    Must be a communalist angry with my comments. Only they would have time to do such things.

    Was this necessary? And please, consider that question rhetorical, because I think this threadjacking has gone on long enough. If you have further concerns, please be courteous to your fellow readers and email us vs. commenting on this, an unrelated thread. Thank you.

  3. At this hour of peril, I urge all Americans to stop making lawyer jokes.

    ah, you had me there for a while. you know a great lawyer joke? harriet miers!

  4. Yes, it is terrible what is being done to the media and to the protestors. But what are they protesting for? What do they want to replace Musharaff with? If they do succeed in electing a leader it will most likely be Nawaz or Bhutto (or someone very similiar). There would no real democracy instead it will a democracy where braderi, nepotism, and self-indulgence are prime. Pakistani society is NOWHERE close to being able to hand democracy. “Elections” in Pakistanare more about tribes, clans, and families than they are about policies.

    At least with Musharaff there is some level of love for the country and doing what is best for it. Nobody can point to Musharaff as someone who has tried to use his position to acquire vast amounts of money.

  5. Thanks for the clarification Ikram – in your original comment, I thought it was referring specifically to Muslims in India (& I obviously need to catch up on my Urdu political poetry…).

  6. MUSLIM SCUM, WAKE UP PEOPLE! SPREAD THE WORD

    http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3369102968312745410

    http://www.apostatesofislam.com/media/stoning.htm

    http://mosquewatch.blogspot.com/2008/04/die-non-muslim-scum.html

    http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=29201_Wafa_Sultan_on_Al_Jazeera&only

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-yJp4EcZJA

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMLJJEDDDGc

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVDWhBAC_0U

    http://www.islammonitor.org/uploads/docs/aimbrochure.pdf