London – 3rd May 2007
MQM Founder & Leader Altaf Hussain has said that he and his party firmly believed in strengthening of the judicial system and would be ready for any sacrifice to help it get stronger but whatever is happening now is pure politics and a crude attempt to gain political mileage from a problem which is entirely judicial and should be treated as such. Addressing the MQM Coordination Committee and heads of its different wings over telephones from London, he emphasised that the presidential reference against the chief justice is a constitutional and legal issue and is being heard by the Supreme Judicial Council. It has however been given political colour and instead of being dealt at judicial level, it is being politically exploited. He said that opposition parties, political and religious,, who had failed to bring the people on road against the government, have been playing political games and some lawyers organisation too had become pawns in that game. Mr Hussain said that protests for independence of judiciary was the right of lawyers and every citizen, but the way this issue is being used to destabilise the country, was condemnable. He wanted to know from lawyers organisations agitating since long on the issue of presidential reference as to why they had remained inactive or silent at the time of imposition of martial laws in the country, suspension of courts, usurpation of human rights and for the independence of judiciary when it was subjected to restrictions? He said when in year 2000, former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Saeed uz Zaman Siddiqi, and other senior judges, had refused to take oath on PCO, why didn't these lawyers agitate to protect the right of the judiciary? Why did they not bring our processions in favour of those Supreme Court judges? Also why didn't the lawyers agitate when during Nawaz Sharif days, Supreme Court was attacked. Why did they forgot to protect the right of the judiciary then? Also he wanted to know as to why these lawyers did not agitate when during Nawaz Sharif days, governors' rule was imposed in Sindh, and military courts were established. He said MQM and its leadership believes in independence of judiciary, but whatever was happening now was politics and politics alone.
Mr Hussain appealed to the lawyers organisation to continuing with their peaceful demonstrations if needed but do not allow the political and religious parties to fulfil their ulterior political motives in the name of protest for independence of judiciary. He fully endorsed the decision of MQM Legal Aid Committee of addressing a press conference at Karachi Press Club on Saturday 5th May 2007. He appealed to all those lawyers who believe in resoling constitutional issues through constitutional means and are against allowing constitutional issues to be used for ulterior political motives to participate and attend the MQM Legal Aid Press Conference and demonstrate their unity and solidarity.