Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) rally in Karachi on 29th October
By Our Reporter

KARACHI, Oct 10: The Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) on Sunday announced it would hold anti-government rally at Nishtar Park on Oct 29, to expose the government's failure in containing terrorism (ethnic and sectarian), price hike and joblessness.

The decisions taken in a meeting of the coordination committee of GDA Sindh which deliberated upon the prevailing political and economic conditions and the alliance's plan to step up anti-government campaign. The meeting was chaired by Babar Ghouri of Muttahida Qaumi Movement.

Addressing a news conference along with other GDA leaders of the provincial level, Babar Ghouri said in view of the nation- wide protest plans of the GDA, some changes had been made in the GDA'a plans in the province.

Originally, he said the alliance had plan to hold rallies at Sukkur on Oct 17, Hyderabad Oct 24 and Karachi on Oct 29. However in view of the GDA's protest demonstration outside the Supreme Court on Oct 15, in which provincial leaders would also take part, public meetings at Sukkur and Hyderabad had been delayed and they would now be held after Nishtar Park's public meeting.

He claimed that Nishtar Park public meeting would be historic demonstration of the opposition's strength.

Ghouri said the alliance was intimating the government of its plans through this news conference and said that if anybody tried to prevent the GDA from holding the public meeting and setting up camps for mobilization of the people, the onus of the consequence would be on the provincial administration.

The coordination committee for organizing the Nishtar Park rally would be headed by Munawwar Soharwardy of the Pakistan People's Party and would include Khalid Bin Walid of the MQM, Amin Khatak of ANP, Rashid Rabbani (PPP), and representatives of other component parties.

He said that all the parties had been asked to set up camps in their respective areas and arrange for the supporters to reach the venue in processions and by other means.

He said that holding rallies at any place was the constitutional right of the political parties and the choice of Nishtar Park had been made to test the will and sincerity of the regime which, while deploring the opposition for planning protest rallies on various intersections of the city, had declared that it would not oppose any public meeting if held at an open place and had even named Nishtar Park in this regard.

Ghouri urged the international and national human rights organizations to monitor whether or not the government was honouring its promises or was it indulging in double standards and acting in violation of the Constitution?

He also called upon the army chief and Chief Justice of Pakistan to take notice of what he termed repressive and fascist manner of governance of Nawaz Sharif.

Mr Soharwardy, claimed that under article 16 and 19 of the constitution political parties were free to hold public meetings and rallies and it was the duty of those who had taken oath to defend the constitution, to ensure that nothing violative of the constitution was taking place.

While bringing out contradictions in government policies towards the opposition in Punjab and in Sindh, particularly in Karachi, Soharwardy referred to the sense of deprivation and alienation among the people of smaller provinces.

He alleged that the people of Sindh were being penalised and deprived of basic facilities despite their massive contribution towards the exchequer.

He flayed the arrest of political activists by the police before any opposition rallies and said this time journalists would be taken for a visit to various police stations to show how many people had been kept there before the rally.

MQM's Babar Ghouri said that central leaders of the GDA component parties would participate in the Nishtar Park public meeting therefore, all restrictions on their entry into Sindh should be immediately withdrawn. Many central leaders were externed from Sindh on Sept 11.