Press Release

WSI condemns the declaration of emergency in Pakistan

Washington, DC:  "The long anticipated declaration of emergency in Pakistan by its military dictator General Musharraf is simply an illustration of what has been the reality of Pakistan for the past several decades in general and specifically under the brutal rule of General Musharraf and his predecessor General Zia ul Haque," contends the World Sindhi Institute, a Washington DC based human rights advocacy group. Zahid Makhdoom, President of the Institute said in a press statement, "General Musharraf's declaration of emergency demonstrates the obvious reality of Pakistani political economy, wherein it’s military has now come to occupy every nook and cranny of its politics and economy". He further said that, "the fact that Musharraf's regime occupies a significant place in the so-called 'war on terrorism', his actions would likely be condoned by the Western democracies as a part of his policy to contain Islamic radicalism'. "However," he went on to say, "Musharraf's attack is not on fundamentalism and obscurantism plaguing Pakistan today but is a naked onslaught on the rule of law as he is now drawing moral equivalence between the fundamentalist rogue mullahs and the learned judges of an ostensibly independent judiciary". He said that a "clear and concise policy against militarism and militarization of politics and economy of Pakistan is perhaps the only effective manner in which democratic forces can express their solidarity with the struggling and deeply brutalized people of Pakistan”.

The Institute’s Executive Director, Munawar Laghari, urged all democratic countries to disassociate themselves from the brutal regime of Musharraf and urged them to side with the religious and ethnic minorities, less-populated provinces, dispossessed peasant and urban workers, women, children, and all those who have been struggling for democracy, secularism, and the rule of law in Pakistan. He said that, "in its present shape, Pakistan has tragically become an ugly blot on the face of our contemporary world and that there is a need to impose economic and military sanctions against the brutal regime of Musharraf". “In fact,” he added, “the religious fundamentalism of Al-Qaeda on one hand and militarism of Musharraf & fascism of ISI on the other hand, are two facets of the same coin”. He urged the western democracies to overcome their myopia by supporting the genuine popular struggles for democracy and the rule of law, instead of legitimizing the brutal and fascistic regimes for some short-term gains.

The World Sindhi Institute will hold its 8th Annual International Conference on Friday, November 09, 2007 from 3:30 to 9:00 pm at the Charles Sumner School & Museum, 1201 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036. Mr. Hussain Haroon, former Speaker of Sindh Assembly will lead a discussion on the current situation in Pakistan.