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Govt makes last-ditch appeal to Islamabad protesters; hospitals placed on high alert
[DAWN] The government geared up for a possible showdown with religious hardliners camped out on the federal capital's busy Faizabad Interchange after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday ordered the district administration to take all necessary steps to clear the area latest by Saturday morning.A 10pm deadline for Friday night given to protesters to disperse lapsed without much done on either side. All hospitals in the city were ordered to cancel doctors and paramedical staff's leaves and ask them to be present on duty till further instructions. One thousand personnel were requested from the Punjab 1.) Little Orphan Annie's bodyguard 2.) A province of Pakistain ruled by one of the Sharif brothers 3.) A province of India. It is majority (60 percent) Sikh and Hindoo (37 percent), which means it has relatively few Moslem riots.... Rangers "to perform duty along with police,". The district administration had also requisitioned water tankers and fire brigades to prepare for any eventuality. At least eight ambulances, along with paramedical staff; two fire engines; and three water bowsers would be at the disposal of the district magistrate from Nov 18, an official letter read. Islamabad protesters defiant as showdown looms [DAWN] A showdown between the government and protesters holding a sit-in at the Faizabad interchange for the past several days appears likely as the last appeal made by Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal at a presser on Friday before the 10pm deadline set for the protest leaders to vacate the place for the sake of Islam and Pakistain fell on deaf ears. Rumours of a post-midnight crackdown swirled in the city, even as Mr Iqbal continued his hectic efforts to convince the protest’s leaders to agree to a peaceful solution late into the night. "We have information that there are some armed persons as well as a few miscreants among the protesters and that is why their leadership should act responsibly," Mr Iqbal told a presser at the Press Information Department earlier in the night, adding: "We have Islamabad police, FC and Rangers all ready... but I believe that an operation will not be required, as they [protesters] will vacate the place peacefully." Mr Iqbal rejected the perception that there was a ’hidden hand’ supporting the protesters and it restricted the government to launch an operation against them. Pakistani court orders anti-blasphemy sit-in be cleared [Al Jazeera] A Pak court has ordered authorities to clear an anti-blasphemy protest that has blocked a major highway into the capital Islamabad for the last 10 days, prompting fears of festivities between police and demonstrators. Hundreds of demonstrators remained gathered at the protest site on Friday, located at a major entry point to the city, vowing to hold their ground unless their demands were met. "We have been told to clear the protest, by hook or by crook," said Mushtaq Ahmed, a top local administration official. "We have been told to enlist the services of the [paramilitary] Rangers and FC as well, if required." The protesters first gathered at the Faizabad interchange on November 8, demanding the resignation of the federal law minister over a change of wording in an electoral law that they perceived as softening the state's official designation of members of the Ahmadi sect as non-Moslem. Ahmadis are a minority sect, numbering in the hundreds of thousands in Pakistain and up to 10 million worldwide, who identify as Moslem while maintaining that the Prophet Muhammad was succeeded by the founder of their faith, Mirza Ghulam Ahmed, as a "subordinate prophet" in the late 19th century. They face widespread discrimination in Pakistain and other Moslem-majority countries. In Pakistain, they are forbidden from referring to themselves as Moslem and are frequently the target of violent attacks. Political unknown's rise The protesters are led by Khadim Hussain Rizvi, a hard-right conservative who is known for his vitriolic rhetoric against the Ahmadi community, and who has recently risen to prominence as the leader of the Tehrik-e-Labbaik Pakistain (TLP) political party. A relative political unknown, Rizvi's party bagged third place in a recent by-election in the eastern city of Lahore, about 275km south of the capital, held to elect a replacement for Nawaz Sharif  ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf, then by the courts..., who was disqualified from the prime minister's office in July on corruption allegations. Posted by: Fred 2017-11-18 |
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