HR activists hold peace rally in City
LAHORE — The ‘Aman Ittehad’, a group of leading NGOs and civil society members, on Saturday organised a peace rally to express solidarity with those suffering violence including terrorism, bomb blasts, suicide attacks, target killings and kidnappings.
The rally was started from GOP Chowk to Faisal Chowk, The Mall. Similar Rallies were also organised at 108 locations across Pakistan to raise voice against the various issues facing by the people of the country and to highlight their demands.
In Lahore the rally was addressed by President of Supreme Court Bar Association Asma Jahangir, Advocate Hina Jillani, Khawar Mumtaz, Secretary General Human Rights Commission of Pakistan IA Rehman, Mohammad Tahseen and lrfan Mufti. A large number of students, lawyers, trade unionists and general masses participated in the rally.
Asma Jahangir while addressing to the participants said the civil society strongly condemned the killings of innocent citizens. She said religious extremism must be end and justice should be provided to the masses. She further said they wanted supremacy of law and the parliament and interference of forces in political affairs must be ended.
On the occasion, the speakers raised various concerns and demanded that adequate, effective and mandatory safeguards must be provided to all citizens of the country including non-Muslims and state should insure the protection of their religious, cultural, ethnic, linguistic, economic and political rights and interests in consultation with them. “These safeguards must encourage transparency and accountability, the pillars of a true democracy with a view to creating a politically stable and socially responsive state that ensures all its citizens a life of dignity” they said and added all parallel judicial systems especially Federal Shariat Court be immediately abolished and equal opportunity and rights must be ensured to all citizens through the strengthening of institutions.
They said no constitutional plan would be workable in the country or acceptable to its people unless provinces were autonomous and governed according to the aspirations of people of the province that exercise complete control over their resources that were used equitably for the benefit of the citizens.
They further said the parliament must frame all laws and oversee their implementation so as to protect citizens particularly the poor and the marginalized from oppression. They said that a social contract must be framed between citizens, and between citizens and the state and all laws and mechanisms for their implementation must be in harmony with this document and all conflicting laws must be repealed.
Source: The Nation
Date:1/2/2011
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