High-ups arrive at SC for contempt case hearing

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ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) will indict Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani today for not implementing the court orders for over two years now. Political leaders have started to pour into the premises.

Various leaders including Firdous Ashinq Awan, Khurshid Shah, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, Asfandyar Wali Khan, Qamaruz Zaman Kaira and Raja Pervaiz Ashraf have arrived at the apex court to hear the landmark contempt case against the PM Gilani.

The red zone area of the federal capital has been sealed due to sensitive nature of today’s case and will stay sealed till PM Gilani’s return.

Talking to media outside the premises of the apex court, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan said the PM Gilani took oath to abide by the Constitution and it is hoped that the court will do justice to him.

Meantime, Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, talking to the battery of reporters outside the apex court building, said he had offered a good counsel to the PM Gilani in this regard. TrendPK

Contempt case: PM Gilani arrives at SC

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ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has arrived at the Supreme Court (SC) where he will be indicted on charges of contempt leveled against him for not implementing the court orders for over two years.

The PM Gilani arrived here along with some other Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leaders amid stringent security around Red Zone area of the federal capital, which has been sealed for all kinds of traffic and pedestrians alike.

PM Gilani was allowed to drive his car inside the premises of SC. The permission was granted by the SC’s Registrar late on Sunday night.

Meanwhile, the red zone area, sealed due to sensitive nature of today’s case, will stay sealed till PM Gilani’s return. Only the court’s crew will be allowed to enter the red zone during the proceedings of the case. TrendPK

PM Gilani vows to quit if convicted

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ISLAMABAD: A day before his appearance in Supreme Court of Pakistan, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani vowed on Sunday that he would quit the office if convicted by the apex court over his failure to reopen corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari, TrendPK reports.

In his interview with Arab TV on Sunday, the PM claimed that all corruption cases against President Zardari were field on ‘political grounds’, reiterating that Zardari enjoyed immunity in the country and abroad.

Turmoil is expected when Gilani will appear on Monday before the SC in contempt case hearing, facing conviction in the case after the apex court rejected his appeal.

He said he would quit the office of Prime Minister and National Assembly if Supreme Court convicted him for contempt of court in now-annulled National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) implementation case.

“I then would neither continue as a Prime Minister nor a MNA,” PM Gilani said.

About describing unilateral US commando action in Abottabad as a ‘great victory’, PM clarified that “it was based on my perception that CIA may have conducted the raid in collaboration with ISI.”

He said the Parliament alone was authorized to decide on NATO route reopening, adding that the government was reviewing Pakistan’s future ties with NATO and ISAF forces battling Taliban and Al Qaida militants in Afghanistan.
  
On the other hand, PPP has summoned a meeting of its senior party leaders at Prime Minister House on Sunday to review PM’s Monday court appearance, Senate elections and other political headaches for the government. TrendPK

PM Gilani says charges against president "politically motivated"

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani, in an interview broadcast on Saturday, said corruption charges against Pakistan’s president were “politically motivated” and that the president had immunity as head of state.  

In the wide-ranging interview with Al Jazeera television, he also criticized U.S. drone attacks on militants near the Afghan border as counterproductive and said Pakistan never authorized them.  

Pakistan, he said, backed any Afghan-led peace plan to  establish peace in the neighbouring country and in no way supported Taliban insurgents.  

Gilani’s statements were aired on the eve of a hearing at which the premier faces indictment for contempt of court over his refusal to request the reopening of corruption cases against

President Asif Ali Zardari, co-chairman of the premier’s Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).  

“There had been a lot of cases against him, and they were all politically motivated,” Gilani said, referring to Zardari.  

“He has got immunity. And he has not got immunity only in Pakistan, he has transnational immunity, even all over the world.”  

Asked if he would rather resign for the sake of the president, Gilani said if convicted of contempt, he would automatically lose office, so there was no need for him to quit.  

“There’s no need to step down,” he said. “If I’m convicted, then I’m not supposed to be a member of the parliament.”  

Monday’s expected indictment of Gilani pushes Pakistan’s  political crisis into a new phase. It is unlikely to lead to the fall of the government, but will continue to paralyse the country and further empower its military, analysts say.  

“The Court is neither likely to trigger a collapse of the PPP government nor lead to military intervention,” wrote Shamila Chaudhary in an analysis for Eurasia Group. “But the judiciary will remain a critical factor in Pakistani politics for the duration of the election cycle that ends in February 2013.”  

LENGTHY LEGAL PROCESS  

The civilian-judicial confrontation stems from thousands of old corruption cases thrown out in 2007 by an amnesty law passed under former military president Pervez Musharraf.  

Zardari is its most prominent beneficiary and the main target of the court, which voided the law in 2009 and ordered the re-opening of cases accusing the president of money laundering using Swiss bank accounts.  

Gilani and his advisers have refused to ask the Swiss to reopen the cases. The prime minister had appealed the court’s decision to charge him with contempt, but on Friday that appeal was dismissed, paving the way for the indictment.  

“There’s no way Zardari will allow his party to write a letter that will incriminate him in any significant way,” said Najim Sethi, editor of the weekly Friday Times. “And that’s exactly what the Supreme Court wants.”  

The continued defiance could benefit the PPP ahead of a widely expected lower-house election in October, said Salman Raja, a Supreme Court lawyer and constitutional expert.  

Raja said any proceedings against Gilani would likely take until July and result in a short jail sentence — “no longer than a week or 10 days”.  

The party could then campaign on the notion of a biased court doing the work of the military and “persecuting an elected prime minister, and that rhetoric gets reemphasized.”  

PYRRHIC VICTORY  

But a PPP win could be a Pyrrhic victory. Infighting and confrontations with the military have consumed the nuclear-armed country in recent years, preventing it from addressing poverty and other economic ills or containing a rampaging insurgency that is endangering the U.S.-led war effort in Afghanistan.  

“It’s a creeping kind of a coup,” Raja said. “Effectively they’ve crippled the government.”  

Tensions between the military and the civilian government reached a fever pitch in December and January over a memo asking for U.S. help against a feared military coup in the aftermath of the May 2 killing of Osama bin Laden by American special forces in a Pakistani town.  

Those tensions have since subsided and a coup looks unlikely now. In the interview, Gilani said he had “good relations” with the military “at the moment”.  

But continued brinkmanship with the court, Sethi said, served the army’s purpose of staying in power behind the scenes.  

In the interview, Gilani said authorities in Islamabad gave no approval for U.S. drone strikes.  

“I want to inform you that we did not allow or give permission to fly drones from Pakistan,” he said.  

“Number two, drones are counterproductive. And we had discussed thoroughly with the U.S. administration that we at times make a lot of efforts to very successfully isolate militants from the local tribes.”  

Asked about the future of Afghanistan, Gilani said Pakistan would support any Afghan-led peace initiative and did not back the Afghan Taliban to take over.  

“We are not supporting them. It’s not our job. Why should we support them?” AGENCIES

Only ZA Bhutto brought revolution: PM Gilani

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JARANWALA: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani said that the only politician who brought revolution in Pakistan is Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, TrendPK reported on Saturday.

Many politicians talk about revolution but ZA Bhutto was the only political leader who made it happened, he said.

Addressing a public rally in Jaranwala, PM Gilani said that Muhtarma Benazir Bhutto struggled for the freedom of the media and judiciary and we, also, will have been serving the people as per Muhtarma’s manifesto either we remain in power or not.

The prime minister said that we proud our PPP workers and the massive progress which have been made in our regime is not carried out in previous regimes.

The PPP workers have never been sold and frightened, he said.

PPP is the only party that has rendered so many sacrifices, the premier said. TrendPK

Govt drags parties in sync over 20th Amendment

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ISLAMABAD: The government and the opposition parties gave finishing touches to the draft of Twentieth Amendment, which is expected to be tabled in National Assembly on Tuesday. 

The government decided to bring 20th Amendment to give constitutional cover to the by-elections.

The government also capitulated to the demands of opposition including no extension to the Election Commissioner, raising the tenure of members to five years, party head’s powers to change the list of reserved seats for women and implementation of 18th Amendment.

But, the demand to establish a caretaker setup with consensus, not just consultation with the Opposition leader, spawned standoff.

Meantime, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) voiced reservations over changes in the Constitutional Amendment, as Parliamentary leader of the MQM in the National Assembly Dr Farooq Sattar, speaking at Karachi airport, said across the board consultations with all parties should be held over caretaker setup.

The coalition partners including Muttahida rendered their support hinged on the creation of new provinces and uniform educational system throughout the country; but, the government is quite sure all the political parties will be brought round at last. TrendPK

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SC warns PM Gilani of disqualification for influence on court

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ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Iftikhar Muhammed Chaudhry Thursday said the attempt by Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani to influence the court may lead to his disqualification, adding the matter may be dissolved, if the government writes a letter to the Swiss courts.

Heading an eight-strong bench hearing the PM Gilani’s intra-court appeal against the court order to indict him on February 13, he said the paragraphs pertaining to the reinstatement of judges are shocking and quite embarrassing to the court, querying if any measure could be rewarded by stepping out of the law.

The Chief Justice Chaudhry further said these things do not behoove of a man sitting on such a high pedestal as the office of premiership, adding, “Can the Prime Minister be held above law in return for his order regarding reinstatement of judiciary?”

the Chief Justice Chaudhry remarked the PM’s bid to pressure any court may become the basis of his ineligibility under Article 63-AG of the Constitution.

Appearing on the part of the PM Gilani, former Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Aitezaz Ahsan said, “Is the PM Gilani, incriminated under contempt of court charge, not entitled to just say that he braved difficulties for the judiciary for two years?”

Even then, he added, if the court seeks these paragraphs to be deleted, they will be written off.

Later on, the Advocate on Record told the court the PM Gilani sanctioned to strike off the paragraphs in question.

The apex court said the court was being pressurized for a favorable ruling through these three paragraphs.

Later on, arguing before the bench, Aitezaz said he strongly oppose the confrontation or misunderstanding among the national institutions.

The Chief Justice Chaudhry remarked President Asif Ali Zardari said in one of his interviews, that the decision not to write the letter was made on political basis; and, this indicates the government does not want to implement the para-178 of the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) verdict, adding the SC delivered the NRO verdict not in vacuum, but, in accordance with the facts, instead.

the Chief Justice Chaudhry advised the PM Gilani to act upon the court order to maintain the prestige of the court, adding the entire matter will come to naught if the letter is written to Swiss courts.

Reacting to this, the PM’s counsel Ahsan submitted the case was dispensed with in Swiss courts in 1997-98; now, the letter will entail nothing.

Ahsan further argued that his client has no responsibility in matter relating the implementation, adding he will prove that no contempt was committed in this case. TrendPK

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PM Gilani appeals against summons for indictment

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s prime minister Wednesday appealed against a court summons to face a contempt indictment next week, challenging an order that could ultimately force his weak government into early elections.

Pakistan’s highest court on February 2 summoned Yousuf Raza Gilani to appear on February 13 to face indictment, impatient over the government’s refusal to re-open corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari.

It was a shock move from the Supreme Court that sharply escalated pressure on the embattled prime minister a year before his government would become the first in the history of Pakistan to complete an elected term in office.

Gilani’s lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan said he based the appeal on precedents set by top courts in Australia, Britain, France, India and the United States.

“My objection is that the court in its order on February 2 cited no specific reasons for initiating contempt of court proceedings against the prime minister,” he told reporters.

Gilani had appeared before the Supreme Court on January 19, refusing to back down over citing Zardari’s immunity as explanation for his refusal to obey the court’s order to ask Switzerland to re-open corruption cases.

The Swiss shelved the cases in 2008, when Zardari took office.

If convicted of contempt, the prime minister could be jailed for up to six months and disqualified from public office.

Ahsan said there were arguments against indicting the prime minister.

“The president enjoyed immunity and the Swiss authorities have also closed the case. I should not comment further on this issue,” he said.

In order to hear the appeal, the Supreme Court will need to constitute a larger bench of nine judges — not the seven who ordered him to appear.

The court will hear the appeal on Thursday, apparently the only available gap in a tight schedule before the February 13 summons.

Although Supreme Court Judge Nasir-ul-Mulk said there were grounds to proceed against Gilani, members of the government accuse judges of plotting with the army to wage a witch-hunt against the prime minister and president.

Legal experts say that Gilani can only avoid being charged by appealing, apologising or promising to write to the Swiss.

The allegations against Zardari were frozen by a Pakistani political amnesty imposed in 2007, which the courts overturned in late 2009.

Tainted by corruption allegations, Zardari is nicknamed “Mr 10 Percent” and spent 11 years in jail on charges ranging from corruption to murder, although his supporters point out that he was never convicted.

Zardari and his late wife, prime minister Benazir Bhutto, were suspected of using Swiss bank accounts to launder about $12 million in alleged bribes paid by companies seeking customs inspection contracts in Pakistan in the 1990s.

A Swiss prosecutor has since said it would be “impossible” to reopen the case against Zardari since he benefits from immunity as a head of state.

Former Supreme Court judges said they were not convinced of the grounds for appeal, but said the matter would have to be decided quickly.

“They can simply prolong the case for two or three weeks but apparently they have no solid ground in their defence. They have not come up with a satisfactory plea so far,” said Rashid Rizvi, a former Supreme Court judge.

One former chief justice called on the government to resign.

“It will be good for the country if the government quits and holds elections. The current situation is crippling the economy and people are dying because of poverty and lawlessness,” Fakhruddin Ebrahim told AFP. AGENCIES

Pakistan vows to help peace efforts in Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will support every effort to promote reconciliation in Afghanistan, a senior government official said ahead of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani’s visit to Qatar Monday to discuss peace efforts.

Gilani’s trip comes after the Taliban last month said they planned to set up a political office in Qatar ahead of possible talks with the United States.

“There are certain ideas and suggestions on Afghan reconciliation and when Prime Minister Gilani meets Qatar’s leadership, these will certainly come under discussion,” the official, privy to developments on the issue, told AFP Sunday.

“Americans have been briefing us on all developments aimed at pushing forward the peace process in Afghanistan and we have clearly told them that Islamabad strictly adheres to a policy of non-interference,” the official, who wished to remain anonymous, said.

“We are ready to support every effort and a process that is Afghan-led and involves all factions,” he said, adding “it is important to engage all Afghan factions including Taliban in the process to achieve a lasting peace”.

“We have no favourites in Afghanistan and strongly believe that all Afghan factions have to be on board and agree on a certain formula”, the official stressed.

“The only favourite that we have is peace and stability in Afghanistan.”

Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar during a visit to Kabul last week rejected accusations that her country was secretly supporting the Taliban in Afghanistan.

The Taliban have also denied plans for peace talks with the Afghan government in Saudi Arabia.

The statements came as a leaked NATO report charged that Pakistan’s security services were backing the Taliban, who consider victory inevitable once Western combat troops leave Afghanistan in 2014.

Asked how Pakistan viewed the Taliban’s announcement on setting up an office in Qatar, the official said “now they have an address and all those wanting peace can have a contact.”

Afghanistan has given its blessing to the move, but Kabul, wary of being sidelined in talks between the insurgents and Washington, has insisted on a central role in any negotiations.

Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan are often tense. The Kabul government has accused Islamabad in the past of supporting the Taliban and sabotaging all efforts to launch peace negotiations.

Pakistan’s support is therefore seen as key to forging peace in the country.

The official said Pakistan did not think it was being left out of the process.

“There is nothing of the sort and we did not gather such an impression of being left out from anywhere,” he said.

Asked how Pakistan viewed the possibility of Saudi Arabia as a possible facilitator in the process, the official said Islamabad was not fixed on a particular country taking the role.

“The end result should be a solution and peace in Afghanistan,” he said.

“Pakistan welcomes any effort that is made from anywhere to push forward the peace process.”

Meanwhile, Gilani said during a televised media discussion in Islamabad on Sunday that it was in Pakistan’s interest to see a stable Afghanistan.

“We are ready to support any reconciliation process that is Afghan-led,” he said.

But analysts believe that any role for Pakistan in the process is possible only after it improves ties with the United States.

“Pakistan will have to improve relations with the US. Qatar is a facilitator of the dialogue between the US and the Taliban and it cannot get a seat for Pakistan at the negotiations table,” analyst Hasan Askari told AFP.

Pakistan must have the confidence of the US and Afghanistan to become an active player in the dialogue process, he added.

Commenting on Taliban’s decision to open a political office in Qatar, he said, “It will be a very useful contact point if it is an extension of Mullah Omar’s system”. AGENCIES

PM Gilani contempt case, an internal issue: US

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WASHINGTON: The USA said contempt against Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani is an internal matter of the country and that it is hoped all issues will be resolved under law and the Constitution, TrendPK reports Saturday.

This contempt of court case against him (Prime Minister Gilani) is nothing new; also this is an internal matter of Pakistan, US State Department spokesman Mark Toner told reporters during a media briefing here.

Reacting to a query regarding Pak-US relations, he said his country is in persistent contact with Pakistani rulers and in wait for the recommendations by the Parliamentary Committee on National Security (PCNS).

Despite the circumstances besetting Pakistan and stagnancy in the bilateral relations, the two countries have continued the cooperation, Toner said adding U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan Cameron Munter is in consistent contact with the Pak leadership. TrendPK

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