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Why International Criminal Court
(ICC) Must Arrest and Try Gen. Musharraf?
Military
rulers of Pakistan have held Pakistanis hostage for the last 50
years. They illegally take over the country; commit gross
violations of peoples’ human, political and citizens’ rights.
General Musharraf, fourth such general,
illegally took over Pakistan on October 12, 1999 in violation of
constitution of Pakistan.
The constitution of Pakistan contains article
6, which declares military take over a crime punishable by death
sentence.
Since, courts in Pakistan are not free they
do not entertain any petition against general Musharraf and try
him under article 6.
During last 7 years of his illegal control of
state of Pakistan, general Musharraf has used state agencies to
disappear 247 people, put many opponents in jail through unfair
judicial trials, and killed hundreds of people.
Javed Hashmi, a prominent politician,
president of Pakistan Muslim League (N), the second largest
political party in Pakistan have been jailed under fraudulent
charges for 23 year through fake judicial trial.
The latest political killing took place three
months ago in Pakistan’s largest province Balochistan where a
prominent political leader, Nawab Akbar Bugti, was killed on the
orders of general Musharraf. So far, no case has been allowed to
be filed against general Musharraf and his security forces.
Before Security Forces killed Nawab Akbar
Bugti, general Musharraf made an open threat on national
television in which he declared that they would be hit in such a
way they even will not know where the bullet came from.
In order to maintain his illegal control over
the state of Pakistan, General Musharraf arranged an
unconstitutional, unlawful and fake referendum on April 30,
2002, through which he once again fraudulently appointed himself
as the President of Pakistan. He himself admitted on national
television that his anti-Constitution referendum was rigged and
countless fake votes were cast.
The people of Pakistan are sick and tired of
illegal takeovers of the country. Pakistan’s courts, instead of
giving relief to people, they provide shelter to coup makers
like general Musharraf under law of necessity. After illegally
taking over the country, these coup makers send all those judges
home who do not want to take oath of loyalty to them. General
Musharraf also fired 18 judges who refused to take oath of
loyalty to him. The judges working right now under general
Musharraf’s dispensation are bound not take up cases against
him.
Under these circumstance people of Pakistan
have no way to get justice against general Musharraf or the Core
Commanders of Pakistan Army who abetted general Musharraf in
illegal takeover and now they are helping him to maintain this
illegal control.
The people of Pakistan struggled perilously
for last 50 years to establish democracy and rule of law in the
country. They struggled to establish supremacy of constitution,
rule of law and parliament in the country, but Pakistani
generals failed them through unlawful punishments like flogging,
rigorous violence, jail terms and extra judicial killings.
On behalf of
people of Pakistan, we pray to the International Criminal Court
(ICC) for arrest and trial of general Musharraf and his
collaborators in uniform. 160 million people of Pakistan have no
legal recourse to stop general Musharraf and collaborators from
disappearances, killings and jailing of political opponents in
the country. Therefore, it is a must that ICC steps in and save
the people of Pakistan from further disappearances, killings and
jailing of innocent people.
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