Word: musharraf
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Less than 24 hours after Pakistan's Supreme Court ruled in favor of President General Pervez Musharraf's eligibility to run for a second term in office, government forces laid siege to the Supreme Court grounds, where several hundred lawyers had taken refuge after a vicious attack on a peaceful protest in the capital, Islamabad...
More than 10,000 riot police and plainclothes officers were stationed around the court and the nearby Electoral Commission offices, where the nomination papers for 43 presidential hopefuls, including Musharraf, were being scrutinized for eligibility. Some 1,000 lawyers and political workers brandishing banners and shouting "Go, Musharraf, go!" were forcibly prevented from entering the Electoral Commission grounds. Within minutes of reaching the gate, baton-wielding police charged the protesters. Yasser Raja, a 33-year-old lawyer from nearby Rawalpindi, was beaten repeatedly on the head; when he attempted to protect himself the police continued to attack, causing extensive damage...
...shields, kept up the barrage of stones and gas until they forced the protesters across the street to the grounds of the Supreme Court. Aitzaz Ahsan, a leading Supreme Court lawyer and former Interior Minister, who had served as an advisor to the court on the hearing for Musharraf's candidacy, was directly targeted by the police, as were several other leaders of the protest. Ahsan was hit by a brick in the kidneys at point blank range, then beaten on the head with batons, which shattered his glasses. A colleague, who had thrown him to the ground...
...excessive display of violence by government forces just a day after an unmitigated victory for Musharraf was met with incredulity by many observers. "The Day of The General" led the headlines of the local English language newspaper of record, Dawn, this morning, a line that took on a new meaning as the day progressed. "In what should have been his finest moment, General Musharraf has lost his head," said Ahsan, recovering from his wounds in an alcove of the court entranceway. For two weeks the Supreme Court debated the constitutionality of Musharraf's nomination for a second term as President...
...candidate, former Supreme Court Justice Wajihudin Ahmed. With less than nine days to campaign and a non-existent budget, Ahmed has no chance of actually winning the election, but that is beside the point. Malik intends to bring a new case to the Supreme Court next week charging that Musharraf's candidacy, proscribed by the constitution because he already holds military office, infringes on Ahemd's right to a fair election. "We will come back for a second round to argue on his behalf that the election is fraudulent," says Malik. "This is but one battle. We will still...