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[Pakistan First]

LAHORE: "My brother has a strong will-power who is neither afraid of being jailed nor will back off his stance. Imran Khan and Aitzaz Ahsan are being treated like terrorists in jail. I am not a politician but support the political ideas of my brother."

The views were expressed by Imran Khan's sister Aleema Khan in an exclusive interview with The Post.

She said she had come to know that her brother was being shifted to some other place probably in Karachi and his life was in danger. She said she wanted to now what the charges were against Imran Khan and which court she should appeal to.

Aleema further said a peaceful protest was the right of politicians. The media and judiciary should be free so that everybody might have an access to justice, she stressed. To a question, she said they had not yet informed their father about Imran's arrest, adding that he (father), in the beginning, opposed Imran's decision of entering into the politics, but later he favoured him.

About herself, she said she was a businesswoman and did not want to enter into politics. She also said Tehreek-e-Insaaf was not a political party but a movement for justice and freedom of judiciary.

The judges, who did not take oath under PCO, were the national heroes, she said.

To a question, she said the present government had offered Imran the premiership three times. Besides, he was offered a slot of minister during General Zia's rule.Asked about Jamiat, she said Imran still respected Qazi Hussain Ahmed but it was a fact that a day before Imran's manhandling by the Jamiat, Liaquat Baloch had discussed seat adjustment with the ruling party.

Asked about Benazir, she said her recent statements were positive, adding she was a wise leader who had understood the current situation in the country and parted ways with General Musharraf.

She said they were going to launch a movement for the freedom of press and judiciary so that Imran's voice might reach the common masses, adding that she thanked all those who supported Imran Khan.

Aleema said she was going to the house of a worker who had committed suicide to register his protest against Imran's manhandling and detention. Imran had now become a movement and it was impossible to stop him, she said.

Some ambassadors had called her to offer help for Imran's release but she refused, saying the Pakistanis themselves would fight for their leader, she added.

Source: The Post
http://thepost.com.pk/CityNewsT.aspx?dtlid...328&catid=3

[Pakistan First]

[Pakistan First]

[Pakistan First]

Always more to Khan than playboy image revealed

November 16, 2007

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IN HIS playing days Imran Khan was known as the Lion of Lahore. A fearless, almost Churchillian leader, he inspired his cricket team to victory over England in the final of the 1992 World Cup, the finest moment in Pakistan's sporting history.

Fifteen years on, Mr Khan is still a natural leader but he has devoted himself to a bigger cause: the fight for democracy in the face of an oppressive military regime. It was while campaigning against President Pervez Musharraf that Mr Khan was arrested in Lahore on Wednesday and yesterday moved to the city's largest prison.

His achievements as a politician are often underestimated. Critics say that the failure of his party (Tehreek-e-Insaf, or Movement for Justice) to win more than a single seat in the national assembly shows him up as a mere dilettante. But his true standing is evident from the efforts made by General Musharraf to detain him over the past week.

It is now almost a fortnight since General Musharraf first sent soldiers to place him under house arrest. Somehow Mr Khan, 54, managed to flee from Islamabad to the relative safety of Lahore.

He spent last week in hiding, forced to contact the world through emails to his former wife Jemima Goldsmith, or video messages. Unshaven and haggard, he warned his followers: "If we don't resist and we don't raise our voice against [Musharraf's state of emergency], it will take us on the path to destruction."

But his attempts to start a political rally backfired when he visited Punjab University on Wednesday. Despite the support of about 2000 students, who wore black armbands and shouted anti-Musharraf slogans, Mr Khan was detained by a group of religious students who held him long enough for the security forces to arrive. "He will be charged under the anti-terrorism act," Lahore's police chief, Malik Mohammad Iqbal, said. "Through his speeches he has been inciting people to pick up arms; he has been calling for civil disobedience; he was spreading hatred."

So how did Imran Khan go from being a handsome hero of the sports field to a man of substance on the world stage? It is not a transformation that many who knew him in the 1970s and '80s would have predicted. Back then he seemed to go about life with an attitude of "play hard, play hard". But John Barclay, one of his teammates at Sussex, says there was more to the young Imran than most people realised.

"The press built him up as a playboy because he was good looking, went to Oxford University, and became a star on the cricket field," Mr Barclay said. "He often had a glamorous woman on his arm, which is hardly surprising. But I don't think the image is right. He showed enormous dedication in the way he raised the funds to build a new hospital after his mother died of cancer. And then to go into the world of heavy politics, which is a real minefield in Pakistan, was a pretty brave effort when there were many easier courses open to him."

Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital, named after Mr Khan's mother, played a big part in redirecting his own path. As he left the cricket field for the last time, carrying the World Cup trophy and saluting the Melbourne crowd, he irritated some of his teammates by devoting his acceptance speech to this cause. But the gesture would pay off handsomely. Funds poured in and suddenly Imran Khan had a standing outside the game. While his contemporaries made straight for the commentary box, he found a new vocation in his missionary work.

When Mr Khan started his party it was initially seen as a whimsical vehicle for a man who could not bear to be out of the public eye. But after a false start in the 1997 elections he eventually claimed a seat in the country's National Assembly in 2004. With the help and support of the former prime minister Nawaz Sharif Mr Khan now rates as one of General Musharraf's most outspoken critics.

While he has previously admitted that he fears assassination, his status as Pakistan's most famous cricketer gives him a certain security: anyone accused of any covert operations against him would be courting public infamy.

In other ways his sporting background is a double-edged sword. It wins him huge support in his constituency of Mianwali, his ancestral homeland. But it also opens him to accusations that he is an opportunist lightweight, piggybacking a political career on to his achievements as a player. His nine-year marriage to Ms Goldsmith split opinion even further: while the alliance may have heightened his visibility, her Jewish origins were unpopular with hardline Islamists.

Still, for Pakistan cricket followers, he remains the biggest figure in the pantheon, his name as inextricable with the sport as Don Bradman's.

Telegraph, London;Agence France-Presse


This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/11/15/1194766868466.html

[Pakistan First]

At the end of the day, once the dust of the Judiciary, Elections, BB/NS return, Mushy taking off uniform, et al has settled down, it is my opinion that the person who'll stand to gain the most from the last two years of political topsy turvies will be IMRAN KHAN.

To the people of Pakistan, he will be remembered as someone who stood up firm against Altaf Hussain for May 12 massacre, someone who was most critical of the rubber stamp parliament and the only one who stood for the supremecy of Judiciary of our nation.

When it comes to the spremacy of judiciary, he should no flexibility. He cut no deal with the Government. He stood by his principles and even went to jail for it.

At the end of the day, this is how Imran Khan will be remembered by the people of Pakistan.

[Pakistan First]

The 'puppeticians'
  
Monday, December 10, 2007
Zainab Qureshi

The stage is set by Musharraf for the holding of "free and fair" elections. The 'puppeticians' (a term very aptly coined by Fatima Bhutto for our politicians) are gearing up for the act. The strings are ready, the script being prepared and the ghost ballots and voters getting in place to spice up the performance. Time and again in our country's unfortunate history we have seen this 'puppeteering' farce which we in Pakistan call democracy.

The elections set to take place this time will lack even the slightest bit of credibility, if they are held in the prevailing circumstances. They are being staged against the backdrop of media curbs and an unprecedented attack on the judiciary. For Pakistan the decision of the 'puppeticians' whether to participate in this show is a crucial one with deep-seated consequences. Those acceding to partake in the show will do so for a short term benefit and will lose out on a golden opportunity of ridding themselves of their strings and severing all ties with the forces pulling them. Those who decide not to participate however have the opportunity to perform on a new stage waiting for them. This stage is not for the 'puppeticians' but politicians; those who represent the will of the people and don't dance to the tune of those pulling their strings.

The new stage has been created by a change in civil society. The fledging media in Pakistan has been responsible for providing the impetus for such change by creating a more politically informed populace. The victory gained in restoring the chief justice has given us a fleeting taste of an independent judiciary. The historic lawyers' movement has opened our eyes to the power of conviction when backed by street power. Yet despite the new stage being ready for a spectacular performance there seems to be a dearth of performers.

The leaders of the main political parties have in true 'puppetician' form filed their nomination papers for the elections to be held under Musharraf. They wait and watch the other and, barring Imran Khan, are not prepared to take a categorical stance for fear of being left out in the cold. Our 'puppeticians' as usual seem to be weighing their options against theirs and their party's interests regardless of the implications.

Participation by any party in the forthcoming elections lends legitimacy to Musharraf and the actions he has taken under the PCO. This is inexcusable. Musharraf has been weakened after the political awakening that has resulted from the post March 9 events. Unity among political parties at this point is the final push required not only to get him out of the political arena, but also to act as a deterrent for all the men in boots in the future. This is necessary to prevent another martial law and imposition of emergency. Doffing of uniform and lifting of the emergency and PCO by a stumbling and faltering Musharraf should not be viewed as sufficient concessions to be lured onto the stage. Until and unless the status quo prevalent before the imposition of the November 3 emergency is restored the elections should be boycotted. Anything short of this will spell the death of the judiciary as along with its independence it stands to lose its finest judges.

As the main 'puppeticians' dither, the onus has now shifted on the second-tier leadership of the political parties to quickly rise to the occasion. This is the time for them to exert pressure and raise their voices within their party ranks to convince their leaders not to participate in the forthcoming elections. The sacrifices made by a cross section of society and led by brave men like Aitizaz Ahsan, Ali Ahmad Kurd, Muneer Malik, Justice (retd) Tariq Mehmood and Hamid Khan and all the judges who refused oath under the PCO will be in vain if the judiciary is not restored.

The people in Pakistan deserve much more than the farce to which they have been repeatedly subjected. Expectations from people like Aitzaz Ahsan who has played a pivotal role in leading a historic movement are high. It will be a real tragedy for our country and its future generations if the movement started in the name of the judiciary is not taken to its logical conclusion.

The new stage created by the collective struggle of the people is ready. A stage for politicians where the director will be the populace. A stage where the audience will assemble without the need to make false promises or take coercive measures. As history watches us we wait to see who will audition for our new stage. Till now only one person has done this -- Imran Khan.



The writer is a barrister by profession and presently works in an educational institution in Lahore. Email: zainabqueue@hotmail.com

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=85295

[Pakistan First]

hehehe. Seems IK has come a long way since 2006 when I started this topic.

Aaah! Izz Guuud to be bak!

[raja]

Pakistan First, on 09 June 2012 - 04:35 PM, said:

hehehe. Seems IK has come a long way since 2006 when I started this topic.

Aaah! Izz Guuud to be bak!

Hey my bro, love IK.....

[ajaj]

raja, on 20 February 2013 - 07:04 PM, said:

Hey my bro, love IK.....

We all do Only hope for Pakistan now ..

[raja]

few posts and topic gets pinned.