LUBP’s note: We are cross-posting and archiving a couple of old posts (November 2010) from Pak Tea House blog edited by bloggers Raza Rumi, Yasser Latif Hamdani and Raza Raja in which these bloggers reacted to what they describe as “a democratically-elected party, gagging its own senior leaders”. Blogger Raza Rumi at the time of writing this article was and still continues to be a consulting editor of Najam Sethi’s The Friday Times blog. Later, Mr Rumi was also appointed by Sherry Rehman as a director of Islamabad based think-tank, Jinnah Institute. Mr Rumi’s post in defence of Sherry Rehman was also published in Epxress Tribune while the letter that he signed in her support and in condemnation of the PPP was co-signed by many other ‘liberals’ including but not limited to Hamid Mir, Najam Sethi, Babar Sattar, Nasim Zehra, Muhammad Malick, Adil Najam etc. LUBP’s reaction to such campaign by Mr Rumi, Mr Najam and others was published in November 2010: https://lubpak.com/archives/28084 (end note)

************

Who’s afraid of Sherry Rehman?
Raza Rumi
Express Tribune, Nov 6, 2010

The writer is consulting editor, The Friday Times

It has been rather disturbing to witness the way Sherry Rehman has been the latest target of the purists within the ruling PPP. For years, Sherry has represented the intellectual vigour within her party. From drafting of manifestoes to holding the important portfolios, she has been an articulate defender of the PPP and its government. Her decision to resign in the wake of the judges’ saga and media handling of the 2009 Lahore-Gujranwala Long March was a matter of democratic choice.

After her resignation, she did not defame her party leadership and continued to demonstrate her loyalty. She is now a victim of an unwise ban on PPP leaders and legislators preventing them from appearing on a particular television channel. Worse, she has been lumped with the other dissenters — Naheed Khan and Safdar Abbasi — whose politics is altogether different.

The Naheed-Safdar duo has acted like a wounded couple since the time Benazir Bhutto was assassinated and Asif Zardari took over the party. It is a separate matter that sections of the electronic media have been using them as the righteous voice of the PPP in complete disregard of the fact that Ms Khan is neither elected, nor does she hold an official post in the party. Such is the intellectual dishonesty here that Ms Bhutto’s decision of not awarding a women’s seat ticket to Naheed Khan has never been discussed. Similarly, Mr Abbasi who was one of the interlocutors in the NRO deal has overnight become the biggest critic of the ordinance.

On the other hand, Sherry Rehman has no covert agenda and does not allow herself to be used as a pawn in the usual game played by anti-democracy forces. If there was a ‘ban’ on appearing on any particular television channel, the PPP should have taken its leaders and cadres in confidence, instead of issuing a decree via press conferences.

A democratically-elected party, gagging its own senior leaders is worrying to say the least. The issuance of a show-cause notice was followed by a siege of Ms Rehman’s house in Karachi by a mob, while the police stood by and did nothing. Her ailing mother and daughter were in the house and remained hostage for hours.

Since then, the PPP leadership has neither explained nor apologised for the unruly behaviour of the mob that circled her house. Sherry Rehman has served the cause of her party far better than many of its powerful stalwarts of today. Above all, she is not just a politician as she mediates multiple identities: as a legislator, a civil society activist, head of a think-tank and a voice of reason and fine intellect.

By pushing people like her to the wall, the party is only harming itself — because the party needs competent people like her.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 6^th, 2010.

Reader Comments

parvez
Nov 6, 2010 – 12:27PM
Reply
Nice defence of Sherry Rehman.
Don’t agree with your closing sentance. The party has been transformed and one has to fit in with the new leaderships vision. Intellectual types who wish to do something good even once in a while, are not needed.
Recommend

SharifL
Nov 6, 2010 – 1:20PM
Reply
I like Sherry Rehman; she is independent minded, educated and does not pretend to by holier than thou attitude; she does not wear head scarf and talks to men just like human beings. But she has to learn to toe the party line. If you do not agree with central committees decisions, you cannot be considered a loyal party member. Sometimes party makes mistakes, but you have to express your reservations in private. One of the reasons why she was asked to resign from her editorial job in Herald was the same.
But it is shameful that many in the internet show her pictures in accommodating position with Z. and G and others. Those who are spreading such faked pictures should be ashamed. And this does not come from PPP. Once I told the guy who sent me one of those pictures ‘that accusing somebody without proof is kufr and your 5 times prayers will not help you much’. But this is the mind set of so many pakistanis.
I agree that demonstrations in front of her house were shameful. Sherry, I like you and wish you all the best. If nothing else, she should be appointed an ambassador to an english speaking country; it will enhance Pakistan’s image, something which needs some help.
Recommend

Burhan Bhutta
Nov 6, 2010 – 2:57PM
Reply
I think PPP has now become such a party which needs only spin doctors for propagating their wrong doings and Ms Rehman is not one of those. She is an intellectual who has a clear concept of right and wrong. Sine she has resigned from the ministry’s portfolio on principal basis, she has been a victim of politics of revenge. What Mr. Rumi says is Very much correct.
Recommend

Ahmer Kureishi
Nov 6, 2010 – 4:32PM
Reply
Do really looking for an answer to that? Here goes: The same set of people who are afraid of Naheed Khan and Safdar Abbasi – although the reasons are probably not the same and the fear is an order of magnitude greater.
By the way, you defeat your cause when you question the ban on Ms. Rehman while at the same time validating if for Naheed Khan and Sen. Safdar Abbasi. Too bad you couldn’t build your argument based on democratic principles rather than Ms. Rehman’s personal merits.
The swipes you takes Ms. Khan and Sen. Abbasi are both low and lowly; you want to know about Shaheed BB’s ‘decision of not awarding a women’s seat ticket to Naheed Khan’? Take it from me: The slain leader considered Ms. Khan’s services as her political secretary indispensable. As for Sen. Abbasi, you have been kind to note he was one of the interlocutors in the NRO deal. Why should that not make him a central party figure?
You insult Ms. Khan and Sen. Abbasi by implying they can be played by the media as pawns. They are both seasoned politicians, not imbeciles or minors. What is more, being the seasoned journalist that you are, you should know that any game-play involving the media and politicians is invariably mutual.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/72971/whos-afraid-of-sherry-rehman/

http://pakteahouse.net/2010/11/06/who%E2%80%99s-afraid-of-sherry-rehman/

Pak Tea House Blog

Attack On Sherry Rehman: A Black Day for Democracy
November 4th, 2010 | 53 Comments
By Aamir Mansoor

As a Pakistani who has long believed in democratic values and has also fought for them and as a person who has always believed that a democratic party like the PPP should be the torch bearer of democratic values that will serve the citizens of Pakistan, I am appalled at the attack that took place on Sherry Rehman’s house.

It was obvious from the nature of the gathering and slogans of the attackers outside Sherry Rehman’s house that the event was organized by her own party leadership. If my understanding is incorrect then why has no major PPP leader including the Co-Chairperson openly condemned the attack on their own colleague.

The all-knowing Sharmila Farooqui who only recently became a member of the party passed it on as a normal reaction of the PPP’ s workers to Sherry Rheman appearing on Geo News which is supposedly being boycotted by the PPP. A party such as the PPP is now resorting to blocking the media if it is not being supportive of the present government. So the question is “ What has happened to the democratic ideals and the media policy of the PPP listed in its manifesto?”

God help Pakistan if this hounding of such outstanding party leaders like Sherry Rehman, is now the culture of the new PPP. After her resignation, the lady has behaved with dignity and has always defended the party and its leadership. Is this the way she is to be repaid for her belief in democracy and ethical politics? Not a word of condemnation against the protesters and no inquiry into this terrible incident? Is the PPP leadership going to adopt fascist ways to block out dissent from within the party? We have to all stand up and say no to all this. And we need to do it now!

Aamir Mansoor is a citizen activist based in Islamabad

53 Responses to “Attack On Sherry Rehman: A Black Day for Democracy”

Newer Comments »
Midfield Dynamo United StatesUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 4, 2010 at 6:15 pm
PPP is organized on the principle of fascism, this incident should be an eye-opener for all who fool themselves in believing it to be a democratic party.
Talha United KingdomUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 4, 2010 at 6:27 pm
Didn’t Bhutto kill his opponents and backstabbed many of his own.
Well the legacy lives on in his party.
D. Asghar United StatesUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 12:28 am
The party under the amateurish leadership of Mr. Zardari has now become “Pakistan Paagal’s Party.” Point to be noted, that I still believe that political parties and democracy are the real answer. But these childish pranks displayed by Mr. Zardari and his cronies are deplorable.
Tilsim United KingdomUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 12:41 am
This incidence deserves outright condemnation and everyone needs to raise their voice against it. However I am sure no Pakistani will be surprised as all the parties have deep connections with ghundas to maintain their street power and the PPP is certainly no exception. The fact that it turned on one of its own and that person is Sherry Rahman makes it all the more unsettling. Sherry is not an angel; she is a tough and ambitious politician but that’s not the point. No person deserves this. There is more to this story than meets the eye.

Probyn United Arab EmiratesUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 1:22 am
Ah yes….the ‘democratic’ credentials of the PPP 🙂
I’m shocked! shocked I tell you!
democracy is the best revenge? wonder whom this revenge is being extracted from?
YLH PakistanUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 7:12 am
Well I am glad Raza bhai posted this here.
We support the democratically elected government but not unquestioningly.
Our friends at CriticalPPP blog – the neo-jiyalas- ironically are in the habit of accusing anyone who crit
icises something of the present government or Mr. Zardari of being Pseudo-liberal and ISI supporters.
A recent abusive article against Dr. Adil Najam is a case in point. PPP seems to have found new blood to act as storm troopers.
PS I am a two-times PPP voter whose family has voted PPP since 1970.

YLH PakistanUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 2:37 pm
The offending statement:
We believe that freedom of speech which includes holding diverse opinion, is the fundamental right of every citizen and indeed forms the basis of every civilized and democratic society. In Pakistan we have fought long and hard to secure this right from dictators and democrats alike. We feel that we need to continue to be vigilant about growing attempts to muzzle free speech in the public domain. Most importantly, we must not allow our own inaction as citizens to lend sanction to the naked state-backed intimidation that we witnessed at the hands of a government that was once the proud standard-bearer of fundamental rights in Pakistan.
It is therefore our duty as watchful citizens to not allow political parties to unleash such blatant acts of harrasment and intimidation in a series of crude attempts to gag its own senior leadership through violent means.
Sherry Rehman’s case is particularly disturbing. As former Information Secretary of the PPP, and former Federal Minister for Information, her services to democracy and press freedoms bear no repeating.
On the heels of a show cause notice served on her by her party for speaking on a television channel that was ostensibly under a ban by the PPP, her house in Karachi was held under siege for hours. On October 22, 2010, about 300-350 armed goons, front-lined by women, protested outside her gates while local police stood and watched them block roads as well as lay siege to her house.
While some sections of the party leadership maintain no knowledge of these activists, their reluctance to take punitive action against these “fringe elements” deployed with party symbols and flags continues.
In a subsequent development that was even more shocking, a Sindh minister went on the television to say without hesitation that Sherry Rehman should have expected such inaction for speaking to a channel that was proscribed by the party.
She was blatant in owning the fascist behavior of these new party shock troops in what she described as “emotional outbursts” by party workers the government or party could control. The silence and inaction of other leaders after several days of the incident now also points to a trail of complicity in dangerous violence.
It should be noted by all that we strongly condemn this attack. The attack on a public representative’s house, where her undefended mother and daughter were held hostage for hours, was completely unwarranted and constitutes a serious violation of their fundamental rights.
It was reliably reported that Rehman’s effigy was burnt in front of her besieged house, while traffic and roads leading to her house were blocked for several hours by shock troops from the PPP stronghold, Lyari. Her vilification was allowed to go unchecked even before this incident. Graffitti threatening her with physical decapitation if she “violated party discipline” was repeatedly sprayed outside her house. We not only condemn such resort to terror, but also demand that the President and the Prime Minister order an inquiry into the siege of Ms. Rehman’s house and take swift and appropriate action against those responsible for resorting to terror in the name of a protest.
We demand that the Report of an Inquiry be made public within 7 working days from today.
SIGNATORIES (note according to LUBP ISI backed pseudo-liberals). Dr. Hassan Abbas, Tahira Abdullah, Dr. Meekal Ahmad, Amb. Shamshad Ahmad, Tasneem Ahmar, Ambreen Ajaib, Absaar Alam, Mukhtar Ahmad Ali, Miariann Babar, Justice Fakhruddin G. Ebraheem, Imtiaz Gul, Anis Haroon, Hameed Haroon, Ali Dayan Hasan, Dr. Parvez Hoodbhoy, Dr. Akmal Hussain, Irfan Hussain, Quatrina Hussain, Amb. Touqir Hussain, Prof. Ayesha Jalal, Nusrat Javed, Asma Jehangir, Amb. Shafqat Kakakhel, Ali Karamat, Haris Khalique, Aqsa Khan, Amb. Humayun Khan, Amb. Mazhar Khan, Samina Khan, Amb. Riaz Khokhar, Mohammad Malick, Amir Mateen, Fauzia Minallah, Hamid Mir, Khawar Mumtaz, Zubeida Mustapha, Kishwar Naheed, Dr. Adil Najam, Fawzia Naqwi, Shehzad Nawaz, Sameena Nazir, William Parvez, Omar Qureshi, Salman Akram Raja, Abbas Rasheed, Rashed Rehman, Dr. Tariq Rehman, Justice Majida Rizvi, Raza Rumi, Najma Sadeque, Babar Sattar, Dr. Dushka Sayed, Fareeda Shaeed, Zeenia Shaukat, Dr. Ayesha Siddiqua, Najam Sethi, Kamran Shafi, Ahmar Bilal Sufi, Mohammad Tahseen, Nasim Zehra, Mohammad Ziauddin

Ali K.Chishti PakistanUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 3:36 pm
Interestingly I mentioned the attack on Sherry Rehman with Sharmila Farooqi at a television program just yesterday and dumb-stuck reply was, “has anyone filed an FIR?” – let’s not go into FIR’s…
Sherry called me last week telling me how Uzair Baloch & Co. of Lyari Gangwar and Lyari Amn Committee fame in direct supervision of Interior Minister, Sindh came out with a mob threatening her…..Its just sad….
Finally we need to understand the intra politics of PPP, Sindh where there’s two camp now,
I. Nisar Khuro, Mazhar Camp
II. Zulfiqar Mirza, Agha Siraj Durrani Camp

Ali K.Chishti PakistanUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 3:42 pm
sorry,
I. Niasr Khuro, Shazia Marri, Pir Mazahar ul Haq and Co. (Sherry supports the above group)
versus
II. Zulfiqar Mirza, Agha Siraj Durrani and Qaim Ali Shah Co.

Raza Raja PakistanUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 7:14 pm
I dont know whether I am genius but I am critical supporter of PPP…My family has supported the ideals on which this party was formed right from 1967. My close family members were even in that 1967 convention when PPP was formed. It aches my heart that party is in problems….. I think at least to some extent party itself is responsble for it..
please Zardari is not Benazir….In fact I am lately beginning to realize that Benazir was even bettter than ZAB himself….Yes she had flaws …but she was so brilliant so liberal…..I wish that she lived…….Sorry mr Zardari is not even one tenth of her
Raza Raja PakistanUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 7:17 pm
I can not respect a man who called Pervaiz Elahi THE murderer of his great wife and yet when the need arose he sent that crook named as Baber Awan to PML Q for alliance!!
Come on!!! there is a limit to political manouvering…
Spare me…For God sake get rid of this guy…
Raza Raja PakistanUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 7:22 pm
Even NFP is now admitting though in guarded words that Zardari is a liability….
I am even ready to accept Bilawal as a leader….just get rid of this guy….he is a liability….
I have tried to be objective all my life….
I have voted for PPP and against PPP…
Today if elections are held, I will vote for PPP in National Assembly but for PML N in Punjab assembly…I recognize that PPP is the only way to keep this state intact…But please get rid of Zardari

Raza Raja PakistanUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 8:30 pm
Dear ali arqam, I have appreciated PPP’s role in 18th amendment and improved NFP award in many articles. But at the same time I think that PPP would be much better off without
1) Zardari
ii) Rehman Malik
iii) Salman Taseer
iv) Babar Awan
v) Fouzia Wahab
Please lets get rid of these scounderals
Raza Raja PakistanUnknow BrowserUnknow Os says:
November 5, 2010 at 8:34 pm
Ali arqam the problem is that these people are at the forefront…THEY ARE
These people are a liability to the PARTY… Sorry I will call spade a spade…
PPP whatever its shortcomings was built around left wing ideals…Such a sorry state to watch it defend croony politicians like Zardari, Baber Awan and salman Taseer..
Come on!!!! the party of brilliant people like ZAB,BB and J Rahim is reduced to this!!!

http://pakteahouse.net/2010/11/04/attack-on-sherry-rehman-a-black-day-for-democracy/comment-page-1/

Dawn: Civil society seeks probe into siege of Sherry`s house
By From the Newspaper
Published Nov 02, 2010 12:00am

ISLAMABAD, Nov 1: Civil society representatives on Monday condemned the besieging of the house of MNA Sherry Rehman by PPP workers.

They demanded of President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani to initiate an inquiry into the matter.

“We not only condemn such resort to terror, but also demand that the President and the Prime Minister order an inquiry into the siege of Ms Rehman’s house and take swift and appropriate action against those responsible for resorting to terror in the name of a protest. We demand that the report of an Inquiry be made public within 7 working days of the incident,” read a letter written by the civil society representatives to President and Prime Minister.

The letter has signatures of Justice (R) Fakhruddin G. Ebraheem, Tahira Abdullah (human rights activist), Hameed Haroon (CEO Dawn), Zubeida Mustafa (journalist), Najam Sethi (Friday Times Editor), Nusrat Javed (anchor and analyst), Kamran Shafi (columnist), Irfan Hussain (columnist), Dr Ayesha Jalal (historian), Dr Meekal Ahmad (economist), Parvez Hoodbhoy (educationist), Dr Ayesha Siddiqua (author), Khawar Mumtaz (Shirkatgah), Shehzad Nawaz, Anis Haroon (Chairperson Commission on the Status of Women), Mohammad Malick (editor), Mariana Babar (journalist), Hamid Mir (anchor/columnist) Akmal Hussain (economist) Ahmar Bilal Sufi, Salman Akram Raja lawyer, Samina Khan (Sungi), Mohammad Ziauddin (editor Express Tribune), Amir Mateen (journalist), Imtiaz Gul (journalist), Fawzia Naqwi Soros Foundation, Quatrina Hussain (anchor) Absaar Alam (journalist), Omar Qureshi (editor), Nasim Zehra (journalist/anchor), Babar Sattar (Lawyer), Ahmar Bilal Sufi (lawyer) Dr Dushka Sayed (Historian), Fareeda Shaeed (shirkatgah), Abbas Rasheed (columnist), Najma Sadeque, Hassan Abbas (Columbia University), Zeenia Shaukat, Ali Karamat (PILER), Haris Khalique (activist), Mukhtar Ahmad Ali (Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives), Fauzia Minallah (human rights activist), Aqsa Khan, (former ambassador) Riaz Khokhar (former ambassador) Humayun Khan, Shamshad Ahmad, Shafqat Kakakhel, Raza Rumi (columnist), , Tasneem Ahmar (Uks), Ambreen Ajaib Bedari, William Parvez (Pattan), Mohammad Tahseen (South Asian Partnership).

The letter whose copy is available with Dawn further says, “We believe that freedom of speech which includes holding diverse opinion, is the fundamental right of every citizen and indeed forms the basis of every civilised and democratic society. In Pakistan we have fought long and hard to secure this right from dictators and democrats alike.

“We feel that we need to continue to be vigilant about growing attempts to muzzle free speech in the public domain. Most importantly, we must not allow our own inaction as citizens to lend sanction to the naked state-backed intimidation that we witnessed at the hands of a government that was once the proud standard-bearer of fundamental rights in Pakistan,” it says.

“It is, therefore, our duty as watchful citizens to not allow political parties to unleash such blatant acts of harrasment and intimidation in a series of crude attempts to gag its own senior leadership through violent means.“Sherry Rehman’s case is particularly disturbing. As former Information Secretary of the PPP, and former Federal Minister for Information, her services to democracy and press freedoms bear no repeating.

“On the heels of a show cause notice served on her by her party for speaking on a television channel that was ostensibly under a ban by the PPP, her house in Karachi was held under siege for hours. On October 22, 2010, about 300-350 armed goons, front-lined by women, protested outside her gates while local police stood and watched them block roads as well as lay siege to her house.

“While some sections of the party leadership maintain no knowledge of these activists, their reluctance to take punitive action against these fringe elements deployed with party symbols and flags continues, they said.

In a subsequent development that was even more shocking, a Sindh minister went on the television to say without hesitation that Sherry Rehman should have expected such inaction for speaking to a channel that was proscribed by the party.

They said she was blatant in owning the fascist behavior of these new party shock troops in what she described as “emotional outbursts” by party workers the government or party could control. “The silence and inaction of other leaders after several days of the incident now also points to a trail of complicity in dangerous violence.”

“It should be noted by all that we strongly condemn this attack. The attack on a public representative’s house, where her undefended mother and daughter were held hostage for hours, was completely unwarranted and constitutes a serious violation of their fundamental rights.

“It was reliably reported that Rehman’s effigy was burnt in front of her besieged house, while traffic and roads leading to her house were blocked for several hours by shock troops from the PPP stronghold, Lyari. Her vilification was allowed to go unchecked even before this incident. Graffiti threatening her with physical decapitation if she “violated party discipline” was repeatedly sprayed outside her house,” the letter concluded.

http://www.dawn.com/news/577922/civil-society-seeks-probe-into-siege-of-sherry-s-house

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