PESHAWAR: The NWFP Bar Council Sunday announced holding a province-wide boycott of the superior as well as subordinate judiciary today (Monday) in protest against Pakistan Bar Council’s decision of suspending the licence of a lawyers’ leader, Abdul Lateef Afridi.

The council termed the decision of the PBC as illegal and unconstitutional, adding it was aimed at sabotaging the lawyer movement. The council added the anti-lawyer forces must bear in mind the fact that such tactics could not shatter lawyers’ resolve rather give a boost to their movement.

Meanwhile, from Peshawar High Court Bar Association Abdul Lateef Afridi told ‘The News’ by phone that they were political people and committed to democracy and establishment of a durable democratic order in the country and opposed to the military rule at all costs.

“Therefore, we, in fact, don’t want to create a situation in which anti-democratic forces are benefited but the so-called members of the PBC are acting as the agent provocateurs,” he said.

He added that the lawyer community wanted the independence of judiciary, “but people at the PBC are hell-bent on provoking the lawyers to hold country-wide demonstrations.” Afridi went on to inform that he tried his level best to convince the legal fraternity not to hold countrywide boycott of the courts but they were concerned enough about the decision of the PBC and decide to go for a strike today (Monday).

“In fact I am not appearing before the Supreme Court and still continuing my protest against the judges who took oath under the Provisional Constitution Order of November 3, 2007,” he said.

He added the PBC decision of suspending his licence was reaction to the issuing of show-cause notice to PBC Vice Chairman, Said Rahman, by PHCBA some days back. Afridi said that members of the PBC were elected by the provincial bar councils and NWFP Bar Council had already expressed its un-confidence against Said Rahman.

“Said Rahman has lost the mandate of his electoral college and he has no moral justification to hold the office anymore,” he said. The PHC chief termed the members of the PBC as the renegades of the lawyers’ movement, adding that they could not cancel his licence of the Supreme Court.

He said during the recent election of Supreme Court Bar Association, the group having the espousal of bigwigs of PBC were defeated by more than 100 per cent margin despite the fact that they tried their best to buy the loyalties of lawyers by offering them every possible incentive.

“They could not win even a single seat in the SCBA election and they have no moral mandate to act against the wishes of the majority of the lawyers who are fighting for the establishment of the rule of law in the country,” he said.
Source: The News
Date:11/17/2008