* Pakistan
New wave of repression against LPP leaders
ON October 19 Pakistani police tried to arrest Farooq Tariq, General Secretary of the Labour Party Pakistan from a hunger strike camp in the presence of dozens of activists. The Joint Action Committee For Peoples Rights had organised a hunger strike camp in Lahore to demand a joint electorate instead of the present plan for a separate electorate, which will mean that Muslims will have to vote for Muslims and Christians and other religious minorities can only vote for their respective religious fellows.
Several Labour Party comrades including Comrade Farooq Tarig took part in the hunger strike camp, Over a hundred activists participated in this camp. Several known leaders from different political parties including Dr, Mubashir Hasan, ex finance minister under Bhutto in the 1970s and Faroog Tariq spoke on the occasion.
After a few minutes of Comrade Faroog's speech, four policemen approached him and asked to come outside the camp. He refused to do so. Several people had spoken to the police inspecter outside the hunger strike camp who told them that he had orders to arrest Farooq. However, an escape plan succeeded in taking him out of the camp and police could not follow the motorbike specialist.
On October 18, Comrade Farooq Tariq spoke to a railway workers demonstration alongside several trade union leaders at
Railway Workshops. There were over three thousand workers and a thousand policemen to stop this demo. Police in the end gave way and let the demonstration go on.
Comrade Faroog Jarig criticised police for taking such repressive actions at a time when there are a lot of robberies car ried out every day in Lahore. All eight speakers at the rally including Faroog have subsequently been booked by Railway
Police for anti state activities and provocational speeches.
Police have also registered a case against Farooq Tariq, Asma Jehangir and Badr Munir, president of the Lahore Press club for holding a "Restore democracy" conference. Although comrade Farooq was not able to speak at the conference due to a personal emergency, comrade Shoaib Bhatti, chairman of the LPP, represented the party.
It is also known that police at the Wah Ordinance factory have registered a case against Farooq Tarig and 18 other labour leaders, They spoke in a seminar organised by the Wah Factory workers union on September 27.
On October 15-16, police raided the house of Dost Mohammed Channa, chairman of the LPP in Sind. They still have not been able to arrest him. A day earlier be was visited by the head of local intelligence service at his house who asked him not to support the Dada Bhai Cement Factory workers union. When he refused to do so, the police came to his house.
On October 16, Comrade Faroog Tariq, Shoaib Bhatti and other leading comrades spoke at a press conference held at
Lahore Press Club to announce that the LPP will hold more Restore democracy" conferences in other provinces as well.
The first such one will be in Karachi during November. After the press coverage the next day, the office of the LPP was visited by several intelligence services to know more about the plans.
The LPP will hold a meeting of leading comrades to chalk out the strategy to fight back against this suppression of LPP leaders. [Farooq Sulehria) *
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Editor and director: Yannis Felekis, Eressou 34, 106 81 Athens, Greece. Printed by loannis Kotsatsos & Cia, Marinou Antipa 4, 163 46 Ilioupoli, Greece. Distributed by Spartakos,
36 International Viewpoint #325 November 2000