Amjad Malik`s Personal Page

On 10^th of September exiled Premier of Pakistan returned after 7 years of exile on a symbolic PIA flight number PK 786 from Heathrow to Islamabad. However he was shocked along with his fellow travellers that the so called mightiest and the most powerful man in Pakistan refused not only his but the entry of democracy in Pakistan, and his forced deportation vanished all the hopes of reviving the democracy and possible exit of the military from current political system peacefully.

I was one of the unfortunate lawyers who inherited a circumstantial brief to assist Mian Nawaz Sharif on that plane as well as at the airport lounge in order to practically convert his aspirations to submit himself to the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and to physically convey his feelings of peace, good will and national reconciliation to his Pakistani people. To me this historic flight carried its passengers by luck like a lottery ticket as no one knew which plane Mr. Sharif will catch. All our efforts were unfruitful when all proceedings which were more or less peaceful were halted by a quick army style operation which resulted in push and pulls and the deportation of Nawaz Sharif to an other exile, the term of which is unknown this time.

I would not mention the court order of Supreme Court which was violated here as General Musharraf's regime knows no concept of rule of law as his reign is full of contradictions of his sayings and operations otherwise. Alas his machinery did not learn any lesson from the reference of March the 9^th then filed against Chief Justice, operation in Wana and Lal Masjid and 12 ^th May massacre. In fact they restaged the same scene in the capital and made it like Beirut though only missing link was dead bodies.

We were dealt with by Sameer, Imam and Tahir Ayub, all lower ranking officers who had to go again and again to seek instructions from higher officials. They were less worried about Sharif's entry but more of losing their jobs and as the time passed at the airport lounge, composed Sharif won his moral battle against regime by just sitting in economy class with common passengers, travelling in ordinary bus and sitting for over 3 hours in ordinary lounge on an orange sofa and authorities did not even bother to come and talk to him and he was treated like a common thief forgetting that the man made Pakistan the 7 ^th state that possesses nuclear arsenal and is one of the most popular leader in Pakistan along with Bhuttoos. Instead he was rushed out towards rear exit by a storm of intelligence officials on the false pretence that he is arrested administratively and will be produced before accountability court the very next day.

My faith in rule of law and justice in Pakistan though did not shatter but all the happenings have startled me with the realisation that matrix of military might have almost disabled the state structure and institutions are mortgaged to their strength. 160 million people could not ensure enforcement of larger bench's decision to allow Sharifs to enter and remain and continue politics as they acted like a crowd rather than a nation and preferred to watch Tele at home whilst the regime was shattering all the norms of national and international laws and shraif was returned without even entry endorsement on his passport.

The historic flight pk786 landed, Nawaz Sharif came and was returned leaving many  unanswered questions but one thing which is undoubted is that unarmed Sharif rattled the confidence of dying regime minute by minute as long as he was waiting entry clearance at the lounge. Who knows next time he comes like a Khomeini of Iran.            

Amjad Malik is a Solicitor-Advocate of the Supreme Court of England & Wales and was representing Mr. Nawaz Sharif throughout his four and a half hour stay at Islamabad airport on 10 ^th of September 2007.