Babar urges civil society push for new legislation

ISLAMABAD: Senator Farhatullah Babar Saturday called for legislation to bring the state agencies under the ambit of law and asked the civil society organisations to play its role in persuading the government to implement the recommendations of the Senate to address the issue of missing persons in the country.

Speaking at a memorial reference for eminent lawyer and rights activist Asma Jahangir organised by the Awami Workers Party at the National Press Club Islamabad on Saturday, Farhatullah Babar said that the Senate recommendations also included a draft legislation to make the institutions accountable. "The proposed legislation pending for the past over a year with the government must be passed and soon," he said.

The Senator from the PPP said the days of direct takeover seemed to be over and a new model of controlled democracy had emerged. In this model, he said, the person sitting on the wheel was not the actual driver and vital controls were operated invisibly from the rear seat.

Paying tribute to Asma Jahangir, he said that she fought against traditions that militated against the weak and the oppressed and that was why men and women, Muslims and non-Muslims all stood shoulder to shoulder to bid her farewell. "In defence of liberty and freedom, she fought dictators, whether civilian or military, and whether bearded or without beard," he said.

Farhatullah Babar said Asma Jahangir fought for independence of judiciary but also openly criticised judgments which she thought were more political than judicial. He said Asma challenged the clergy on issues of blasphemy, marriageable age for girls and Wali's presence in solemnizing marriage, he said.

Later, talking to the media, the senator said that most of the bloggers who went missing were those who pleaded alternate theories of national security. "The state does not seem to tolerate new narratives gaining traction as it will undermine the pre-eminence of some elements," he said.