Protest march called off after judge reinstated

Pakistan agreed today to reinstate a fired Supreme Court chief justice, a move that will help defuse a political crisis that sparked street battles and raised fears of instability in the US-allied country at a time of surging Islamist violence.

Opposition leaders and lawyers had vowed to sit in at the parliament in Islamabad later today until Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry, known for his independence and willingness to challenge authority, was reinstated.

The capital has been barricaded and scores of extra police brought in amid fears of violence.

In a dawn address to the nation that capped a night of high drama, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani announced Mr Chaudhry would be sworn back in on March 21, the day the current chief justice was due to retire.

The speech triggered scenes of jubilation outside Mr Chaudhry’s home in the capital.

Mr Gilani also ordered all lawyers and political activists arrested over the past week to be freed immediately and appealed for political reconciliation in the nuclear-armed country, which is facing a punishing economic crisis as well as rising al Qaida and Taliban violence.

The concession came as thousands of protesters led by Nawaz Sharif, the head of the largest opposition party and a longtime foe of President Asif Ali Zardari, were travelling to Islamabad to join the planned sit-in.

Mr Sharif joined the convoy after ignoring a house arrest order in his hometown of Lahore in Punjab, where his supporters fought running battles with police.

Supporters in Gujranwala mobbed Mr Sharif’s rose-petal covered car following Mr Gilani’s announcement.

Mr Sharif called off the so-called Long March to the capital, and thanked Mr Zardari, Mr Gilani and the Pakistani people.

“From here, God willing, the fate of this nation will change,” Mr Sharif said using a microphone from inside his jeep before heading back to Lahore.

“From here, a journey of development will start. From here, a revolution will come.”

Former President Pervez Musharraf fired Mr Chaudhry, 60, in 2007 after he took up cases challenging the leader’s rule, sparking a wave of protests that helped force Mr Musharraf from power in 2008.

Mr Musharraf’s successor, Mr Zardari, pledged to reinstate Mr Chaudhry within 30 days of his party forming a government, but reneged on the promise, apparently fearing the justice might examine a deal that he and his wife, murdered politician Benazir Bhutto, struck with Mr Musharraf to grant the pair immunity from prosecution over alleged corruption cases.

Mr Zardari’s broken promise and his government’s repression of the protesters will likely leave him in a politically weakened position.

Mr Sharif has projected an image of strength and stands to gain from leading a successful movement against the president, who has been the focus of popular anger.

Lawyers and civil rights activists have remained committed to the cause of Mr Chaudhry’s reinstatement, believing it was a vital first step in getting an independent judiciary in Pakistan. The court system has often been abused by past rulers to cement their grip on power.

“This is a victory for the people of this country,” lawyer leader Baz Mohammad Kakar said after Mr Gilani’s announcement.

“Chaudhry is the first chief justice in the history of Pakistan who has proved himself to be a judge for the people, as a chief justice for the people.”

The lawyer’s movement got a boost last month when Mr Sharif threw his full weight behind it after he and his brother, Shahbaz, were banned from elected office by the Supreme Court.

Mr Zardari then dismissed the government led by Shahbaz in the Punjab province, the wealthiest in Pakistan and a vital prize for politicians.

Mr Gilani repeated a pledge made Saturday to appeal that verdict to the Supreme Court.

Before dawn yesterday, hundreds of police had surrounded Mr Sharif’s residence in Lahore, carrying an order for his house arrest.

Mr Sharif denounced the order as illegal and later left the house in a convoy of vehicles as police stood by. It was unclear why they relented, but Lahore is Mr Sharif’s political stronghold.