At noon local time, the president administered the oath of office to new Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, who spent over four years in jail under Musharraf’s rule. "May Allah Almighty help and guide me, Amen," Musharraf was heard saying. "May Allah Almighty help and guide me, Amen," Gilani repeated.
If she had not been assassinated on December 27, former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto would likely have been the one taking the oath, as her Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) received most votes in recent elections. Following her death, the PPP’s Gilani eventually became the new candidate to lead a government and, following his party’s February 18 election victory, was approved by an overwhelming parliamentary majority as Monday, March 24, as Pakistan’s 25th prime minister.
Gilani won with 264 votes in the 342-seat National Assembly, the lower house of parliament. The only other contender, Chaudhry Pervez Elahi of the Pakistan Muslim League that backs Musharraf, got 42 votes. The announcement of the result triggered cheers and shouts of "long live Bhutto" and "go Musharraf, go" from supporters in the parliament’s visitors’ gallery. Bhutto’s son Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was also in the gallery and was seen wiping away a tear.
BHUTTO’S "MARTYRDOM"
"It is because of the martyrdom of Benazir Bhutto that democracy is being restored. It is a historic event," Gilani told the assembly. A showdown is looming between the new government and president concerning the judiciary. In one of his first political moves, Gilani freed ousted judges, who had been under house arrest for more than four months. The coalition has also pledged to restore to the bench judges removed last year by the president. Yet, the replacement Supreme Court has already ruled that the dismissals of their predecessors were "constitutional".
Two senior US officials, John Negroponte, deputy secretary of state, and Richard Boucher, assistant secretary for South and Central Asian affairs, spent 90 minutes with President Musharraf as part of efforts to ease tensions. The American envoys were also scheduled talks with Prime Minister Gilani.
Gilani’s election is closely followed by Christian politicians, several of whom won seats in the national and provincial parliaments. Among those elected to Pakistan’s National Assembly is Shahbaz Bhatti, chairman of the influential advocacy group All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (APMA), who says he wants to end religious persecution in this mainly Muslim nation.
He told BosNewsLife that among his priorities is the "abolishment of blasphemy and other discriminatory laws," that have led to the arrest and detention of Christians throughout Pakistan. "I pledge to defend the rights of oppressed minorities and struggle for religious freedom, human equality [and] social justice," he pledged. Bhatti warned he may receive "threats" from what he called "the forces of darkness," an apparent reference to Islamic extremism.
"PROFOUND JOY"
However, he said, "It is an honor and a profound joy for me to represent and serve Christians and religious minorities of Pakistan. I believe it to be a victory of persecuted, oppressed, victimized Christians and other minorities."
Bhatti stressed he is not a politician and that he "never had a desire to become a member of parliament." However,"The growing persecution and victimization of minorities compelled me to accept the request of my Christian community and minorities of Pakistan to represent them…and become voice of the voiceless," he explained. "With my actions and deeds I will show others that I am the follower of Jesus Christ, Savior of entire humanity."
There are a total of 342 seats in the National Assembly. Of these 10 seats are reserved for religious minorities. In addition there are 60 seats for women, who have been supported by Christian-leaning groups such as APMA and rights group Rays Of Development (ROD). At a meeting earlier this month, a female member of the parliament of the province of Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous area, told BosNewsLife it is high time that women from all
religions receive more legal protection in the country.
"I call for treatment of women on the basis of equality," Tahir Naveed Chaudhary said. "Women from minorities should be given reserved seats and the government should allocate at least 10 percent of seats," in national and provincial parliaments. She participated in a prayer meeting in the town of Sargodha "for solidarity, equal rights, freedom and prosperity of all Pakistani women," including Christians.
Christians comprise less than three percent of Pakistan’s roughly 165 million people, according to the United States Central Intelligence Agency, CIA. (With BosNewsLife’s Stefan J. Bos. Read more from Jawad Mazhar via www.raysofdevelopment.org).
