Headlines:
- US Impeachment is Political Manoeuvre and Not a Legal Response to his Crimes
- Pakistan PM Imran Khan Defends Former Dictator Musharraf against Court Judgement
- Saudi Opposition to Malaysian Summit Exposes Disunity in the Muslim Ummah
- Musharraf to be Hanged by His Neck Till He Dies: Detailed Special Court Verdict
- Citizenship Act Protests: Three Dead and Thousands Held in India
- Mike Pompeo Backs Arsenal Star Mesut Ozil in China Row over Muslim Uyghur Minority
US Impeachment is Political Manoeuvre and Not a Legal Response to his Crimes
Despite being impeached this week, it is unlikely that US President Donald Trump will be removed from office. Impeachment was carried out by the lower house of America’s Congress, which is presently dominated by the Democratic Party; but only the US Senate can remove Trump, and that is controlled by Trump’s Republican Party. However, the real reason that the Democrats moved for impeachment can be seen in its timing, coming at the beginning of the 2020 presidential elections. According to an opinion piece in the New York Times:
President Trump’s almost inevitable acquittal doesn’t mean impeachment wasn’t worthwhile.
Trump, and Trump alone, will be the central issue of the coming election — the core concern for most voters. He’s the reason pollsters are predicting high turnout; he’s the reason voters on both sides are deeply engaged and ready to take action. In that environment, impeachment is the loudest, clearest message Democrats could send to the electorate. They don’t just oppose him because he is a Republican and a conservative; they oppose him because he is unfit. They oppose him because he is a threat to the values and aspirations of the Republic.
Yes, this has been a partisan impeachment. But that’s the norm. Democrats weren’t eager to impeach Andrew Johnson; Republicans drove the case against Bill Clinton. By making this case now — by sanctioning Trump in the strongest, most consequential manner available to them — congressional Democrats have set the terms for the next election…
Western systems of government, despite their loud claims of ‘checks and balances’ actually give immunity to their rulers from criminal prosecution by the courts. In fact the idea of checks and balances is designed to enforce elite capture of the ruling apparatus, which is what democracy is really all about. No one within the system is able to act unilaterally. This is in contrast to Islam, where the Khalifah is entrusted with complete authority but is subject to a court of law just as with any other citizen of the state.
Pakistan PM Imran Khan Defends Former Dictator Musharraf against Court Judgement
This week, a specially constituted Pakistani court sentenced to death former General Pervez Musharraf for acting against the constitution in imposing martial law but the judgement is being opposed by the government of Imran Khan, who is commonly seen as a stooge for Musharraf and of the army. According to Aljazeera:
The government of Pakistan will be filing a complaint against a senior judge who, heading the bench that convicted former military ruler Pervez Musharraf for high treason, called for the former president’s corpse to be displayed outside Parliament.
Judge Waqar Ahmed Seth, in personal observations recorded in a detailed verdict that was released on Thursday, said the former president should be apprehended and hanged by authorities as soon as possible.
“And if [Musharraf is] found dead, his corpse be dragged to the D-Chowk [in front of Pakistan’s parliament building], Islamabad, Pakistan, and be hanged for three days,” read the observation.
A special court convicted and sentenced Musharraf to death on Tuesday, an unprecedented verdict in a country that has been ruled by its powerful military for roughly half of its 72-year history.
Musharraf has lived in self-imposed exile in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since 2016 and says he will appeal the verdict at the Supreme Court.
In a video message released from a hospital bed in Dubai on Thursday, Musharraf said he “respects the judiciary greatly”, but repeated his accusations that the court did not give him a fair trial.
“This case is only being pursued because some people have a personal vendetta against me, to target an individual,” he said.
Pakistani army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa met with Prime Minister Imran Khan in the capital Islamabad after the verdict, a military spokesperson said.
Following that meeting, the government announced it would be filing a reference against the judge, who is also the chief justice of the Peshawar High Court, for his observations. Federal Minister of Law and Justice Farogh Naseem termed the verdict “unprecedented and despicable”.
“This is an attempt to take Pakistan into dark ages,” he said.
Earlier, military spokesman Major-General Asif Ghafoor addressed a news conference at army headquarters in Rawalpindi, alleging that the verdict was part of a conspiracy to destabilise Pakistan.
“Today’s verdict, and especially the use of [certain] words in it are against humanity, religion, culture and values,” he said.
In fact, overturning Pakistan’s constitution is the least of Musharraf’s crimes, a constitution that is in any case built on British law and not acceptable from the Islamic viewpoint. It was General Musharraf that opened Afghanistan to American invasion, which initiated a new age of Western imperialism with the return of their militaries to Muslim lands. His true crime was treachery against the Muslim Ummah in the service of the disbelieving foreigner. Allah (swt) says in the Noble Qur’an: يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ لاَ تَتَّخِذُواْ الْيَهُودَ وَالنَّصَارَى أَوْلِيَاء بَعْضُهُمْ أَوْلِيَاء بَعْضٍ وَمَن يَتَوَلَّهُم مِّنكُمْ فَإِنَّهُ مِنْهُمْ إِنَّ اللّهَ لاَ يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الظَّالِمِينَ “O you who have believed, do not take the Jews and the Christians as allies. They are [in fact] allies of one another. And whoever is an ally to them among you – then indeed, he is [one] of them. Indeed, Allah guides not the wrongdoing people.” [al-Maida: 51].
Saudi Opposition to Malaysian Summit Exposes Disunity in the Muslim Ummah
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has openly accused the Saudis of preventing Pakistan’s attendance at a summit of select Muslim countries hosted by Malaysia due to a Saudi perception that the Malaysian move is an attempt to find an alternate to the Saudi-dominated OIC. According to Middle East Eye:
Turkey’s president has said he is unsurprised about reports that Saudi Arabia pressured Pakistan not to attend a summit for Muslim leaders in Malaysia this week, adding it was not the first time that Riyadh had threatened Islamabad.
Middle East Eye reported on Tuesday that Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan had cancelled the visit after being summoned to Saudi Arabia for talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Leaders and senior representatives from some 20 Muslim nations have gathered in Kuala Lumpur this week to discuss issues agitating Muslims globally.
Explaining its decision to stay away, Saudi Arabia said the summit was the wrong forum for matters of importance to the world’s 1.75 billion Muslims.
However, some analysts suspect the kingdom feared being diplomatically isolated by regional rivals Iran, Qatar and Turkey, who are attending.
Speaking to reporters in the Malaysian capital on Friday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said: “This isn’t the first time that the Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi administrations have taken such an attitude.
“Unfortunately, we observe that Saudi Arabia is putting pressure on Pakistan. See, there are [Saudi] promises to Pakistan regarding its central bank.”
As MEE reported last year, the Pakistani government was in a dire financial position before securing a $6bn bailout from Saudi Arabia.
“We were facing really hard times,” Khan admitted at that time.
“Beyond everything else, there are four million Pakistan workers in Saudi Arabia,” said Erdogan.
“They [Saudi Arabia] tell them that ‘we can send them back, and instead take Bangladeshis’.
“On the other hand, regarding the central bank, they tell [Pakistan] that they could withdraw their money. And following similar threats, Pakistan, which is facing harsh economic conditions, found itself in a position to take such [a decision not to attend the summit].”
Khan is thought to have been among the original leaders who suggested that the Kuala Lumpur summit take place, during talks with Erdogan and Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad last September on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
The Pakistani prime minister is reported to have telephoned Mahathir to inform him of his decision not to attend.
The Kuala Lumpur summit describes itself as “an international platform for Muslim leaders, intellectuals and scholars from around the world to discuss and exchange ideas about the issues revolving in the Muslim world”.
Saudi Arabia is understood to have been concerned that moves might have begun at the Malaysia summit to form a new body to replace the 57-member Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, which is headquartered in Jeddah.
Mahathir, at 94 the world’s oldest prime minister, has denied those accusations.
“But thank God that [Saudi Arabia and the UAE] can’t knock on our door much. It is all about your posture,” said Erdogan.
In fact Muslim governments are deeply infiltrated and controlled by Western powers, and it is their divisions that are causing divisions between Muslim countries. With the consolidation of American control over Saudi through Salman ibn Abdul Aziz, it seems that their European rivals, in particular Britain, are keen to reduce Saudi influence within the Muslim world by building an alternate axis. Countries such as Malaysia, Qatar and Turkey have historic frictions with the Saudi state.
The disunity in the Ummah cannot be solved until Muslims re-establish the righteous Islamic Khilafah (Caliphate) State on the method of the Prophet ﷺ that will unite all Muslim lands under a single general leadership for the Ummah. According to a hadeeth of the Noble Prophet ﷺ reported by Muslim: «وَمَنْ بَايَعَ إِمَامًا فَأَعْطَاهُ صَفْقَةَ يَدِهِ وَثَمَرَةَ قَلْبِهِ فَلْيُطِعْهُ إِنْ اسْتَطَاعَ فَإِنْ جَاءَ آخَرُ يُنَازِعُهُ فَاضْرِبُوا عُنُقَ الْآخَرِ» “He who pledged allegiance to an Imam giving him the clasp of his hand and the fruit of his heart shall obey him as long as he can, and if another comes to dispute with him you have to strike the neck of that man.”
Musharraf be Hanged by His Neck Till He Dies: Detailed Special Court Verdict
The special court in its detailed verdict of death penalty given to former Pakistan Army Chief and ex-president General (retired) has ordered to hang the convict (Musharraf) by neck till he dies. The detailed verdict issued in the treason case against General Musharraf has shocked people especially the armed forces of Pakistan. The orders penned down in the verdict were hair raising. “As a necessary corollary to what has been observed we find the accused guilty as per charge. The convict be hanged by his neck till he dies on each count as per charge,” says the verdict. The special court in its detailed verdict of death penalty given to former Pakistan Army Chief and ex-president General (retired) has ordered to hang the convict (Musharraf) by neck till he dies. The detailed verdict issued in the treason case against General Musharraf has shocked people especially the armed forces of Pakistan. The orders penned down in the verdict were hair raising. “As a necessary corollary to what has been observed we find the accused guilty as per charge. The convict be hanged by his neck till he dies on each count as per charge,” says the verdict. The court also ordered all those involved in facilitation be tried in the court to dispense the justice. “It would be in the interest of justice that all those involved (if any) in facilitation of the escape of the fugitive accused may also be brought in the net of due course of law and their criminal acts (if any) may be investigated and tried in accordance with law.” The detailed verdict in the high treason case against former military ruler General (retd) Musharraf was released on Thursday, two days after the special court found the former president guilty of treason and handed him a death sentence. Dismissing criticism of a trial conducted ‘in haste’, the Special Court stated that Musharraf had “been afforded more than his due share of fair trial” and “given every opportunity to defend himself”, Dawn news reported. The court further said that “the facts of the case are well documented” and “clearly demonstrate guilt on part of the accused”. [Source: The Gulf News]
The Pakistani army has already issued a strong statement against the verdict and in any country this would be regarded as contempt of court. As far as Musharraf’s verdict is concerned, it is meaningless, as the same Pakistani courts allowed him to leave the country.
Citizenship Act Protests: Three Dead and Thousands Held in India
Three people have died in India and thousands have been detained amid demonstrations against a controversial new citizenship law. A protest ban has been imposed in parts of the capital Delhi and throughout the states of Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka. The new law offers citizenship to non-Muslim illegal immigrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Critics fear the law undermines India’s secular constitution, and say faith should not be the basis of citizenship. But Prime Minister Narendra Modi has dismissed their concerns, and said the opposition had been spreading lies. There have been days of protests against the law. India’s home minister has called a crisis meeting to discuss the demonstrations. Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in cities across the country on Thursday, despite the police order based on a severely restrictive law which prohibits more than four people from gathering in a place. Two people died in the city of Mangalore after officers opened fire on demonstrators allegedly trying to set fire to a police station. Commissioner Dr PS Harsha told reporters that a curfew is in place in the city, and that he was waiting for a post mortem before announcing the cause of death for either man. Internet services have also been suspended in Mangalore for 48 hours. Another man also died in the city of Lucknow, where violent clashes between demonstrators and police earlier in the day saw vehicles set alight. More than a dozen officers were injured and 112 people were reportedly detained in the city. The law – known as the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) – offers amnesty to non-Muslim illegal immigrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The federal government says this is to protect religious minorities fleeing persecution in the three Muslim-majority countries. But what has made the law especially controversial is that it comes in the wake of the government’s plan to publish a nationwide register of citizens that it says will identify illegal immigrants – namely, anyone who doesn’t have the documents to prove that their ancestors lived in India. A National Register of Citizens (NRC) – published in the north-eastern state of Assam – saw 1.9 million people effectively made stateless. Many Muslim citizens fear that they could be made stateless if they don’t have the necessary documents; and critics also say the law is exclusionary and violates the secular principles enshrined in India’s constitution. [Source: The BBC]
Modi’s Hindu nationalist agenda is making Muslims in India stateless citizens, so that they can be expelled from their country. And despite such provocative actions, Modi continues to be courted by Muslim leaders for business and trade.
Mike Pompeo Backs Arsenal Star Mesut Ozil in China Row over Muslim Uyghur Minority
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has backed Arsenal soccer star Mesut Ozil in condemning China’s treatment of its Muslim Uyghur minority. The US State Department has said that for the last two-and-a-half years, China has detained up to 2 million Uyghurs, a predominantly Muslim ethnic minority, in what some describe as internment camps. Ozil, who is a Muslim, was highly critical of the Chinese regime on social media, but was met with scorn from China while the country’s state media pulled coverage of Arsenal’s English Premier League game against Manchester City Sunday. China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang also accused Ozil of being “blinded by some fake news and influenced by some false words.” Arsenal distanced itself from Ozil’s comments, but Pompeo tweeted his support for the under fire star Tuesday. “China’s Communist Party [CCP] propaganda outlets can censor @MesutOzil1088 and @Arsenal’s games all season long, but the truth will prevail,” tweeted Pompeo. “The CCP can’t hide its gross #HumanRights violations perpetrated against Uighurs and other religious faiths from the world.” China had invited Ozil to visit Xinjiang to “distinguish right from wrong” after his social media messages.”(In China) Qurans are burned, mosques were closed down, Islamic theological schools, madrasas were banned, religious scholars were killed one by one. Despite all this, Muslims stay quiet,” Ozil said in a post on both Twitter and Instagram. Allegations of abuse are rampant, including in firsthand accounts given to CNN describing torture and forced political re-education under the threat of violence.[ Source: CNN]
Ozil’s comments were spot on and demonstrated two things. First, the impotency in the Muslim world to defend the rights of their brothers and sisters has turned feeble nations into strong advocates of suppressing Muslim populations at home. Second, the enemies of Muslims are using China’s persecution of Uyghurs to undermine China and not to help Muslims. America’s past track record of invading Muslim countries clearly supports this fact.