Tag: protest

  • Motorway Incident: Protests for justice in your city

    Motorway Incident: Protests for justice in your city

    On Tuesday night, two robbers reportedly gang-raped a mother of two on the Motorway within Gujjarpura police’s jurisdiction. The incident has sparked outrage among the citizens, with people criticising the authorities and the police officials for not doing their job properly and “protecting us”. Countrywide protests are being organised to express solidarity with the victim and demand justice for her.

    Lahore

    #MotorwayIncident: A Protest for Justice

    Date: 12th September, 2020 (Saturday)

    Time: 05:00 PM

    Venue: Liberty Round About

    Peace Protest For Motorway Rape And Transgender Murders

    Date: 13th September, 2020 (Sunday)

    Time: 04:00 PM

    Venue: Liberty Round About

    Also Read; VIDEO: Police blame mother-of-three survivor for gang-rape, say ‘she should have taken GT Road’

    Islamabad

    Protest against patriarchal brutalities

    Date: 12th September, 2020

    Time: 04:00 PM

    Venue: Islamabad Press Club

    Karachi

    Mera Jism Meri Marzi – Protest Against Patriarchal Violence

    Date: 12th September 2020

    Time: 04:00 PM

    Venue: Karachi Press Club

  • VIDEO: DHA Karachi under fire as residents storm Cantt Board office to protest lack of monsoon infrastructure

    Residents of Karachi’s upscale Defence Housing Authority (DHA) on Monday gathered within the premises of Cantonment Board Clifton (CBC) to protest against the lack of monsoon infrastructure and the administration’s failure to provide them basic amenities.

    The protests followed the destruction wreaked by torrential rains that drowned the country’s business hub last week as both federal and provincial authorities failed to avoid blame games for the sake of people of the port city.

    Amid suspension of cellular services due to prolonged power outages and flooding across Karachi, the overall death toll during the three-day spell of torrential rains in the city rose to 40 by Sunday.

    While Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has announced that both the centre and Sindh will be working together to bring much-needed relief to the people of Karachi, the masses still aren’t very happy over the authorities’ failure to provide them what they say are basic rights against the taxes they pay and contributions the city makes to the country’s economy.

    “We wish to register our legitimate right to get the supply of basic amenities of potable water, stable electricity, effective discharge and flow of drains and sewerage, elimination of hanging electricity wires & data cables, fixing of broken poles, providing of security [as well as] repair and re-carpeting of broken roads,” read a statement by the residents of DHA Karachi ahead of Monday’s protest.

    A second protest for later this week has also been announced by the aggrieved residents to take up their demands with DHA outside the Phase-I office on September 3 at 12:30 pm.

    The list of 22 demands put forward by the residents of DHA include the return of tax money taken from them as development charges, that contractors and decision-makers be held accountable for constructing “useless” storm-water drains, an audit report of the DHA be made public so that it could be known how the taxpayers’ money was spent, and the authority removes charges and fees on every kind of activity, approval and transaction inside the residents’ own homes.

    The complete list of demands is as follows:

    • Return the taxes taken from Residents in the form of Development Charges for storm-water drains project worth billions which failed completely.
    • Accountability of the contractors and decision-makers for these useless storm-water Drains.
    • Immediate removal of these cement slabs in the middle of the roads with holes in them.
    • Removal of “charges” and “fees” on every kind of activity, approval and transaction inside our own homes.
    • Installation of sewage treatment plant immediately.
    • Stop the pollution from 150 million gallons of untreated effluent from DHA to be dumped directly into the sea.
    • Sharing of 10 years audit report so residents know how their tax money is being spent.
    • Stop reclaiming land from the sea for more housing without an infrastructure plan. This will increase further drainage/ sanitation problems.
    • Stop renting out empty plots for keeping animals.
    • A separate area for the same demand regarding animals.
    • Designated Slaughterhouses.
    • New international standards drainage system to be installed immediately.
    • Immediate repair of broken sewerage lines and roads.
    • Hanging cables and telephone wires to go underground immediately.
    • All electricity poles to be earthed and every pole be issued safety certificate by DHA. Saving lives is a joint responsibility. All lives matter.
    • KESC statements to be taken seriously by DHA. “Non-KE wires on power distribution infrastructure, such as streetlights or TV, telephone or internet cables, are a major safety hazard, as they damage KE’s infrastructure and bypass safety protection mechanisms.”
    • Beggars removed from every street signal.
    • All empty plots to be garbage-free (empty plots are the responsibility of DHA).
    • No more paying for water. Remove the Tanker Mafia immediately. If hydrants can have unlimited water supply why can’t our houses?
    • No construction on our beaches. Spend our money on our drainage system.
    • Make a proper system of debris removal and construction material spillover on our roads.
    • All craters inroads due to rains to be attended immediately so as not to lead to more loss of life 22. Roads dug up for various utilities and left uncarpeted to warrant heavy fines to the contractors.
    • Stop bringing in officials from around the country to head key positions in DHA and CBC. Locals of the city to be appointed only.

    Earlier, most parts of DHA remained without power for more than two days, leading to angry protesters gathering at Do Talwar on Saturday night and chanting slogans against the DHA and other authorities for the poor infrastructure exposed by the rain and incessant power outages triggered by the heavy showers.

    By the time this report was filed, protesters at CBC had refused to leave the premises until the board’s chief executive officer (CEO) arrived.

  • Private schools’ association demands reopening of schools from Aug 15

    Private schools’ association demands reopening of schools from Aug 15

    The All Pakistan Private Schools and Colleges Association (APPSCA) has announced the reopening of private schools from August 15 across the country rejecting the Federal Government’s decision to reopen them in September.

    In a press conference, the association said that students had to go through an educational loss because schools have been shut down for the past six to eight months.

    The APPSCA president, Hidayat Khan, added that the virus has slowed down and that cases are also decreasing.

    He added that the association had tried to negotiate with the government but they did not listen. Khan warned that if the government does not listen to them, they will march to protest against the government. He also strongly criticised the federal government and called it incompetent.

    “We will open schools in line with the SOPs. Madrassas have been opened, and they have even conducted examinations,” he added.

  • VIDEO: Zulfi Bukhari’s speech disrupted after disgruntled Tiger Force volunteers turn guns on him

    VIDEO: Zulfi Bukhari’s speech disrupted after disgruntled Tiger Force volunteers turn guns on him

    A protest led by members of Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s Tiger Force on Saturday disrupted Special Assistant to the PM (PM) for Overseas Pakistanis Zulfi Bukhari’s speech as disgruntled workers raised slogans against him as well as the ruling party’s leadership, reportedly forcing Bukhari to leave the rostrum.

    The premier’s Corona Relief Tiger Force is part of an ambitious multi-pronged strategy by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government to impose movement restrictions and shut down industries while also ensuring that Pakistan’s poorest citizens — many of whom rely on daily wages to survive — continue to receive adequate supplies of food and other essentials.

    Hundreds of thousands of volunteers from across the country, who signed up for the force, are reportedly discharging their duties as the country continues to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

    While Saturday’s event organised in Attock seemed to be in violation of social distancing among other government guidelines to curb the spread of the virus, things took an uglier turn as soon as Bukhari took the floor to address the gathering.

    According to reports, the volunteers raised slogans against Bukhari as well as other leaders of the ruling PTI in protest against the force’s focal person, namely Qadri Ahmed, “not being invited to the ceremony despite working hard for over a month”.

    The volunteers were then seen leaving the venue, raising slogans in Ahmed’s favour.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    A member of Bukhari’s staff, however, denied media reports and said that no one left the stage as it was “only a two to four-minute issue between [Adviser to PM on Climate Change] Malik Amin Aslam and the local president.

    “Bukhari ended up completing his speech,” they said.

    PTI Punjab lawmaker Syed Yawer Abbas Bukhari among other local leaders were also present on the occasion.

  • Bodybuilders protest against govt, demand reopening of gyms

    Bodybuilders protest against govt, demand reopening of gyms

    Bodybuilders in Peshawar protested against government and demanded the reopening of gyms. Holding placards in their hands, they raised slogans against the government.

    While talking to a reporter, the president of KPK bodybuilder association said that we want the government to allow us to open gyms because this will help people build and strengthen their immune system. They also demanded the authorities give a relief package as “our gyms and clubs are closed since the lockdown was announced three months ago and our rents are due”.

  • Utility store workers go on countrywide strike for their demands

    Utility store workers go on countrywide strike for their demands

    The workers of Utility Stores Corporation went on across the country on Friday. The workers have stopped working to record their protest to convince the government for their demands. They want the authorities to declare them as permanent employees and increase their salaries.

    “The strike will be continued for an indefinite period as Utility Stores Corporation (USC)Umar Lodhi has not accepted their demands regarding their status and pay,” said All Pakistan Workers Unions President.

    He said that they announced countrywide strike following failed negotiations with owners and unions.

    Talking to a news outlet, USC Executive Director Umar Lodhi said that the department was not able to clear the dues of the employees because of the loss. But all the other demands were fulfilled, he said.

  • Support pours in for arrested activist after picture with son goes viral

    Support pours in for arrested activist after picture with son goes viral

    Support has started pouring in for rights activist and Awami Workers’ Party (AWP) Punjab President Ammar Rashid, who along with dozens of others, was arrested by Islamabad police for staging a protest outside the National Press Club in Islamabad against the arrest of Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) leader Manzoor Pashteen.

    Lawmakers, including PTM’s Mohsin Dawar and Ali Wazir; AWP Vice President Ismat Raza Shahjahan, rights activists and students among 30 protesters were rounded up by the police on Tuesday. After being detained for four hours, the arrestees were finally transferred to the Kohistan Police Station, where a case was registered against them.

    With the detainees being presented before a court on Wednesday, 23 of them were sent to jail on a 14-day judicial remand, journalist Rabia Mehmood tweeted.

    It wasn’t later that support from netizens started pouring in for those “exercising their right to protest”.

    “Esa’s father is in chains for demanding his right to speak, life, fair trial and justice. State declared him a traitor, a rebel,” journalist and rights activist Shabnam Buneri wrote in a Facebook post.

    Here’s what Twitterati have to say about the arrests:

    Earlier in the day, Mohsin Dawar was released by Islamabad police. The lawmaker confirmed the development on Twitter.

    “I was told by the police that they were setting me free,” he wrote on the micro-blogging website. “I told them that I will not go until all the others are set free as well. Then they came back again, telling me that they will set all free, so I decided to leave.”

    Pashteen, who is still in state custody, was arrested up from the Tahkal area of Peshawar in the early hours of Monday. According to the FIR filed against the PTM chief, he is accused of using threatening and derogatory language against the state during a gathering in Dera Ismail Khan on January 18.

    Pashteen was on Monday presented before a court that handed him over to law enforcement authorities on a 14-day judicial remand.

  • Indian Muslim student rejects gold medal to protest against citizenship law

    Indian Muslim student rejects gold medal to protest against citizenship law

    An Indian Muslim student refused to accept the gold medal at the Pondicherry University to protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) which has caused uproar in India and sparked protests across the country.

    Rabeeha Abdurehim, who
    secured the first position in the post-graduate department of Mass
    Communication, said she was asked to come out of the hall where the convocation
    was taking place. The special superintendent of police wanted to speak to the
    student.

    Rabeeha remarked that the police were worried about her viewpoint on the controversial citizenship law.

    “When I asked the police officers why was I not being allowed to take part in the event, they said they were not sure but the SSP wanted it this way,” she claimed.

    Taking to social media Rabeeha wrote that while she often dreamt about the moment she would receive a gold medal, “never did I imagine it would end up being in a way in which I could send a strong peaceful message across India.”

    “As a woman, as a student, as an Indian, today in my graduation I reject the Gold medal that is awarded to me in solidarity with all the students and public of India who are fighting against CAA and NRC in India,” she wrote further.

    Under the CAA 2019, religious minorities that have taken refuge in India till 2014 are eligible for citizenship. However, the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB 2019) makes it a point to exclude Muslims. The law requires Indian Muslims to prove their origins in India otherwise they stand to lose their citizenship.

  • VIDEO: Lawyer slaps citizen trying to cross street during protest

    VIDEO: Lawyer slaps citizen trying to cross street during protest

    Days after the lawyers’ had attacked the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC), a new video has surfaced on the social media in which a lawyer can be seen slapping a motorcyclist.

    In the viral video a lawyer can be seen stopping a motorcyclist passing between the lawyers protesting outside PIC and snatching his motorcycle keys.

    After exchanging few words, the lawyer slapped the man prompting others present there to intervene.

    Watch Video:

    After Wednesday’s attack on PIC, several videos showing the violent acts committed by the lawyers have been coming out on social media platforms.

    A group of over 200 lawyers, following an earlier quarrel with the doctors, stormed the hospital, vandalised property and damaged dozens of vehicles parked in the hospital premises and burned a police van.

    Three people had lost their lives amidst the chaos as doctors abandoned their patients to escape the angry mob.

    The police have registered a first information report (FIR) against 200-250 unidentified lawyers on the complaint of an official of the hospital.

  • VIDEO: Cops detain protester raising slogans against Sheikh Rasheed in Sargodha

    At least one person was detained on Friday after he egged Federal Minister for Railways Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed’s passenger car upon the latter’s arrival at Sargodha Railway Station via train.

    The furious person not only egged the minister’s bogie, but also raised slogans against Rasheed “for his derogatory statements against Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chief Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari”.

    A video of the incident, which went viral on social media, showed cops gagging the protester chanting “Sheikh Rasheed Murdabad” as they escorted him off the platform.

    Rasheed had arrived in Sargodha to inspect the railway tracks and was to address a press conference at the station, which was called off amid all the ruckus.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    The minister reportedly only spoke to a few mediapersons inside his cabin and later left the station without stepping out of the train.