Letter of Support by LUMS Students to SHC, LHC and SC Judges

Dear Sir,

Our generation - born and bred in the politically disappointing decade of 1990s that ushered in another military rule in Pakistan - had always doubted the possibility of change. Our parents and peers told us that the only way to live in the country was to subject our ideals to the “system” and that the only code of conduct was that of bribery and bullying. They quoted history books and told us how pointless it was to struggle for justice and democracy in Pakistan. Newspapers and TV channels simply added facts that proved their arguments and our own little experiences with “practical life” verified them.

We didn’t see people around us as good and bad, or right and wrong, but simply as the smart and the stupid in terms of their dealings with political reality. We weren’t able to take any sides because we didn’t see any. All we saw was a jumble of interests, each and every one of which could be compromised at a certain price. The theories and principles we learned at school and college seemed utterly devoid of any relevance to our real lives.

But then we saw some people fighting, not for their personal material interests, but for ideas and institutions. Ideas and institutions that form the basis of justice and democracy. We saw them fighting with a passion and selflessness that simply astounded our conventional understanding. We also saw them being oppressed and tortured with such heartlessness that offended the very notion of being human. For the first time in our lives, we saw a conflict where compromise was not an option. For the first times in our lives, we were in doubt about which side to take.

Many judges of superior courts have been put under house arrest. Hundreds of lawyers have been arrested, put under house arrest or forced to go underground. Despite all this, thousands of them are resolved to take the fight to its rightful end, and are bravely facing the inhumane violence being meted out to them on the orders of a power-hungry military dictator. But let us assure you, the lawyers are not alone in this struggle.

We, the students of LUMS and those of many other universities, have joined lawyers in many protests for the independence of judiciary and have witnessed the despicable yoke of dictatorship with our own naked eyes. We have also witnessed the purity of intentions with which lawyers have struggled to throw off this yoke. This purity of intentions and resolve has shown us a much-awaited glimmer of hope. It has shown us the possibility of change.

For giving us this glimmer of hope, this tangible inspiration, this possibility of change, we thank you.

For your courage and resolve, for your steadfastness, for your selflessness, we salute you.

For carrying on the struggle and showing all of Pakistan what a principled stand really means, we congratulate you.

And rest assured, we wouldn’t let you down.

Signed,

The Student Body of Lahore University of Management Sciences