Open letter to Senate Chairman

To Farooq Hamid Naek
Chairman, Senate of Pakistan
Fax: 051-9103125

Email: We are appalled that a sitting Senator can make such a statement and get away with it. We request that disciplinary action be taken against the Senator if he does not tender a public apology for his remark that has justified the cowardly and shameful murder of Mr Taseer who had neither been charged, tried nor convicted of any crime.
We also condemn those senators who refused to lead a fateha recitation and those who refused to raise their hand in fateha for the departed soul.
Yours sincerely

Citizens for Democracy – a coalition of professional organisations, trade unions, political parties, non-government organisations and individuals including Naveen Naqvi, Shayan Afzal Khan, Yasser Latif Hamdani, Sabeen Mahmud, Beena Sarwar, Faisal Butt, Marvi Sirmed, Ambareen Kazim, Fahim Zaman Khan, Nadeem Hussain Mahbina Waheed, Naziha Syed Ali, and organisations including Professional Organisations Mazdoor Federations & Hari Joint Committee – POJAC, an umbrella organisation including: 1. Sindh High Court Bar Association; 2. Pakistan Medical Association (PMA);  3. All Pakistan Newspaper Employees Confederation (APNEC); 4. Mutahida Labour Federation; 5. Karachi Union of Journalists; 6. Pakistan Workers Federation; 7. All Pakistan Trade Union Federation (APTUF); 8. All Pakistan Clerk Association; 9. Democratic Labour Union State Bank of Pakistan; 10. UBL Workmen Union (CBA); 11. National Bank Trade Union Federation; 12. Karachi Bar Association; 13. Pakistan Nursing Federation; 14. National Trade Union Federation; 15. Sindh Hari Committee; 16. Govt. Sec. Teachers Association; 17. Pakistan Hotel And Restaurant Workers Federation; 18. Mehran Mazdoor Federation; 19. All Sindh Primary Teachers Association; 20. Sindh Professor Lecturer Association; 21. Malir Bar Association, Karachi; 22. Pakistan Trade Union Federation (PTUF); 23. Railway Workers Union Open Line (cba) Workshop; 24. Mehran Railway Employees Welfare Association; 25. All Pakistan Trade Unions Organisations; besides other CFD members and endorsing organisations: 26. Awami Party; 27. Labour Party Pakistan (LPP); 28. Progressive Youth Front (PYF); 29. Communist Party Pakistan (CPP); 30. Peace and Solidarity Council; 31. Pakistan Institute of Labour, Education & Research (Piler); 32. Action Committee for Human Rights; 33. Dalit Front; 34. National Commission for Justice and Peace (CJP); 35. Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP); 36. Caritas; 37. Aurat Foundation; 38. Women’s Action Forum (WAF); 39. People’s Resistance; 40. Sindh Awami Sangat; 41. National Organisation of Working Committees; 42. Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF); 43. Child and Labour Rights Welfare Organisation; 44. Progressive Writers Association (PWA); 45. Port Workers Federation; 46. Shirkat Gah; 47. Pakistan Peace Coalition (PPC); 48. Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi (ITA); 49. Sanjan Nagar Public Education Trust  (SNPET);  50. Pakistan Dalit Solidarity Network (PDSN); 51. Sindh Democratic Forum (SDF); 52. SAP-Pakistan; 53. AwazCDS-Pakistan; 54. GCAP-Pakistan; 55. Home Based Women Workers Federation (HBWWF); 56. Labour Education Foundation (LEF); 57. Progressive Youth Forum; 58. National Students’ Federation (NSF); 59. The Researchers; 60. Tehrik-e-Niswan; 61. Democratic Commission for Human Development (DCHD); 62. Crises Support Group of Residents for Defence and Clifton, Karachi; 63. Baaghi: A blog for secular Pakistan; 64. Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party (CMKP); 65. Ansar Burney Trust International; 66. Viewpoint International; 67. Pakistan Youth Alliance
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Citizens for Democracy (CFD) is an umbrella group of individuals and organizations outraged by the consistent misuse and abuse of the ‘blasphemy laws’ and of religion in politics. We came together at a meeting in Karachi on Dec 19th at Karachi Press Club, convened by Professional Organisations Mazdoor Federations & Hari Joint Committee (POJAC). CFD calls upon all professional groups, NGOs, trade unions, student unions, and individuals to join hands in its peaceful campaigns.