AWP condemns smear drive against progressive political workers

KARACHI: The Awami Workers Party (AWP) has condemned the ongoing smear campaign against the progressives that is continuing almost three weeks after the Aurat Azadi March held on March 8.

The AWP leadership and rank-and-file has vowed to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with political activists in Islamabad that are bearing the brunt of allegations that they raised anti-Islamic slogans and banners, and has demanded that state institutions take action against the elements that are peddling lies which are putting the lives of progressive political workers at risk.

AWP federal president Yousaf Mustikhan, general secretary Akhtar Hussain, party’s Punjab president Ammar Rashid, Sindh party president Bakhshal Thalho, KP president Haider Zaman, Balochistan president Yousaf Kakar, Seraiki-Waseb president Farhat Abbas, Gilgit-Baltistan AWP leader Baba Jan, JKAWP Nisar Shah and secretary women’s wing Alya Bakhshal in a joint statement noted that while the backlash against Aurat March activities from reactionary forces has been a recurring theme over the past few years, the backlash this year has targeted progressive political workers in Islamabad.

They said two recent orders issued by sessions courts in Karachi and Peshawar directing police in these two cities to file FIRs against AAM Islamabad organisers follow a clear pattern that has been in evidence since shortly after March 8 in which events alleged to have taken place in the Karachi and Lahore Aurat March rallies attributed to Islamabad. The AWP leaders said the two particular incidents have been repeated time and again that have no link to the Aurat Azadi March in Islamabad, namely a banner from the Lahore March and a video of sloganeering form the Karachi March. In any case the utterly outrageous social media propaganda that the banner and video contained blasphemous material has been completely and definitely debunked. But these lies continue to be circulated, and Islamabad-based political activists repeatedly targeted.

The AWP leadership is particularly concerned that these flagrant lies have now spilled over into the domain of courts. This represents an extremely dangerous precedent, especially given that local police and administrations in Islamabad, Karachi, Peshawar and all other cities in which Aurat March activities took place have refused to lodge FIRs given the complete absence of genuine evidence of objectionable material or slogans.

The AWP has demanded that the PTI government take note of the fact that a smear campaign is being conducted against Islamabad-based political workers that have bravely and consistently supported not only the feminist movement in the form of the Aurat Azadi March but all class, ethnic-national, ecological and democratic movements spearheaded by progressive forces. The primary responsibility for the safety of political workers and to ensure that dubious elements do not inflame religious passions lies with the PTI government.