By Mahawish Rezvi
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Thursday found Prime
Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani guilty of contempt of court for refusing to reopen corruption cases against the president, but
gave him only a symbolic sentence of a few minutes’ detention in the courtroom.
Seoul March 25, 2012 on the eve of the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit. REUTERS/Liu Jin/Pool
It was unclear if
the token sentence would defuse political uncertainty in Pakistan, where the president and prime minister have jousted with
the military and judiciary. Despite the light sentence, Gilani could still come under pressure to quit.
“For reasons
to be recorded later, the prime minister is found guilty of contempt for wilfully flouting the direction of the Supreme
Court,” said Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk.
Gilani is the first serving prime minister in Pakistan’s history to be convicted
by a court, but his sentence – detention lasting just a few minutes until the session was adjourned – was symbolic. He could
have faced up to six months in jail and the loss of office.
“I think what they’ve done is taken it from the legal
arena and chucked it into the political arena,” said Cyril Almeida, a prominent columnist for the Dawn daily
newspaper.
He said opposition members of parliament now might move to expel Gilani from office.
“There will be
massive pressure from the opposition, the media, from civil society, saying ‘He’s been convicted for flouting the letter of
the law and he should go home,'” Almeida said. “There will be a lot of pressure for him to resign.”
MONEY-LAUNDERING
CASES
A throng of supporters surrounded Gilani as he walked into the court in Islamabad, showering him with rose
petals. Security was tight, with about 1,000 police officers standing by in riot gear and helicopters circling the Supreme
Court building.
Gilani’s lawyers had said before the verdict that he would not automatically be disqualified from
office if convicted, and at any rate he would be able to appeal against the verdict.
The case stems from what many
observers say is a political battle between the government and the military, which has held the whip hand in Pakistan’s
political arena for most of the country’s 64 years of independence. Many say the army is using the court to keep the
government on the back foot.
Thousands of corruption cases were thrown out in 2007 by an amnesty law passed under
former military president Pervez Musharraf, which paved the way for a return to civilian rule. Two years later, the Supreme
Court ruled that agreement illegal and ordered cases involving Swiss banks against President Asif Ali Zardari
re-opened.
Gilani and his government have refused to obey the court’s order to write to Swiss authorities asking them
to re-open money laundering cases against Zardari. The government argues that Zardari has immunity as the head of
state.
“This is a historic day. The court has declared a lawmaker a lawbreaker. This is weakening democracy in
Pakistan,” said Firdous Ashiq Awan, former information minister.
(Additional reporting by Qasim Nauman; Writing by
Chris Allbritton; Editing by John Chalmers)