Popular Pakistani Pinstripers
Reporters on the Job: I discovered that lawyers are a humbler bunch here in South Asia. A stroll around the Islamabad district court revealed an adjacent 鈥渓awyers slum鈥� of sorts, complete with photocopiers and DOS-era computers overflowing onto the narrow back alleys. Most offices were single rooms with plastic chairs 鈥� forget about red leather and brass buttons.
But what Pakistan鈥檚 lawyers lacked in accoutrements they made up for in the dignity that comes with fighting for a larger cause. Most wore a button on the lapels of their black suits bearing a photo of the former chief justice 鈥� the man at the center of their fight.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think in the United States people would ever rally in the streets around a group of lawyers (read the Monitor's story here). Where I come from, lawyers aren鈥檛 very popular,鈥� I told one advocate over a cup of tea. He laughed heartily, and said, 鈥淓ven little children here are saying 鈥榠ndependent judiciary.鈥� 鈥�
