Farmington Hills rally, protest for Pakistan hopes to bring solidarity
FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - A rally and protest took place in Farmington Hills over the weekend to bring awareness to the unrest in Pakistan.
On Saturday, the Pakistani community in Michigan showed up to support those back in, what those in attendance are calling, the "motherland."
"We have around two-thousand families that live in the mostly in the southeast Michigan area, said Ahmar Iqbal, one of the rally organizers.
Iqbal says the Pakistani population is represented well in the state of Michigan and that's reflected in the attendance of the rally. He says families not only from Detroit were in attendance, but from as far away as Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo.
"The overseas Pakistani's don't accept it this is wrong what's going on the human rights abuse," says Saleem Siddiqui.
Siddiqui says the people of Pakistan are asking for fair and free elections, free speech and an overall restoration of democracy in the country. Organizers say torture, killings and the silencing of the press has caused unrest between the people and those in power.
"It's all about what's going on back at the motherland, the homeland in Pakistan," says Iqbal. "This rally is not aimed at any one particular leader or one particular party, it's more a movement."
Protestors here calling for peace and solidarity hope their voices are heard all the way back in Pakistan.
