Iftikhar Muhammad Chaiudhary Among 100 Influential People Of The World

Two Pakistanis, Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy make the Time magazine list of 100 people it considers ‘most influential in the world’.
The magazine, which released the list on Wednesday, said it picked people ‘who inspire us, entertain us, challenge us and change our world’.
Writing about Pakistan‘s Chief Justice in the magazine, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, said: ‘Iftikhar Chaudhry has become the first head of Pakistan’s Supreme Court to attempt to bring the powerful to justice. He has taken on the Prime Minister and the President in an effort to hold them to account. It’s not just the politicians either. Chaudhry, 63, is also seeking to take Pakistan’s intelligence agencies to task for their human-rights abuses’.
‘Still, the Supreme Court faces incredible odds. The venal political class is doing its best to thwart the judiciary. In recent weeks, we have seen Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani who is accused of contempt of court for refusing to obey its order to write to Swiss authorities and ask them to reopen a corruption case against his ally, President Asif Ali Zardari flaunting his defiance of the court. Will Chaudhry hold firm and find the Prime Minister guilty of contempt? A nation long deprived of justice now anxiously awaits it’.
About Ms. Obaid-Chinoy, Hollywood’s top star Angelina Jolie wrote: ‘Pakistan’s first Oscar belongs to a monumental campaign that is changing the legal, social and political fate of survivors of acid-related violence. Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s documentary ‘Saving Face’ brought Pakistan’s acid-violence problem to the world stage’.
‘Today she is bringing the film’s message to towns and villages in Pakistan through an educational-awareness campaign. Her film not only gave her subjects sympathy and understanding but, more important, gave them dignity. The ‘victims’ in ‘Saving Face’ are some of the strongest, most impressive women you will ever come across. She showed us their scars, and we saw their true beauty’. ‘Obaid-Chinoy, 33, is also shaping the dialogue on Pakistan. Saving Face depicts a Pakistan that is changing one, where ordinary people can stand up and make a difference and where marginalised communities can seek justice. New legislation spearheaded by female Parliamentarians will impose stricter sentencing on perpetrators of acid-related violence. This is a huge step forward’, she said. ‘I dare anyone to watch this film and not be moved to tears and inspired into action’, she added.
This is the ninth year for the list and includes President Barack Obama And Republican Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney. This year’s list includes 38 women, which is the highest number ever for women. The list is divided into five categories: Moguls, Breakouts, Icons, Pioneers and Leaders.