Islamabad : Thousands of protesters braved the bitter cold in Islamabad on Tuesday night to keep up their demands for the removal of Pakistan’s government, which they see as corrupt and incompetent.

Many of them are women with young children, like 30-year-old Nasreen Bibi, who travelled to the capital from her home in Attock, 100 kilometres (62 miles) away.

“We want to bring change to this country,” she told the Associated Press. “There is no gas, electricity or drinking water available, our children are suffering. This is totally unbearable. We want to finish this. We want to see improvement in our country.”

The protesters in Islamabad have answered the call of Tahir-ul-Qadri, a 61-year-old firebrand cleric who returned from Canada last year and has rocketed to national prominence with a mass movement against Pakistan’s leaders.
Qadri led about 30-thousand supporters in a second day of anti-government protests in Islamabad on Tuesday.

He has criticised the government as corrupt and incompetent, though political leaders have condemned his demands as unconstitutional.

Even so, his message has galvanised many Pakistanis who say the government has brought them only misery.

Critics fear Qadri is bent on derailing the country’s upcoming elections at the behest of army by pushing for a military-backed caretaker administration – allegations denied by the cleric. Among those pressing for change, however, are the likes of Bibi, braving the freezing temperature for a second night with little to keep them warm.

“Everywhere there are people wrapped up in their blankets,” said fellow protester Sania Rajput on Tuesday.

“There are children here, there are women and it’s cold.”

“We are here because we have warm hearts, and we want to make sure that now we try and remove the cold-hearted people from our parliament, from our government,” she added.

Tuesday’s major anti-government demonstrations came as the Supreme Court ordered the arrest of Pakistani Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf in a corruption case.

The events set the stage for renewed political crisis in Pakistan, a key US ally in the fight against Islamic militants and efforts to stabilise neighbouring Afghanistan.