Balochistan rights march legitimate, let people exercise constitutional rights, Naeemur Rehman tells govt
Assures govt the march will be peaceful, if hindrances not created
Announces to observe August 5 as day for rights of people in Gaza, Kashmir
KARACHI ( Web News )
Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Pakistan Ameer Engr Hafiz Naeemur Rehman has said that the long march for rights of Balochistan was a legitimate protest and that people should be allowed to exercise their constitutional rights.
The JI supreme leader expressed these views while addressing a press conference held at Idara Noor-e-Haq — the JI Karachi headquarters, here on Monday. He was accompanied by JI Karachi Ameer Monem Zafar Khan and others.
Speaking on the occasion, he told the government not to create hindrances against the march. He assured the government that the march would be peaceful, if hurdles are not created against the caravan.
He further said that unemployment and missing persons had been two burning issues of the largest province of Pakistan. He added that the sense of deprivation caused anguish and agony among the people. As a result, he maintained, few people in Balochistan were used by the hostile powers.
He further said that the unrest in Balochistan was natural because the province was deprived of gas supply in pipelines despite the fact that the entire country benefitted from the gas reservoirs found in Balochistan in 1950s and 1960s. Similarly, unemployment was a nightmare for the youth in mineral and metal enriched Balochistan, he said.
He paid a rich tribute to Maulana Hidayatur Rehman and his comrades for their struggle and said that the time has come to revisit the state policies in Balochistan. He added that there was no justification for missing persons in the province —the government should either produce them or provide credible information about their presence abroad or in the ranks of miscreants.
Talking about the situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, he dubbed it alarming and said that the prevailing situation was a result of a very self-harming policy devised some 24 years ago on the behest of the United States.
On the occasion, he strongly condemned the Terrah valley tragedy that claimed several innocent lives. He demanded the government to conduct an impartial investigation of what happened there and bring the culprits to exemplary punishment.
Instead of using excessive force, the people should be taken on board to defuse the situation, he suggested while offering the JI’s extended role in this regard. He further said that the JI is going to host a grand Jirga in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on July 30.
Talking about the international front, he highlighted the terrible situation in Gaza and said that people were being killed by starvation as well as bombardment and indiscriminate firing on daily basis.
The JI leader demanded Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir to play an active role against the bloodbath and starvation in Gaza. He assured the two that despite all differences the JI would support them in this regard.
The JI leader was of the views that the people taking the constitutional route should not be discouraged as such a flowed policy would further fuel the propaganda against the state. He further said that the march had connected the people of Pakistan, in the backdrop of ethnic based terrorism activities in Balochistan, as the caravan was welcomed by the people in all cities of Punjab it was going through.
He further said that the unrest in Balochistan was natural because the province was deprived of gas supply in pipelines despite the fact that the entire country benefitted from the gas reservoirs found in Balochistan in 1950s and 1960s. Similarly, unemployment was a nightmare for the youth in mineral and metal enriched Balochistan, he said.
He paid a rich tribute to Maulana Hidayatur Rehman and his comrades for their struggle and said that the time has come to revisit the state policies in Balochistan. He added that there was no justification for missing persons in the province —the government should either produce them or provide credible information about their presence abroad or in the ranks of miscreants.
Talking about the situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, he dubbed it alarming and said that the prevailing situation was a result of a very self-harming policy devised some 24 years ago on the behest of the United States.
On the occasion, he strongly condemned the Terrah valley tragedy that claimed several innocent lives. He demanded the government to conduct an impartial investigation of what happened there and bring the culprits to exemplary punishment.
Instead of using excessive force, the people should be taken on board to defuse the situation, he suggested while offering the JI’s extended role in this regard. He further said that the JI is going to host a grand Jirga in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on July 30.
Talking about the international front, he highlighted the terrible situation in Gaza and said that people were being killed by starvation as well as bombardment and indiscriminate firing on daily basis.
The JI leader demanded Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir to play an active role against the bloodbath and starvation in Gaza. He assured the two that despite all differences the JI would support them in this regard.
He told the media that Hamas’ Khalid Mishal called him and asked to request the government for activism on diplomatic and governmental level. He added that he contacted the premier and Shahbaz Sharif assured him of cooperation in this regard.
He said that Israel and India were following the same doctrine. He highlighted the difference between the approach of former army chief and the field marshal towards India and impacts of the two while making a point that courage and bold step in the right direction always paid off. On the occasion, he announced that the JI would observe August 5 as the day for the rights of Palestinians and Kashmiri people.
Talking about the issues in Karachi, he said that 26,000 bikes were snatched in just six months, whereas the political elite always stirred non issues to use as a decoy for the genuine issues and miseries of people.