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| 17 August 2004 | Tuesday | 30 Jamadi-us-Saani 1425 |
No military operation in Balochistan: Musharraf
ISLAMABAD, Aug 16: President Gen Pervez Musharraf on Monday dispelled the impression about an ongoing military operation in Balochistan and said the law-enforcement agencies were hunting down people who were involved in firing incidents
and rocket attacks on various installations and government personnel.
"There is no military operation going on in Balochistan," he said during a PTV talk show 'Aap key Robaroo'. Stressing the need for differentiating between a military operation and action taken against law breakers, he said: "The action against some individuals cannot be construed as a military operation."
The president vowed that no one involved in these incidents would be spared and said: "We have the latest weapons, which can be pin-pointed to exact targets, from the air and from the land ... we will finish them off."
Referring to the issue of establishing cantonments at Sui, Gwadar and Kohlu, he said that their establishment would usher in an era of development in the area besides bringing peace and security.
He said that the government could work on local development and build schools, tube-wells and roads near these cantonments. He said: "It is more a matter of ego of (some) individuals, but we will address it politically also ... We can negotiate ... We will do everything which is in the interest of the nation and Balochistan."
President Musharraf said that the provincial harmony was "extremely important" and a large percentage of the Public Sector Development Programme was being given to Balochistan and Sindh to bring these on a par with the rest of the country.
He said a number of mega projects, including the Gwadar Port, coastal highway, Mirani dam and Kacchi canal, were being undertaken to generate jobs and provide a boost to the provincial economy.
President Musharraf said that the pace of development in Balochistan in the past few years had been unprecedented by comparison with the past and expressed the hope that it would generate a lot of economic activity. - APP
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