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| 08 December 2004 | Wednesday | 25 Shawwal 1425 |
Senate report shows violation of tenant rights
ISLAMABAD, Dec 7: The Senate Functional Committee on Human Rights presented its first report in the Upper House on Tuesday, recording gross violations of rights of tenants of Okara and Renala military farms.
Committee chairman Senator S.M. Zafar told the house that the committee comprising 12 senators from both the treasury and opposition benches would take suo motu action on the reports of human rights violations in any part of the country.
"The members of the committee are requested to be proactive and bring even individual cases of violation of the human rights to the notice of the committee in which either the establishment or an official has failed to perform its duty," said the report.
Presented by Mr Zafar, the report said the committee had observed a complete breakdown of law and order in the case of Okara military farms. "The most astonishing aspect is that administration has declared most of villages occupied by tenants of military farms as 'no-go areas'."
The committee said it had found the district police officer (DPO) and the district nazim helpless and the farm management totally ineffective in handling the situation. "Everybody was apologetic and tried to shift blame on others," it added.
Senior serving generals and other military officials, the police and the administration were investigated by the committee. Those investigated included Major-Gen Muhammad Tahir, Brig Saleem Mehmood, the Okara district nazim, the district police officer and the sector commander, Rangers.
The committee observed that people had no faith in the due process of law and the working of law-enforcement agencies. It said cases were registered willy-nilly but there was zero progress in investigation.
"The law required challans within 14 days but no heed is being given to that provision. The judicial process was equally non-existent. Neither any challan was submitted nor trial commenced in any case," said the report.
According to the committee, the biggest protection in the matter of human rights violations is the due process of law but the process was ineffective. People are justified in complaining that their grievances are not being redressed.
"The provincial government was conspicuous by its absence in resolving the stand off, entailing a serious law and order situation," said the report. The committee said the revenue record indicated the provincial government as owner of the land in dispute.
In its recommendations, it said that to promote harmony, all cases of the area should be referred to an independent investigation agency out of Okara. It also suggested that the agency submit a report within a stipulated time in an honest and objective manner to restore public confidence and identify individuals responsible for any excesses.
The committee further recommended that cases of those removed from service by way of retaliatory measures for not lending support to the new system should be reinstated to ease the prevailing tension.
It said that rather than relying on courts to resolve the issue, the government should devise an alternative dispute resolution mechanism like giving alternative pieces of land to tenants or any other viable relief.
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