March, 19 2005	Saturday	08 Safar 1426

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LAHORE, March 18: All parties involved in the Balochistan conflict, especially the government, must desist from using force and open the area to an independent scrutiny of media and civil society, demands the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. Speaking at a press conference, HRCP chairperson Tahir Muhammad Khan and secretary-general Hina Jilani demanded that an independent multi-member tribunal must be set up to investigate whether the use of force was arbitrary. Besides them, the commission chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of all four provinces were present there. “The proceedings of the tribunal must be open to public and civil society intervention, and any one found guilty of using unwarranted force must be penalized,” they demanded.They also stressed that all reports on the Balochistan issue must be made public without which there could be neither transparency nor accountability.

Their demand list also included starting off a wide-ranging and multi-representative dialogue process and the state stopping the use of force forthwith, especially against vulnerable sections of society.

They read a statement condemning violence in Balochistan on Thursday and persistent tension in the area. “The loss of lives and violence in Dera Bugti as a result of the paramilitary operation can only be condemned in the strongest terms.”

They also said the current situation was the outcome of mishandling the issue in the past couple of months.

They said people had been denied access to specific areas in the country. Reports, including those drafted by parliamentary committees, had not been made public and people deliberately kept in the dark about matters directly affecting them,” the commission heads deplored.

“House-to-house searches have been done, entire villages forcibly shifted, people harassed and civilian population indiscriminately bombed. Moreover, people have been denied of even basic facilities like food, water and health care,” they said, iterating that the state of affairs must not go unaddressed any longer.

Answering a question, Ms Asma Jehangir said the situation in Balochistan was worsening. According to the HRCP resources, she said, around 50 to 60 people died on Thursday.

Most of them were innocent civilians, including doctors and traders. Two Bugti women were injured, she said. She said: “Akbar Bugti and his family has already shifted to unknown place and the entire area is under siege. The situation calls for prompt action by the civil society,” she added.