7, April 2005	Thursday	27 Safar 1426

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QUETTA, April 6: Federal Minister for States and Frontier Region (Safron) Sardar Yar Mohammad Rind has said a rehabilitation programme will soon be launched in areas which have faced problems because of Afghan refugees. He was talking to newsmen on Wednesday at the ceremony of handing over 200 tents by UNHCR Pakistan Chief Guenete Guebre Christos donated for flood affected people of Dhadar area of Balochistan.

The minister said the government was making all out efforts for the early repatriation of Afghan refugees to their homeland.

He said the influx of Afghan refugees had put a great burden on the economy and had increased the problems of local people.

“Residential areas were badly affected because of the presence of Afghan refugees in various cities and towns of Pakistan for the last 25 years,” Sardar Rind said, adding that the UNHCR has for the first time promised to extend financial assistance and cooperation to the government for the rehabilitation of local population.

He said that other international donors would also join hands with the UNHCR in the rehabilitation work and soon a conference would be organized in Islamabad.

Earlier, the UNHCR country chief said that the UN organization would provide all possible help for the rehabilitation of the people affected by the presence of Afghan refugees.

He said the UNHCR would also cooperate in the completion of two water projects in Bolan district.

Violation: The Balochistan Bar Association has demanded that the government should strictly implement the verdict of Supreme Court in the elevation of judges for the apex court in order to uphold the merit of seniority list.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday Mohammad Wasay Tareen president of the BBA said that government should respect the Supreme Court’s unanimous judgment of 1996 in Al-Jihad trust judges case that has determined the appointment in the apex court.

“The government in violation of the judgment of Supreme Court has elevated two judges from NWFP and Sindh that deprived the senior most Chief Justice of Balochistan High Court to be promoted as judge in the Supreme Court,” Mr Wasay claimed.

He said that President Musharraf and other high officials of the federal government have verbally committed to allay the deprivation in Balochistan but in practice the government negates its promises while referring to recent promotions in Supreme Court.

The president of BBA claimed that violation of the seniority list in elevation of judges would badly affect the junior judges of BHC to be promoted as chief justice in the court.

He also regretted over the remarks expressed by the chief justice of Supreme Court and senior most judge of the court in today’s newspapers on the elevation of judges stating that government and judges should honour the verdict of the court in judges case.

policeman killed: A police constable was killed and another injured when unknown armed men opened indiscriminate fire on them near Nawan Killi area, late Tuesday night.

According to police sources, constables Habibullah and Tariq Javed caught from Bashirbad area involved in motorcycle snatching.

When the policemen were taking the accused to airport police station two armed men intercepted them near Nawan Killi and opened fire with automatic weapons, injuring the policemen seriously. The armed men fled.

The senior police officers took both the injured policemen to civil hospital where Habibullah died. The condition of constable Tariq Javed is also serious.