January 15, 2006	Sunday	Zilhaj 14, 1426

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HYDERABAD, Jan 14: The Anti-Greater Thal Canal and Kalabagh Dam Action Committee has said it will not call off its protest movement unless President Gen Pervez Musharraf categorically declares on TV that the Kalabagh dam will not be constructed. Speaking at a news conference at the press club here on Saturday, Syed Shah Mohammad Shah, president of the action committee’s administrative sub-committee and leader of the People’s Party Parliamentarians, made it clear that the protest movement was not only against the Kalabagh dam and the Thal canal but also against the ongoing army operation in Balochistan and for removal of Gen Pervez Musharraf as the president. He said unless the objectives were achieved, the movement would not be called off.

He claimed that tens of thousands of people would participate in the Jan 18 protest procession and sit-in in Hyderabad under the banner of the action committee. He said the protest rally would start from the City Gate Hotel and terminate outside the Hyderabad Press Club after marching through main roads of the city. He, however, said the action committee would take a final decision about the route of the procession at its meeting scheduled for Jan 15.

Condemning the Balochistan operation, Mr Shah said the army operation and the Kalabagh dam issue had created crisis in the country as had been witnessed in 1972.

Answering a question about Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s ultimatum on the dam issue and the operation in Balochistan, he said it was only the MQM which was claiming that Gen Musharraf had given a categorical assurance that the Kalabagh dam would not be constructed and no operation in Balochistan would be carried out. He, however, claimed that the president had said nothing on the issues and the prime minister and the information minister were still insisting that the country needed the Kalabagh dam and that the operation against ‘miscreants’ in Balochistan would continue. He said that now time had come for the MQM to part ways with the government and join the mainstream.

He alleged that only one day ago, 12 Balochs arrested by security forces were killed in custody.

He accused the rulers of undermining the very existence of the country to protect their own vested interests. He said the situation had reached a stage where the rulers would have to choose between Pakistan and the Kalabagh dam.

The PPP leader said that on the one hand the government had announced revival of the Council of Common Interests and on the other, it was taking arbitrary and unilateral decisions on the Kalabagh dam and NFC award issues. He said this showed that the government gave no importance to the CCI. He said the post of prime minister in Gen Musharraf’s government did not carry any weight because he had been changing prime ministers as if they were DCOs.

Over two dozen PPP leaders, including MPA Zahid Bhurgari, Pervez Ansari, Amanullah Siyal, Dr Tahseen Shaikh, Aftab Khanzada and Hina Dastagir, were also present.

SU: The provost of boys’ hostels of the University of Sindh has advised hostellers to hand over possession of old allotted hostel seats and occupy new seats immediately.

He further informed that the date for depositing hostel fees had been extended up to Jan 20.

The list of new students who have been given hostel accommodation will be displayed on notice boards of hostels on Jan 18 and they can deposit hostel fees by Jan 28.