May 16, 2006	Tuesday	Rabi-us-Sani 17, 1427

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QUETTA, May 15: A former federal minister and leader of the ruling PML Mir Haji Khan Tareen has urged the government to empower a committee, comprising tribal chiefs and intellectuals, to resolve the Balochistan issue and said that the problem was becoming more complex by the day.

He was addressing a press conference here on Monday.

Haji Tareen expressed concern over the deteriorating law and order, political, tribal and economic situation in the province and said that the government should immediately take steps to improve the condition.

“A committee must be empowered to initiate negotiations with veteran political and nationalist leaders. This is the only way to find a reasonable solution,” he said.

He said that despite the provincial government’s efforts, there was no change in the situation, adding that during the past two years, militants had been fighting, inflicting human losses upon both sides besides jeopardising national installations. He said that saboteurs’ activities had affected the province’s agriculture and industrial sectors.

“If the situation persists, Balochistan will regress, especially in the agriculture sector,” he said, adding that growers had recently incurred losses of around Rs60 billion after their crops were destroyed by prolonged power suspension.

He called upon the militants not to target power transmission towers and electricity network and said that their activities were destroying agriculture in Balochistan, adding that they could lose public support if such activities continued.

He said that the government should seriously consider his proposal and said that the Balochistan crisis should be resolved through negotiations in accordance with tribal traditions.