July 17, 2006	Monday	Jumadi-ul-Sani 20, 1427

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QUETTA, July 16: Leaders of nationalist parties on Sunday urged the government to stop military action in Dera Bugti and Kohlu areas and warned that continuation of excesses would harm the federation.

They were addressing a protest rally near the press club here on Sunday.

The rally was addressed by leader of the opposition in Balochistan Assembly Kachkol Ali of the National Party, Habib Jalib Baloch, secretary-general of the Balochistan National Party (Mengal), and Abdur Rahim Ziaratwal, parliamentary leader of the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party.

Kachkol Ali criticised what he termed the judiciary’s silence over violations of people’s constitutional rights by law-enforcement agencies in Balochistan.

He said that hundreds of Baloch political workers had been detained without fulfilling the legal formality, adding that many of them had been in custody for over four years. He said that according to the law, police could not detain anyone for more than 14 days without court approval. Mr Ali urged political parties to stage protests against the judiciary’s silence over the government’s extra-constitutional actions.

He criticised the government for keeping JWP leaders Mir Hamayun Marri and Senator Shahid Hasan Bugti under house arrest and said that Senator Shahid had told him on phone that police had been deployed near his house without serving any house arrest orders.

Habib Jalib Baloch alleged that the military action was aimed at killing the Baloch people so that usurpers could loot Balochistan’s resources without any hindrance.

He urged the United Nations and human rights organisations to take notice of violation of people’s fundamental rights by security forces in Balochistan. Mr Jalib said that democratic parties would soon formulate a joint strategy to force the government to stop the military action and release political workers.

Mr Ziaratwal vowed that Baloch, Pakhtun and Sindhi people would not accept the domination of a single province bent on looting oppressed nationalities’ resources.