October 17, 2006	Tuesday	Ramazan 23, 1427

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ISLAMABAD, Oct 16: The family members of the people, who disappeared mysteriously after 9/11, and human rights activists Monday called for recovery of the missing people.

Speaking at a seminar organized by the Defence of Human Rights (DHR) at Jamia Syeda Hafsa here on Monday, senior lawyer and human rights activist Hashmat Ali Habib expressed grave concern over the enforced disappearances in Pakistan.

“It is a matter of shame for the government to kidnap its own people on the US dictation or assist it in kidnapping them,” he said, adding that even the judiciary had become helpless to administer justice.

Human rights activist Khalid Khawaja said the government had been committing serious violations of human rights in order to prove itself as a faithful ally of the US in its so-called war on terror.

For this purpose, hundreds of people have been detained, while many have been subjected to enforced disappearance, he said, adding that no one knew as to their whereabouts. Not only this, their families are being harassed and threatened when they want to know about them, he said.

The victims, Khalid Khawaja said, included Pakistanis, foreigners, men, women and children, journalists and doctors. Reports say that these people are being interrogated by the US intelligence agencies at secret places in Pakistan.

Mr. Khawaja said that the kidnapped people were being subjected to different methods of torture — beating, hanging upside down, food deprivation, hooding and prolonged solitary confinement to name but few.

Mrs Janjua, whose husband has also been kidnapped, said that she and her family had been passing through a trauma since the disappearance of Mr. Janjua. She appealed to the chief justice to assist her and the other people in the recovery of their loved ones.