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| October 19, 2006 | Thursday | Ramazan 25, 1427 |
Rights of nationalities urgent issue: Mengal
QUETTA, Oct 18: Democracy will be meaningless without resolving the issue of nationalities, because denial of rights to the nationalities was the main cause of the break-up of Pakistan.
This was stated by most of the leaders of opposition parties of Balochistan who spoke at an Iftar-cum-dinner hosted by the PPP provincial president, Nawabzada Lashkari Raisani, at his residence on Tuesday night.
President Balochistan National Party Sardar Akhtar Mengal, Nawabzada Lashkari Raisani, leader of opposition Kachkol Ali, JWP leader Amanullah Kanrani, Abdul Rahim Ziaratwal of PMAP, Nazimuddin of ANP, Ayaz Swati of PML-N, Dost Mohammad Kakar of Tehrik Insaf and Bismillah Khan Kakar of the PPP spoke on the occasion.
Sardar Akhtar Mengal said that restoration of democracy would be meaningless until the issue of legitimate rights of the nationalities was resolved.
He claimed that Pakistan comprised different nationalities “who played an important role in the creation of Pakistan in this region” but rulers were continuously denying them their rights.
He said that democracy was not the only problem of this country as it was also facing violation of the Constitution, denying of rights to the nationalities, murder of democracy by overthrowing elected governments and military operations in Balochistan.
He said that the Baloch who had given up their right for an independent state for the creation of Pakistan were now facing the fifth military operation on their soil as they had demanded their just rights.
Sardar Mengal said that it was the government which forced the Baloch people to take the path of resistance.
He said that now they had no other option but to adopt the path of Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti who sacrificed his life for the Baloch cause. “It is the only way for the Baloch people in achieving their national goal.”
The provincial president of the PPP, Balochistan, Nawabzada Lashkari Raisani, while speaking said that from the very beginning dictators were looting this country through breaking political parties and all institutions that resulted in reducing the country’s territory and now President Gen Musharraf was also implementing the same agenda.
He rejected the development package recently announced by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz for Balochistan and termed it an eyewash as no new funds were allocated in it.
He claimed that the prime minister also announced jobs for the youths of Balochistan in different forces through which they wanted to recruit them for killing their own people. He urged Baloch youth to boycott recruitment in these forces.
The PPP leader also criticised the government for convening a tribal Jirga and appealed to all sardars to boycott official Jirga, as through it the government wanted to create disunity among Baloch tribal chiefs. “The sardars will attend an official Jirga in which their own tribes will take a decision against them,” he warned.
Nawabzada Raisani announced all opposition parties would fight against ruling party candidates whenever the government would conduct bye-election on assembly seats that were vacated by BNP-Mengal.
He appealed to Sardar Akhtar Mengal that he must put the party’s candidates on these seats.
Abdul Rahim Ziaratwal of the PMAP said that the country was facing serious political, constitutional and economic crisis due to the wrong polices of military rulers and the country was moving towards disaster.
Ayaz Khan Swati of the PML-N said that democratic forces would not compromise the rights of the people and would continue their joint struggle against the military dictator.
Bismillah Khan Kakar of the PPP underlined the need for joint struggle for the restoration of democracy and people’s rule in the country.
Dost Mohammad of Tehrik Insaf announced that his party would extend all cooperation for the formation of a grand opposition alliance in the country against the military rulers.
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