December 20, 2006	Wednesday	Ziqa'ad 28, 1427

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QUETTA, Dec 19: On a call of the Balochistan chapter of the Pakistan Bar Council, lawyers boycotted court proceedings in several towns on Tuesday in protest against arrest and manhandling of lawyers.

They observed a token hunger strike from morning to evening.

In Quetta, they abstained from the hearing of cases in the high court and lower courts and assembled in the bar room of the district court.

Ali Ahmed Kurd, vice-chairman of the PBC and Hadi Shakeel Ahmed, president of the BHCBA led the protesters.

Talking to newsmen, Mr Kurd alleged that the Quetta jail administration had manhandled the lawyers detained in prison.

He demanded that the government should stop political victimisation of the Balochistan lawyers.

He said that they would strongly react if the highhandedness did not stop.

Mr Kurd said that the lawyers also boycotted courts in Zhob, Loralai, Pishin, Chaman, Mastung, Kalat, Khuzdar, Hub, Panjgur, Turbat, Sibi, Dera Allahyar and Nushki.

BNP DEMOS: The Balochistan National Party (Mengal) on Monday announced holding demonstrations and blocking three national highways on December 22 and 26, respectively, in protest against military operations and extra-judicial arrests in the province.

Speaking at a press conference at the Quetta Press Club, BNP-M acting-president Agha Hasan Baloch said that three national highways would be blocked to stop traffic to Karachi, Jacobabad and Taftan on December 26. Similarly, he said, demonstrations would be held outside press clubs in Quetta and other district headquarters on December 22.

He said the government was planning to shift detained party leader Sardar Akhtar Mengal from Hub to Karachi in order to pressurise the BNP high-command to give up anti-Musharraf struggle.