March 07, 2007	Wednesday	Safar 17, 1428

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HYDERABAD, March 6: The Awami Tehrik has decided to boycott the all-party conference on provincial autonomy being convened by the Sindh government because it believes that real autonomy cannot be granted to the provinces under the existing state structure.

The decision was taken at the meeting of the standing committee of the party held at Awami House here on Tuesday and presided over by AT chief Rasool Bux Palijo.

The participants were of the view that on the one hand, the government was planning to commit economic genocide of the people of Sindh through the construction of dams and canals on Indus River, and, on the other, a drama was being staged to hold a dialogue on provincial autonomy. They said that unless transparent elections were held for a new constituent assembly to change basic constitutional structure of the country according to 1940’s Pakistan Resolution, provincial autonomy would remain elusive.

The meeting felt that the Musharraf government was taking Pakistan on the path of destruction, democracy had become a misnomer in the country and elected assemblies had become ineffective.

It observed that elections had become an ironic joke with the people and for all practical purposes, Pakistan had become a prison for the people of the ‘oppressed nations.’ It said that a farce was being staged in the country in the name of democracy.

The meeting emphasised that survival of the country depended on the implementation of the 1940 contract but the present setup was a negation of the contract.

Opposing the sale of the two islands off Karachi coast, the participants said that every inch of Sindh's land was the property of Sindhi people and the island sale was part of a sinister conspiracy aimed at enhancing outsiders’ settlement in Sindh and convert the Sindhi ‘nation’ into a minority in their own province.It demanded that the decision to dispose of islands to a UAE-based firm dealing in real state development be rescinded.

It said that Sindh had been handed over to what they called terrorists and a few Sarkari Waderas had been included in the Sindh government to hoodwink the Sindhi people.