June 18, 2007	Monday	Jumadi-us-Sani 02, 1428

LARKANA, June 17: The Chairman of Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM), Bashir Khan Qureshi, called for a complete strike throughout Sindh on June 25 in protest against enforced disappearances of JSQM workers, allocation of huge amount for construction of Kalabagh dam and tribal clashes in Sindh.

Addressing participants of a procession here on Sunday, he blamed the secret agencies for picking up a number of activists, including Dr Safdar Sarki, Asif Baladi, Shabir Shah, G.M Bhagat and other workers of JSQM and keeping them at undisclosed places.

“We apprehend either they had been killed or being tortured, he said.

He said courts had taken notice of the disappearance of Kashmiris and Punjabis but they did not take any notice for the people who were kidnapped from Sindh and Balochistan. The strike would be ‘peaceful’ as the JSQM had a firm belief in the politics of non-violence, Qureshi said and appealed the transporters, traders and people from all walks of life to extend their support for its success.

He said the federal government had allocated Rs14 billion for

construction of Kalabagh dam trampling the resolutions passed unanimously by Sindh, Balochistan and NWFP assemblies against this controversial project.

Also Punjab was out to increase the water flow capacity in the canals originating from the Right Bank of the River Indus, he said. He said Sindhis would not tolerate it and announced to protest against such projects.

He accused the key government figures’ involvement in tribal clashes in Sindh “who use the clashes as a tool to keep their vote bank intact”.

The government agencies, he alleged, were providing arms to the embattled tribes with the sole object of keeping people busy in their petty matters and deviating their minds from the actual issues, Mr Qureshi said.

When people whom the JSQM approached could respond positively why not these chieftains and pro-government people were convincing them to bury their hatchets, questioned the JSQM chief.

Replying to a question, he said Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) was part of establishment and condemned its role over arrest and disappearance of JSQM workers and Baloch nationalists.

He said those who came to Sindh after 1954 would definitely go back to their provinces and Sindh purely belonged to Sindhis and added our policy of ‘non-violence’ should not be considered as our ‘weakness’.

Earlier a procession was taken out which, after marching on main roads, converged on Pakistan chowk where Bashir Khan Qureshi and other leaders of JSQM spoke.