HYDERABAD, May 20: Leaders of the Joint Action Committee for People’s Rights have announced that over 20 organizations of the civil society will stage protest demonstrations across Sindh in support of fisherman. They voiced concern over the arrest of Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum leader Mohammed Ali Shah and others.

Speaking at a joint news conference at the press club here on Friday, the chairman of the Indus Development Organization Zain Daudpoto, Gopal Das of the SPO, Ghaffar Malik of the Sindh Development Society, Ghulam Hussain Malookani of the Green Development Rural Organization, Ramzan Memon of the Bhandar Hari Sangat and Adam Malik of the Actionaid Pakistan said the contract system for fishing was a robbery on the inalienable rights of the fishermen of Sindh.

They said the fishermen had become hostage to contractors because of the perpetuation of the contract system.

They said the contract system was a flagrant violation of UN’s human rights charter. They said it was the duty of the civil society to raise their voice against human rights violations.

They said the action committee of over 20 organizations would launch series of protest demonstrations in Sindh against the contract system.

They said in furtherance of the objective, they would hold protest demonstrations in Shahdadkot, Khairpur, Mirpurkhas, Jamshoro, Qasimabad and Nawabshah during the current month.