QUETTA, Aug 3: Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP) leader Nawabzada Jamil Akbar Bugti has said that his party will boycott the general elections if held under President Gen Pervez Musharraf.

Addressing a press conference here on Friday, he said polls supervised by a military ruler could never be fair and transparent.

The JWP was not associated either with the Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy or the newly formed All Parties Democratic Movement (APDM), he said, adding that the party had not joined the APDM because of the presence of the Muttihada Majlis-i-Amal.

He said the JWP would observe a black day on the first death anniversary of Nawab Bugti; He said that the nawab had been killed for refusing to compromise on the rights of the Baloch people.

Mr Jamil said state oppression could not undermine the political struggle of the Baloch people and no military operation could destroy the Bugti tribe.

He said the JWP would play an active role in the political struggle for the rights of Balochs, adding that the party would cooperate with like-minded Baloch political groups and other democratic forces to wage a joint movement against the government.

He accused the MMA of backing military operations in Balochistan and being involved in the killing of Nawab Bugti.

He criticised the National Party for attending the multi-party conference in London.

The JWP leader termed the formation of the Pakhtunkhwa National Democratic Alliance as a positive step and said it would unify the oppressed nationalities.

Former chief minister and senior JWP leader Mir Hamayun Marri, Shamim Afridi, Sohail Rajput, Malik Khuda Bakhsh Lango and others were present on the occasion.