QUETTA, Jan 28: A roundtable conference organized by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement on Friday adopted a seven-point resolution urging the government to desist from the use of force or launching a military operation and negotiations should be held for resolving all issues.

Ruling PML party, which participated in the conference, abstained from the resolution, expressing reservations on some of its points. The MMA, PPP, PML-N and PMAP representatives did not attend the conference.

Muttahida Qaumi Movement Parliamentary Leader in the National Assembly Dr Farooq Sattar presided over the conference. Muttahida chief Altaf Hussain addressed the participants by telephone from London.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Hussain assured the Baloch leadership of his party's full support to all just causes of the Balochistan people. He also reiterated his earlier pledge that if the government launched any operation in Balochistan his party would quit the government.

Mr Hussain cited examples of military operations in the East Pakistan, Balochistan and Karachi and Hyderabad, and said that past experiences told us that political and democratic issues should be settled purely through political means and not through the barrel of guns as these methods would create complications and develop hatred and ill-will towards the federation.

He demanded complete autonomy to all federating units so that provinces could run their affairs without interferences and usurpation of their resources by Centre, rejecting Centre's strict policy of centralization of the seventies which he said had led to the dismemberment of the country.

Mr Hussain categorically stated that consent and participation of local population in all mega projects in any province was necessary as unilateral decisions caused a sense of deprivation among the native population and they felt ignored and alienated in their own affairs.

Other leaders who attended the conference were: Sardar Akhtar Mengal of the BNP-M, Mir Hamayun Marri of the JWP, Mir Hasil Bizenjo of NP, Arbab Zahir Kasi of the ANP, Dr Hakim Lehri of the BNC, Ibrahim Hazara of the HDP and Ghulam Muhammad Baloch of the BNM.

Speaking on the occasion, these leaders strongly condemned Islamabad rulers and their policies of denying rights to the people of Balochistan. They warned Centre that extra-constitutional methods and threats of use of force and state apparatus would push the country towards civil war with grave political overtones, which would endanger the unity of the country.

They vowed to continue their struggle for the rights of the people Balochistan who had been denied their rights since the country got independence in 1947. They demanded withdrawal of forces from Sui, Dera Bugti and other parts of Balochistan and unconditional release of all arrested political workers.

They further stated that since the birth of the country autocratic rulers, who wanted to protect interests of the Punjab province, had been using the state powers to suppress political movements of smaller federating units such as Balochistan, the NWFP and Sindh, but the rulers had miserably failed in their efforts.

Federal State Minister and leader of Ruling PML Senator Mir Nasir Mengal, MPA Rubina Irfan and Malik Ahmed Shah Lehri of the PML and Karamatullah of PPP-Sherpao said that Chaudhary Shujaat Hussain was making concerted efforts to resolve the Balochistan issue peacefully.

They said that Mr Shujaat had held talks with President Gen Pervez Musharraf about his meeting with Sardar Ataullah Khan Mengal and Sardar Sher Baz Khan Mazari, adding that the government had constituted a parliamentary committee to resolve the issue peacefully.

Earlier, in his welcome speech, Muttahida's parliamentary leader in NA Dr Farooq Sattar said that negotiations were the best way to resolve all political issues.

He said if Pakistan could hold talks with its arch rival Indian than why The government could not hold talks with the Baloch leadership, particularly Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti, and listen to their grievances. He said the Muttahida would never support any military operation and would stand by the Baloch people in any hour of trial.

In the end, the participants of the conference adopted a seven-point resolution. In the first point, the conference asked the government to resolve all issues through democratic and political means and avoid any sort of military operation;

(2) The meeting demanded end to sense of deprivation among the people of Balochistan and grant of maximum provincial autonomy to Balochistan, Sindh and the NWFP and Punjab.

It asked the federation that except defence, foreign affairs and currency, all other subjects should be handed over to the federating units so that provinces could get full powers to run their own matters;

(3) The government should stop arrests and harassment of Balochs in Sui, Dera Bugti and adjoining areas;

(4) The conference noted that injustices with Balochistan province were causing deprivation, therefore the issue should not be viewed as the law and order problem and causes and factors of sense of deprivation among Balochs should be explored.

The just grievances and rights of the people of Balochistan should be accepted instead of levelling charges against leaders and the people of the province besides the people and their representatives should be taken into confidence before taking administrative decisions;

(5) The government should respect the unanimous resolution passed by the Balochistan Assembly against the establishment of cantonments in the province;

(6) The government should lift the ban on the movement of individuals and population and commodity items besides ending the military siege of Sui and Dera Bugti areas as despite repeated assurances to normalize the situation, the government has not fulfilled the commitment;

(7) The meeting condemned the incident took place with Dr Shazia Khalid and demanded that all government officials involved the incident should be sternly punished.