KARACHI, Feb 20: Condemning the increasing incidents wherein the mutilated bodies of 'missing' Baloch youths were found, Balochistan National Party chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal appealed to the United Nations and other rights bodies to play their role in stopping what he described as the “genocide of the people of Balochistan”.
He said that due to such incidents the Baloch people had lost all hopes in the institutions of state, rulers and establishment.
The BNP chief was speaking by telephone from Dubai to a rally of Baloch and Sindhi nationalists outside the Karachi Press Club on Sunday. The rally was staged in protest against the operation in Balochistan, incidents of targeted killing and for the recovery of the missing persons.
He said the Baloch were being killed because they were raising voice for their rights.
Referring to the everyday incidents in which mutilated bodies of Baloch youths were found, he said: “Where is the independent judiciary and where is the media? Do you expect the Baloch people that they advise their future generations to be good Pakistani?”
He appealed to the UN and human rights bodies to play their role in Balochistan where the 'genocide' of the Baloch was being carried out by the so-called democratic government.
He said that instead of recovering the missing Baloch people, the bodies of over 100 Baloch youths had been given to the people during the past four months.
He said that history was witness to it that the Baloch never bowed before oppressors.
The BNP leader appreciated the Baloch of Lyari and Sindhis for joining the protest rally and appealed to the Sindhi, Pakhtun and other peace-loving people from a cross section of society to join hands and raise their voice against this oppression.
Dr Jahanzeb Jamaldini said that the 18th Amendment was in negation of the concurrent list. “We are the owner of half of Pakistan but we are being treated as third-rate citizens”.
Yusuf Mastikhan said that Balochistan was burning and the right of Baloch people to have control over their resources had to be conceded.
Muhammad Hussain Mehanti of the Jamaat-i-Islami said that the biggest province of Pakistan was deprived of facilities.
Sindh nationalist leaders Bashir Qureshi, Ghulam Shah, Abdul Khaliq Junejo, Ali Hasan Chandio said that the Sindhi and Baloch people had historic ties and they fully supported the Baloch struggle and full control on their resources and destiny.
Baloch Students Organisation secretary Jalib Baloch read out the resolutions which called for stopping state operation, release of the missing persons, to stop the intervention of security forces in educational institutions.
The resolutions also called upon the authorities to stop demolition of old goths in Sindh and those involved in targeted killings should be taken to task.