Over 289 citizens of Pakistan were burnt alive in Karachi Baldia Town factory massacre in September 2012. They were not Rohingya Muslims slaughtered by Burmese fanatics or terrorists, nor Palestinians butchered by Israelis, nor victims of Hutu tribal feud of Africa, but by their own fellow citizens for no fault of theirs other than being poor underpaid labourers of a garment factory, whose owners refused to pay extortion money demanded by criminals and terrorists affiliated with a political party which was part of coalition government that ruled Sindh. Does getting elected give any political party right to kill citizens, collect extortion, kidnap for ransom, forcibly occupy private or state property, indulge in money laundering and yet claim immunity from prosecution? How can such a government, or a political party and its activists, or criminals involved in such heinous crimes deserve any reprieve from law?
A country that allows such barbarity to go unpunished within its territorial jurisdiction is a state that has no right to exist, or demand membership of UN, or claim sovereignty.
PM Nawaz Sharif, Chief Justice of Pakistan and Gen Raheel Sharif have moral and constitutional responsibility to ensure that the barbarians responsible for Baldia Town Garment Factory Massacre, in which 289 citizens of Pakistan were burnt alive, be given exemplary punishment in conformity to heinous nature of crime committed and not allow political exigencies to be a hurdle in delivery of justice. Failure in doing so will only encourage terrorism and extortion collection to flourish in this unfortunate country, ruled by people who have neither any stakes in this country nor any commitment except perhaps blinded by greed and lust for black money, assured that they will get away with murder.
ANEELA CHANDIO
Sukkur
