Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Syed Munawar Hassan and Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP) chief Talal Akbar Bugti told a joint press conference on Sunday that the practice of killing and dumping the bodies of Baloch missing people, and the military operation in Balochistan should be stopped immediately.
Hassan said five military operations had been carried out in Balochistan, four of which had failed and the fifth was underway, but the army chief had recently announced that all army operations in the province had been stopped. He said the people welcomed this announcement but unfortunately practical steps to follow up on the announcement had yet to be taken. The army should honour its announcement, he added.
He said that Balochistan was rich in mineral resources and “foreign enemies” were trying to tighten their grip on them while the rulers were completely unaware of these “facts” and were not taking practical steps to resolve the province’s issues. The JI leader said the government did not respect its promises and decomposed bodies of missing people being found was an indication that there was no writ of the government.
He said if former president Pervez Musharraf, who had murdered Nawab Akbar khan Bugti, were arrested, the wounds of the Baloch people could be healed to some extent. He said the JI had always raised its voice for the rights of the Baloch people and against injustice in Balochistan and assured that the party would continue to do so. Talal Bugti claimed that the military operation continued in various parts of Balochistan, particularly in Dera Bugti, which had become a no-go area for Bugti tribesmen.
He said that Frontier Corps (FC), army and other government forces had occupied four gas fields and were looting and plundering the resources of the province. He claimed the FC and police were picking up innocent people and handing them over to intelligence agencies with the help of local spies. He appealed to Punjab to play its role in solving Balochistan’s issue, otherwise Pakistan would be in danger.
He said that the series of violation of human rights and injustice in Balochistan were part of a conspiracy to disintegrate Pakistan. He said if Pakistan broke up, “our condition would be worse then that of Iraqis and Afghanis”.
Criticising the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government, Bugti said it were busy with corruption and wanted nothing to do with the problems of the people. He said the PPP could not even investigate the murder of its leader Benazir Bhutto, so the Baloch should not expect anything from it.
Bugti said he would go abroad for a medical check-up soon but before leaving the country, he would visit various cities of Punjab including Lahore, where he would meet the leadership of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the JI and would start a campaign to “unveil the real face of the government” and its “frauds to the people in Balochistan.”
