Senate condemns police torture of journalist, doctor in Balochistan

The Senate on Tuesday strongly condemned police torture of a cameraman and doctor in Balochistan and formed a committee to probe into the matter within ten days. The police reportedly picked up and tortured a cameraman who recorded killing of foreigners at Khroatabad by law enforcement agencies and the doctor who performed autopsy.
Deputy Chairman Senate after a long debate on the issue following a walk out by mediamen both in National Assembly and Senate, demanding to form a committee comprising Senators from Sindh and Balochistan and leader of the House and Law Minister as its member to help the committee prepare terms of reference of the body.
Earlier, leader of the opposition, Ghafoor Haidri walked out from the Senate to express solidarity with the journalists after strongly criticising the government for doing nothing to protect them except giving them just assurance. He said that government has to be serious and take stern action against the officials of police for torturing the photographer who had captured the killing of foreigners by the security agencies.
Haideri said that important events and incidents have been happening in the country with continuity after the Abbottabad incident on May 2 and it was expected that institutions would change their behaviour but Khrotabad and Karachi incidents are indicative that nothing seems to have been changed.
The opposition leader staged walk out from the House deploring that the government has not taken measures to protect journalist community from the state institutions. Haji Lashkar Raisani said that it is important to know who is threatening the journalists and if state institutions are threatening the journalists, how they could provide security to the media people.
Raisani said that a committee of the House should be constituted to oversee investigation and ensure that state institutions are not hurling threat to the media persons. Meanwhile, Senator Raza Rabbani in his open letter asked the government and other institutions to move out of the state of denial, accept reality as it stands on the ground and refrain from cover up. Take concrete steps to shun the impression of a clash between various institutions of the state. Identify, if any, internal and external terrorist groups, and not to allow the soil of Pakistan for the support of terrorism.
We the ordinary citizens love the federal State of Pakistan, this is our only abort, we are now at the cross roads of history - where all roads but one lead to destruction. We the people now demand a centralised focus on national security to save the State.
To surmount a roadmap is required, below are a few points to generate a national debate on that policy. The following amongst other points may be considered to form a national strategy to combat internal and external terrorism. Develop a national counter insurgency strategy with all the stakeholders. Identify commonality of approach with the West in the conflict on terror. Clearly state the rules of engagements with international forces in the conflict on terror.
Hearings before the Parliamentary Committee on National Security and Defence Committees of both Houses, on policy and briefings on meeting of military and political leadership with visitors from abroad. Introducing the concept of Parliamentary accountability and ensuring Parliament's supremacy.