ISLAMABAD: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Pakistan have asked the government to ensure release of the missing persons at the earliest, and if any of them is involved in any nature of illegal activities bring him to the courts.
Speaking to the participants of the protest camp of the families of missing persons of Balochistan at D-Chowk here on Thursday, JUI Secretary General Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri and JI Senator Mushtaq Ahmed Khan, while expressing solidarity with the families, said that this practice must come to an end.
Addressing the participants, Haideri while paying rich tributes to the courage of the relatives of the missing persons including men, women, children, and youth, said that the daughters of the nation, from the most conservative part of the country, are forced to come out of their homes to find out about the whereabouts of their near and dear ones.
The JUI has always raised the voice for the missing persons at all the forums including at the parliament, adding that the people of Balochistan since decades have been facing such a situation as from General Ayub Khan, Bhutto to Pervez Musharraf, to date, the state institutions are picking up citizens without any case, and are not bringing them before courts of law.
He said that this practice must come to an end and no institution in the country is above the law, if anybody is wanted by law enforcement agencies in any criminal case, he must properly be arrested and presented before the court, so that justice can be done.
He also warned the Islamabad police not to harass the protesters who are sitting there peacefully; saying if the practice is not ended political parties will also join the protesters. Haideri said that his party will take up the matter in the Senate session, saying that people of Kashmir were also facing the same situation as the people of Balochistan.
Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan (JI) Senator Mushtaq Ahmed Khan also joined Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri on the occasion, and asked the government and other relevant quarters to stop forced disappearances.
They said that such acts against own people were not strengthening the country buts weakening it.
The protest is led by Nasrullah Baloch, who is the chairman of Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) for the past eight days.
After the initial protest outside the National Press club, three days ago they have shifted to D-Chowk where they set up their sit-in protest demanding from Pakistan government to release their abducted loved ones.
So far, the negotiations between the protesters and the government representatives have yielded no result.
The opposition leaders including Maryam Nawaz Sharif also visited the protest camp to “express her solidarity with the families”.
The protesters said that they were left with no option other than coming to Islamabad as they were disappointed by the “judicial commission” headed by Justice Javid Iqbal.
The families claimed that the judicial commission has failed to hear their plea and help them recover their disappeared loved ones.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021