Wednesday, December 09, 2009
By By Shahid Husain
Karachi
National Party Secretary General Mir Tahir Bizenjo has rejected the package offered to the impoverished province of Balochistan by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and termed it a ‘political gimmick’.
“The government has been evasive towards core issues,” he said. “For instance, despite the fact that Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti has been described as a ‘martyr’ in the package, the government has simply promised to form a commission to investigate the murder of Baloch leader although it is on record that former President Gen(retired) Pervez Musharraf openly threatened him.”
While giving an exclusive interview to The News, he said commissions were usually made when there was ambiguity but here it was crystal clear who the main culprit was.
“A commission was formed under the chairmanship of Justice Hamood-ur-Rahman to fix the responsibility about the dismemberment of Pakistan by former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto although everybody knew that military dictator Gen. (retd) Agha Yahya Khan was the main culprit. However, Yahya Khan was buried with full military honours and did not spent a single day in jail,” he said.
Bizenjo, who is also an ex-senator, said that the National Party had suggested ahead of government’s package that all the nationalist party leaders, even those who are living abroad, should be taken into confidence but the government did not pay any heed.
The National Party also suggested that missing people should be traced and if there was any allegation against them, they should be tried in a court of law. It also suggested that persons involved in the brutal murder of Nawab Akbar Bugti should be punished, adding that “Musharraf is not only the murderer of Nawab Bugti; he should also be tried for violating the constitution,” he said.
“As a result of military operation in Balochistan, thousands of people in Bugti and Marri area have been displaced and have been forced to take refuge in Southern Punjab, interior Sindh and in Karachi. We suggested that they need to be rehabilitated but our pleas fell on deaf ears,” he said.
Bizenjo said that after giving shape to these suggestions, the government could have initiated a dialogue with Baloch leaders in the second phase but this did not happen. “Hence the National Party and the Balochistan National Party (Mengal) have rejected the package,” he said. “We also made suggestions despite knowing there will be no positive outcome; but we made them so that nobody could say we want to remain aloof.”
He said that it was true that the people of Balochistan, especially its youth have become alienated but there were still chances to keep them in the fold of a federation.
“The centre should have only foreign policy, currency and defence,” he said. “All other subjects should be handed over to smaller provinces that should have control over their mineral and natural resources.”
“The question is whether a strong centre or strong provinces can strengthen Pakistan,” he said. “The history of the last 62 years amply demonstrates that centralisation has only generated anarchy, disharmony and friction between the provinces. It was failure to give autonomy to former East Pakistan that the country was dismembered. The Bengalis were accused of treason despite the fact that they played the major role in the creation of Pakistan.”
By By Shahid Husain
Karachi
National Party Secretary General Mir Tahir Bizenjo has rejected the package offered to the impoverished province of Balochistan by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and termed it a ‘political gimmick’.
“The government has been evasive towards core issues,” he said. “For instance, despite the fact that Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti has been described as a ‘martyr’ in the package, the government has simply promised to form a commission to investigate the murder of Baloch leader although it is on record that former President Gen(retired) Pervez Musharraf openly threatened him.”
While giving an exclusive interview to The News, he said commissions were usually made when there was ambiguity but here it was crystal clear who the main culprit was.
“A commission was formed under the chairmanship of Justice Hamood-ur-Rahman to fix the responsibility about the dismemberment of Pakistan by former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto although everybody knew that military dictator Gen. (retd) Agha Yahya Khan was the main culprit. However, Yahya Khan was buried with full military honours and did not spent a single day in jail,” he said.
Bizenjo, who is also an ex-senator, said that the National Party had suggested ahead of government’s package that all the nationalist party leaders, even those who are living abroad, should be taken into confidence but the government did not pay any heed.
The National Party also suggested that missing people should be traced and if there was any allegation against them, they should be tried in a court of law. It also suggested that persons involved in the brutal murder of Nawab Akbar Bugti should be punished, adding that “Musharraf is not only the murderer of Nawab Bugti; he should also be tried for violating the constitution,” he said.
“As a result of military operation in Balochistan, thousands of people in Bugti and Marri area have been displaced and have been forced to take refuge in Southern Punjab, interior Sindh and in Karachi. We suggested that they need to be rehabilitated but our pleas fell on deaf ears,” he said.
Bizenjo said that after giving shape to these suggestions, the government could have initiated a dialogue with Baloch leaders in the second phase but this did not happen. “Hence the National Party and the Balochistan National Party (Mengal) have rejected the package,” he said. “We also made suggestions despite knowing there will be no positive outcome; but we made them so that nobody could say we want to remain aloof.”
He said that it was true that the people of Balochistan, especially its youth have become alienated but there were still chances to keep them in the fold of a federation.
“The centre should have only foreign policy, currency and defence,” he said. “All other subjects should be handed over to smaller provinces that should have control over their mineral and natural resources.”
“The question is whether a strong centre or strong provinces can strengthen Pakistan,” he said. “The history of the last 62 years amply demonstrates that centralisation has only generated anarchy, disharmony and friction between the provinces. It was failure to give autonomy to former East Pakistan that the country was dismembered. The Bengalis were accused of treason despite the fact that they played the major role in the creation of Pakistan.”
No comments:
Post a Comment