KARACHI: Balochistan Chief Minister Dr. Abdul Malik Baloch on Sunday linked the success of the peace process in his restive home province to the recovery of missing persons, saying this remained one front on which his government had failed to make any major progress.
Speaking at the “Meet the Press” programme at the Karachi Press Club here, Dr. Malik said the recovery of missing persons remained his top priority.“Unfortunately, the Balochistan government faces incalculable challenges and needs time to resolve them within the ambit of the Constitution,” he said.
To a question, he said though his government could not achieve 100 percent success in resolving the issue of missing persons, it has at least managed to reduce the number of such incidents.
“Likewise, the incidents of dumping of mutilated bodies of Baloch youths have also dropped. My government is making all-out efforts to stop these incidents.”The chief minister said the law and order situation in Balochistan had vastly improved since his government took charge. He said he had been working to strengthen and reform the police and the Levies.
“The Frontier Constabulary (FC) check posts in Quetta have shrunk by 50 percent. We need coordination to tackle the menace of lawlessness,” he added.He, however, said the FC would be needed until the law and order situation normalised in Balochistan. The chief minister said it was wrongly perceived that Balochistan was unsafe to travel in. “Such fears are uncalled-for.”
He also refuted reports that Pakistan’s national flag was no more displayed throughout the province and people refrained from singing the national anthem.“This is happening only in a few remote areas of the province dominated by separatists,” he added. To a question, Malik said his recent London visit was private and he went there to attend the Faiz Mela. He denied holding any talks with the exiled Baloch leaders there. “No political contact was made nor was any mechanism for holding talks formalised,” he added.“But soon we will convene an All Parties Conference on Balochistan in Quetta to develop a strategy for holding talks with the militants.”
All the parties, whether they had representation in parliament or not, will be invited to the APC, he said. “I have been given the mandate to hold negotiations with militant leaders and we will start the dialogue process with them with sincerity.”
“We will approach everyone to pave the way for a political settlement,” he explained, adding that the use of force had not produced any results in Balochistan.Malik denied having direct contacts with Brahamdagh Bugti — a grandson of Akbar Bugti and chief of the separatist Baloch Republican Party. However, he said he remained keen on holding talks with him to bring peace to his violence-plagued province.
He admitted that the government writ remained non-existent in certain parts of Balochistan but hoped his government would manage to establish it soon.On the question of local bodies’ elections, Dr Malik said his government would follow the orders of the Supreme Court and hold elections on a party basis. At the same time, he said delimitation in certain parts of the province could not be held.
On the target killings of doctors and intellectuals, he said it remained a big loss and his government was working to end this trend.“This province has been a conflict zone for the last 30 years and there are definitely certain international actors too who remain active,” he said, adding, “Their interference in Pakistan’s domestic affairs should stop.”
It is for the first time in 30 years that ‘a middle class government’ has been formed in the province and credit for this goes to Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, who asked the National Party to form the provincial government, he said.
“Numerically speaking, we were short in number and the Pakistan Muslim League-N could have formed the government. But for the sake of peace and to bridge the gap between Islamabad and Balochistan, Nawaz Sharif supported the NP,” he added.
It is a coalition government with three major parties in power, the PKMAP, NP and PML N, and all are on the same page to bring normality to the province, Malik said.Balochistan has two major problems — political and economic — which need to be tackled with the support of the coalition partners, the PKMAP and Pakistan Muslim League N, Malik said. On the political front, militancy, sectarian terrorism and tribal feuds create the main law and order problems, he said.
“The insurgency in Balochistan should be seen in a historical perspective… it is time to work within the framework of the Constitution to resolve all issues, though it is easier said than done.”
About the rehabilitation of the earthquake-hit people of Awaran and Kech districts, he said the provincial government had provided about 32,000 tents, food and other items to the affected families.About Rs40-Rs 50 billion is required for the rehabilitation of the quake affected people, while Balochistan’s total budget is 45 billion, he said.
He urged the international community and overseas Pakistanis to help his government carry out rehabilitation and reconstruction work in the quake-hit areas. He said the government had decided to turn this disaster into an opportunity to develop the infrastructure of Awaran.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-Ne...-admits-failure-in-recovering-missing-persons
Economically speaking, he said out of 31 districts 30 were badly affected due to poverty and lagged behind in terms of education, health, and infrastructure.The chief minister announced Rs2 million for the Karachi Press Club.
Speaking at the “Meet the Press” programme at the Karachi Press Club here, Dr. Malik said the recovery of missing persons remained his top priority.“Unfortunately, the Balochistan government faces incalculable challenges and needs time to resolve them within the ambit of the Constitution,” he said.
To a question, he said though his government could not achieve 100 percent success in resolving the issue of missing persons, it has at least managed to reduce the number of such incidents.
“Likewise, the incidents of dumping of mutilated bodies of Baloch youths have also dropped. My government is making all-out efforts to stop these incidents.”The chief minister said the law and order situation in Balochistan had vastly improved since his government took charge. He said he had been working to strengthen and reform the police and the Levies.
“The Frontier Constabulary (FC) check posts in Quetta have shrunk by 50 percent. We need coordination to tackle the menace of lawlessness,” he added.He, however, said the FC would be needed until the law and order situation normalised in Balochistan. The chief minister said it was wrongly perceived that Balochistan was unsafe to travel in. “Such fears are uncalled-for.”
He also refuted reports that Pakistan’s national flag was no more displayed throughout the province and people refrained from singing the national anthem.“This is happening only in a few remote areas of the province dominated by separatists,” he added. To a question, Malik said his recent London visit was private and he went there to attend the Faiz Mela. He denied holding any talks with the exiled Baloch leaders there. “No political contact was made nor was any mechanism for holding talks formalised,” he added.“But soon we will convene an All Parties Conference on Balochistan in Quetta to develop a strategy for holding talks with the militants.”
All the parties, whether they had representation in parliament or not, will be invited to the APC, he said. “I have been given the mandate to hold negotiations with militant leaders and we will start the dialogue process with them with sincerity.”
“We will approach everyone to pave the way for a political settlement,” he explained, adding that the use of force had not produced any results in Balochistan.Malik denied having direct contacts with Brahamdagh Bugti — a grandson of Akbar Bugti and chief of the separatist Baloch Republican Party. However, he said he remained keen on holding talks with him to bring peace to his violence-plagued province.
He admitted that the government writ remained non-existent in certain parts of Balochistan but hoped his government would manage to establish it soon.On the question of local bodies’ elections, Dr Malik said his government would follow the orders of the Supreme Court and hold elections on a party basis. At the same time, he said delimitation in certain parts of the province could not be held.
On the target killings of doctors and intellectuals, he said it remained a big loss and his government was working to end this trend.“This province has been a conflict zone for the last 30 years and there are definitely certain international actors too who remain active,” he said, adding, “Their interference in Pakistan’s domestic affairs should stop.”
It is for the first time in 30 years that ‘a middle class government’ has been formed in the province and credit for this goes to Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, who asked the National Party to form the provincial government, he said.
“Numerically speaking, we were short in number and the Pakistan Muslim League-N could have formed the government. But for the sake of peace and to bridge the gap between Islamabad and Balochistan, Nawaz Sharif supported the NP,” he added.
It is a coalition government with three major parties in power, the PKMAP, NP and PML N, and all are on the same page to bring normality to the province, Malik said.Balochistan has two major problems — political and economic — which need to be tackled with the support of the coalition partners, the PKMAP and Pakistan Muslim League N, Malik said. On the political front, militancy, sectarian terrorism and tribal feuds create the main law and order problems, he said.
“The insurgency in Balochistan should be seen in a historical perspective… it is time to work within the framework of the Constitution to resolve all issues, though it is easier said than done.”
About the rehabilitation of the earthquake-hit people of Awaran and Kech districts, he said the provincial government had provided about 32,000 tents, food and other items to the affected families.About Rs40-Rs 50 billion is required for the rehabilitation of the quake affected people, while Balochistan’s total budget is 45 billion, he said.
He urged the international community and overseas Pakistanis to help his government carry out rehabilitation and reconstruction work in the quake-hit areas. He said the government had decided to turn this disaster into an opportunity to develop the infrastructure of Awaran.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-Ne...-admits-failure-in-recovering-missing-persons
Economically speaking, he said out of 31 districts 30 were badly affected due to poverty and lagged behind in terms of education, health, and infrastructure.The chief minister announced Rs2 million for the Karachi Press Club.
