Balochistan is victim of world power game: Malik

[IZVINITE]

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Thursday said Balochistan is target of world power game and local extremist organizations and banned outfits are forwarding their agenda.

Malik was briefing the Senate about the Balochistan policy.

He said that there are certain sensitive things that he cannot tell publically.

He requested that officials of Inter Service Intelligence (ISI) and Military Intelligence (MI) should be summoned to record their statements.

Winding up the discussion on the Balochistan issue, Malik said “We cannot keep Balochistan aloof of world power game. Some aliens are harboring external aggression into Balochistan and interfere in our affairs,”

“The issue is grave. If we are negligent of it, history will not forgive us. We will have to reach a solution before it is too late,” he said. Categorically blaming the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi who both he said were involved in present situation in Balochistan.

The interior minister said that the BLA had claimed the responsibility of most of the bomb blasts and killings in the province.

Malik claimed that BLA and Lashkar-i-Jhangvi (LeJ) had relations with each other for five years.

He said that transformation towards Independent Balochistan is not new as he mentioned to uprising of Nawaz Nauroz Khan, Sher Muhammad Bijarani in 1963-66 and Kher Bakhsh Marri led to uprising of 1973-78.

“Today once again the follow up of those uprisings. Harbyar Marri and Brahamdagh Bugti are operating from abroad. We know that people are killed when Harbyar calls insurgents in Balochistan.”

Malik critiqued the proposed resolution by Congressman Dana Rohrabacher in the US House of Representatives a few months back in which he demanded that Baloch people should have a right to self-determination.He said that he cannot understand that why Balochistan case was specifically discussed in US Congress when there were human rights violations in other provinces as well.

The Interior Minister claimed there was intervention from Afghanistan in the province, for which Pakistan raised its concerns with President Hamid Karzai. Karzai had said that the areas bordering Pakistan were under Nato/Isaf forces’ control not in the hands of Afghan army.

Moreover, Malik said that people of Balochistan were patriotic. There are some miscreants in the province who have destabilised the peace in the region.

The Interior Ministry on Wednesday submitted a special report in the Federal Cabinet over the prevailing law and order situation in Balochistan.

According to the report, at least 868 people have been killed, 619 kidnapped, and 2390 have gone missing from the province since 2010.

The report claimed that Laskar-i-Jhangvi (LeJ), Lashkar-i-Balochistan, Baloch Musalla Difa Tanzeem, and the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) were involved in disrupting the law and order situation of the province.

Balochistan is victim of world power game: Malik | DAWN.COM