* Asks CJP to take suo motu notice of genocide at hands of terrorists
Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Scores of activists belonging to Hazara Youth Islamabad and Baloch Friends on Saturday staged a protest demonstration in front of the National Press Club demanding the chief justice of Pakistan to take notice of ongoing genocide of the Hazara community.
Holding placards and banners inscribed with denunciation of Saturday’s killing in which at least seven people were shot dead in Quetta, the protesters demanded the government protect the community from target killers.
They also raised slogans against the government and law enforcement agencies’ inaction towards incidents of targeted killings in Quetta.
Addressing the participants, social activists Marvi Sirmed, Dr Farzana Bari and Workers Party leader Dr Asim Sajjad called upon Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry to take suo motu notice of the deteriorating law and order situation in Quetta, particularly killings of Hazara people on sectarian basis. “People have pinned high hopes on the chief justice that he will provide us with justice,” they said.
“Since 1999, over 700 people of the community have been killed in different incidents of target killings and suicide attacks while there has been no progress against the culprits which strengthens the notion the government and law enforcement agencies are patronising the terrorists,” they said.
Social workers lamented that parliamentarians did not even have time to condemn these killings while the provincial government was also reluctant to take action against criminals.
They further said that history witnessed that Hazara community, comprising half a million peace-loving people, has no difference with other sects. However, for being peaceful, the community members are being victimised and killed by terrorists. “We believe no religion allows such inhumane act,” they maintained.
The speakers announced that they will register their protest with the international community since the provincial and the federal governments have failed to curb the unending targeted killings of the Hazara people and had given a ‘free hand’ to criminals.
However, the activists also appealed to all peace-loving citizens of the Pakistan, civil society, media, international NGOs, and law enforcement agencies to condemn systematic genocide of the community and start a crackdown against banned organisations to the save the province from an expected civil war.
They said that the province was on the brink of civil war; all the parties and responsible people have to show sincerity, otherwise the ongoing unrest will result in an unexpected crisis or a civil war.
Daily Times
