EDITORIAL: Inquiry Commission for missing persons

The federal government had formally notified constitution of an inquiry commission to investigate the cases of all missing persons and take appropriate action to dispose of each and every case. Justice (Retired) Raza Mohammad had been appointed as the Chairman while Justice (retired) Fazlur Rehman and Justice (retired) Nasir Iqbal are its members.

There are two categories of missing people in Pakistan—the ones involved in the war on terror and having links with Taliban or others fighting security forces of Pakistan, United States, NATO and others.  The second category alludes to the people involved in a historic political conflict of Balochistan and they were picked up by the security agencies. Thus, they are called “missing persons” from Balochistan.

In case of War on Terror, the security agencies, on the instructions from high-ups, handed over the custody of some missing people to the United States or any other country. But in case of Balochistan conflict, the political and democratic opponents of the government had been denied fundamental human rights and arrested in an illegal manner, without issuing any warrants of arrest and lodged in illegal places of detention.

In a way, the government and its functionaries are accused of waging a war against its own people and government is responsible for illegal kidnapping of Pakistani citizens. Therefore, they are responsible for human rights violation. It is regretted that the Supreme Court of Pakistan had failed to take action against those responsible for kidnapping and keeping the political opponents in wrongful confinement for years. When it comes to appointment of judges, it holds its special proceedings during the night, keeping a night vigil for political reasons and it failed to provide relief to the weak opponents of the government kept in unlawful custody of the functionaries.

It had brought a very bad name for Pakistan as a democratic and Islamic country where the government functionaries are protected for kidnapping the political opponents and keeping them in illegal detention like an obscure African fiefdom and not a modern and progressive nuclear state. It is also strange that the federal ministers were found telling lies on the floor of the Parliament saying that conscious Baloch political activists found missing had gone to Afghanistan to wage Jihad against Americans and their allies. It was the most ridiculous assertion ever made on the floor of any parliament as the Balochs are a highly secular people who fully abjure the fundamentalist and violent interpretation of Islam.

On this absurd assertion, the members on the floor of the house ridiculed the minister, more than once. Balochistan’s is a purely internal conflict for maximum political autonomy. It is not a war for Islam or against the United States and the NATO forces.

The Baloch movement is not a terrorist movement, nor its people were involved in acts of terrorism. It is a legitimate political struggle seeking national rights for the Baloch people. It is wrong to suggest that the democratic movement is being financed by those elements destabilizing Pakistan. Suggesting that the entire Baloch movement is dominated by subversive elements embarrasses the democratic sacrifices of the Baloch leaders over the past several decades.  It is a political and constitutional dispute and the government will have to find out an amicable solution to the political conflict sooner or later.

Thus it is a good decision to form an inquiry commission to trace out all the missing persons from Balochistan so that they immediate reunite with their agonized families. If they had committed any offence, they should be handed over to the police framing formal charges against them so that they are tried in courts of law as per the Constitution of Pakistan.

No individual or group of individuals got the right to kidnap the citizens of Pakistan, keep them in wrongful confinement merely because they are not accountable before the law. Primarily, the Supreme Court of Pakistan should have provided immediate and interim relief to those taken in illegal custody by the government functionaries for any reasons and reprimanded those responsible for illegal acts or committing crime against humanity. The Supreme Court quietly agreed to form a Commission of Inquiry for Missing People. The relatives of the missing people were disappointed and dismayed by loosing hope that their missing relatives would ever return.

The people were kidnapped at the outset of the political conflict between the Baloch people and the government under General Pervez Musharraf. He was held responsible for murder of Nawab Akbar Bugti and around 70 others in a single incident. A case of murder had been registered against General (retired) Pervez Musharraf who was given safe passage. Since the registration of murder case was ordered by a superior court, it confirmed that the Baloch struggle was legitimate and within the constitutional limits of Pakistan.