Senate body demands APC on Balochistan

Another All Parties Conference (APC) may be convened to deliberate the problems of Baluchistan and recommend their solutions.All the stakeholders should be called to attend the conference and the issues confronting the province must be discusses at length, recommended the Senate’s Functional Committee on Human Rights in its meeting held at Parliament House here on Friday.The Chairman of the committee Afrasiab Khattak recommended to enact law to punish the responsible persons for missing the persons. The pending Anti Terrorist law should also be enacted by removing its anomalies and improving it.The lacunea in the law must be removed so that the terrorists could not escape punishment, the chairman said.The committee urged for establishing High Security Prisons and separating terrorists and common prisoners. The education of prisoners must be ensured in prisons.Earlier, a representative of Baluchistan government said the bodies of 102 persons have been recovered during the last one year in the province. No killer has so far been arrested. Balochistan government has decided to register FIR of the each dead person and investigate the matter thoroughly.Regarding the murder of settler teachers, he said no case has so far been reported during this year.He said law enforcers including FC has been deployed at National Highway to ensure the safety of passengers. A sum of Rs 2 million was being paid to each murdered policemen besides providing a job to close relative or sibling.Inspector General Prisoners Baluchistan said Pakistan Telecom Authority (PTA) should be directed to issue No Objection Certificate (NOC) for installing jammers in various prisons of the province.He said Wapda should be directed to end night loadshedding in Baluchistan prisons.In Baluchistan there are 2400 prisoners confined in various jails.Another jail has been approved Kala Saifullah. While district jail Zhob and Sibbi are being upgraded. IG said he has requested for approving the posts of five medical officers in various jails of Baluchistan but the provincial government had approved only one post of a doctor for entire province which is insufficient to provide medical treatment to over 2400 prisoners. Some 11 posts of lab assistants has been approved for various jails of the province. Leader of the Opposition in Senate Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri urged the provincial government to improve law and order situation. Police officers should be granted powers and political interference must be eliminated in the province. Senator Sardar Ali Khan, Mrs Suriya Amiruddin, Mrs Farhat Abbas, Hafiz Rashid Ahmed and Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, officials of Baluchistan, misintry of interior and Human Rights attended the meeting.