KARACHI - The Sindhi nationalist leaders have rejected the Pakistan Protection Law, passed by the Senate and National Assembly, terming it a violation of basic human rights enshrined in the constitution. They also labeled it a draconian law.
In this regard, Qaumi Awami Tehreek (QAT) president Ayaz Latif Palijo said the new law was against the basics of human rights.
He said such laws should not be formulated which cause violation of basic human rights. Palijo said the parliamentary history of Pakistan was full of flaws and this new initiative would cause further uncertainties. He said the parliament had always extended support to the dictators.
He said the country was already facing problems due to non-implementation of laws. Hence, the new law will further create problems because the law enforcement agencies themselves were not obliging the existing laws.
“Pakistan came into being after the 1940 resolution but the irony is that the successive governments never followed the historic resolution and put those nations (provinces) under hostage, which joined the country happily, like the people of Sindh,” he said.He accused the federal government of depriving natural resources of Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He blamed that the PPP has handed over the natural resources of Sindh to the Centre by signing on the 18th Amendment. He asked the government to refrain from formulating such laws which may victimise the legislators themselves who were introducing the laws.
Awami Jamhori Party leader Abrar Kazi said: “The country is passing from the state of war so it needed such laws to curb terrorism but the provinces must have the authority in implementation of this law. If any person is arrested from the province, the provincial law enforcement agencies should have lead role in the process.”
The nationalist leader and human rights lawyer, Barrister Zamir Ghumro said PPB was in violation of the Article 10 and 10-A of the constitution of Pakistan.
Any person arrested under any circumstances must be produced before the judicial magistrate within 24 hours but the new law allows the arrest for 90 days which is violation of the constitution. The new law is also in contravention of the Article 10-A of fair trail of all the prisoners, he said.
It may be noted that Pakistan Protection Bill was passed by the Senate and National Assembly with the support of the opposition party PPP. The PTI abstained from voting in support of the law while the Jamaat-e-Islami voted against it in both the Houses of the parliament. The Sindhi and Baloch nationalist leaders have already opposed it, fearing the government will use it as a weapon to lift the political workers. They also alleged that the new law will encourage the process of missing persons by the secret agencies in Pakistan which is in violation of the constitution.