HRCP report on Balochistan: mission stresses implementation of recommendations

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) Sunday launched the report of a fact-finding mission to Balochistan. Apart from the overall human rights situation in the province, the mission looked at a terrorist attack on students of a women's university in Quetta and the subsequent attack at a hospital where the casualties were taken, and the bombing at Quaid-e-Azam Residency in Ziarat.
It also held meetings with representatives of the new political administration and a cross section of society amid high hopes that the government would have the authority, commitment, representative character and sincerity of purpose to deal with the problems that the province had long been suffering from.
On the occasion of the report launch, the HRCP Executive Council expressed grave concern over reports of poor relief in Awaran and lack of access and demanded that the situation must be improved without delay. Titled "Balochistan: Giving the people a chance", the report is available online at: http://www.hrcp-web.org/hrcpweb/wp content/pdf/Balochistan%20Report%20New%20Final.pdf
The key findings of the mission's report were that despite threats from insurgents asking the people to stay away from the elections, even the political parties that had boycotted the 2008 elections had participated in May 2013 elections and the people had voted in those elections, clearly giving the verdict on the manner in which they wanted to be governed According to the report, it was a resounding vote for democracy calling for ending of bloodshed in the province The coalition government that emerged after the elections appeared to have considerable goodwill and support from the people that would be vital in extricating Balochistan out of the challenges that have long hounded the province, the report put forth.
The report in continuation stated that there was near unanimity among all interlocutors of HRCP that formation of the new government was a sign of hope that the province's problems would be addressed.
The government formation was considered to be a positive step which could lead to an opportunity for ending grave human rights violations in the province, it added. However, the same interlocutors warned that they did not see many signs of a change in policy within the security and intelligence agencies as the kill-and-dump policy continued
As per report and the fact finding received, conflicting reports suggest that the pattern of terrorist attacks in the recent past indicated some operational coordination between sectarian militant groups and Baloch insurgents. According to report, HRCP was not in a position to verify the claim but demanded that such allegations must be taken seriously, investigated fully and if any evidence of such collaboration was found, it must be made public.
The HRCP report points that all groups and individuals as well as political elements welcome the establishment of democratic order and were keen that this opportunity should not be lost and the new government should be strengthened so that it could face the multiple challenges in Balochistan.
The HRCP remained hope full in its report that federal government fully backs the provincial government in its developmental works in the province and in extending its writ over the province as well as establishing civilian supremacy over the military agencies.
The HRCP report enunciated that law and order in Balochistan remained dismal where religious minorities were vulnerable and citizens were living in perpetual fear. It says kidnapping for ransom remained unchecked and the citizens felt resigned to pay the money for the recovery of abducted relatives The abductors were almost never traced.
In recommendations the HRCP mission emphasized that recommendations made by earlier HRCP missions to Balochistan remained valid but largely unimplemented It reiterated all those recommendations and hoped that with the change of government in the centre and the province the recommendations would receive more serious consideration and would be implemented. Additionally, in its recommendations HRCP calls upon the security forces and intelligence agencies to operate within the ambit of the Constitution and the law
HRCP also pointed that there were credible reports of continued serious human rights violations, including enforced disappearance of people, arbitrary arrests, torture and extrajudicial killings. The HRCP recommendations added that security forces and the intelligence agencies persisting with their illegal actions would hurt the democratic process and further alienate the people, so they should refrain from such acts.
The HRCP demanded that administrative heads of the FC and the intelligence agencies should give a stern warning to their forces to desist from violating human rights and that if any breach occurred, the perpetrators must be brought to justice.
According to report, HRCP is of the considered opinion that one of the biggest hurdles in normalization of the situation in Balochistan is the abhorrent practice of enforced disappearance and dumping of bodies of victims of disappearance. HRCP called upon the authorities to immediately ensure that all victims of disappearance were accounted for without delay The Commission also urged that all the recommendations made by the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances that had visited Pakistan in September 2012 must be implemented.
Further HRCP in recommendations suggested that standard operating procedures (SOPs) should be developed and publicized on rules of engagement of the security forces and the intelligence agencies operating in the province.
It adds that chief minister of the province should have the power to write the annual confidential report (ACR) regarding the performance of the Frontier Corps (FC) chief and heads of all security agencies tasked with ensuring preservation of law and order in the province
According to HRCP, key development projects in Balochistan, including the completion of main highways that had been in the pipeline for years, must be taken up without any further delay and completed at the earliest.
As per report, HRCP is convinced that the people of Balochistan fully supported the restoration of peace and political stability in the province adding Baloch insurgents as well as must respect the wishes of the people and cease their attacks on innocent civilians.
Report points that while HRCP was fully aware of the risks to Baloch nationalists by state actors it nevertheless expects to denounce violence perpetuated by them. There is an opportunity for Baloch insurgents to embrace the new realities that were being presented through the democratic process, it adds.
The HRCP report suggests that weakening of this process will only strengthen the hands of undemocratic forces adding it could lead to an escalation of violence towards political activists in Balochistan.
The Report states that opportunity should be seized for a positive step forward and urged the Baloch insurgents to cease all violence for at least a brief time to give peace a chance. It says that this would give the newly elected government an opportunity to confront the actors within the state who committed human rights violations on the pretext of furthering national security.
The HRCP during this period indicates that government could put up a monitoring mechanism so that human rights violations by state agents were detected, investigated and the perpetrators punished. This could lead to reciprocity for peace, rather than reprisal where eventually ordinary people have to pay the price with their lives, liberty and their right to peaceful existence, the report adds.
The HRCP in its report urges the government of Balochistan to appoint a human rights adviser to the Chief Minister with the mandate to improve the full range of human rights of the citizens of Balochistan. This would assist the provincial government in monitoring, implementing and improving the rights of the people, including their economic, social and cultural rights.
The report suggests that a human rights advisor should also be mandated to raise resources from international donors to make rights a reality.
The HRCP report points out that as Balochistan was undergoing a period of serious crises in terms of erosion of civil and political rights, the government should set up a provincial human rights commission to monitor and address violations of civil and political rights of the population. The report further suggests that a person of high integrity be appointed as the chief human rights commissioner (CHRC).
Referring to police system in the province, the HRCP report indicates that this system was in urgent need of a reform. It points that distinction in areas in the province must be finished.
The report emphasizing upon check on flow of weapons suggests establishment of Quetta as weapon free zone.
The HRCP in its report while hoping for improvement of communication system in the province expects that media played its role in highlighting events and developments taking place in Balochistan and give appropriate coverage to human rights, governance and other issues.
In curtailing smuggling HRCP report suggests that Customs duty on trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan be rationalized in order to legalize trade and discourage the pervasive smuggling of goods.
The HRCP report points out that a serious effort was required to be paid for the return of all IDPs in Balochistan, particularly in Dera Bugti, as the abject neglect of ending their plight itself forms a human rights violation.
Summing up HRCP believes that talks should be initiated with Baloch insurgents both within and outside the country without compromising on extending impunity for causing grave human rights violations by individuals among the insurgents.