Chief of Balochistan National Party (BNP) Akhtar Mengal on Sunday urged his dissident 'friends' to abandon the path of militancy, descend from their mountain sanctuaries and enter mainstream national politics. He was addressing a large public rally here after he arrived in the provincial capital after remaining in exile for four and a half years. Balochistan's miseries, he said, remained unaddressed and decisions against people's wishes could be forcibly enforced upon the Baloch at gunpoint.
The BNP chief said that people should be under no illusion: "Decisions can be enforced upon the Baloch at gunpoint against their wishes."
He lamented that neither democracy nor those who advocated 'Sab Se Pehlay Pakistan' had addressed the miseries of people of Balochistan.
Accusing national institutions of spreading despondency and disappointment in Balochistan, he said that the dumping of dead bodies, a legacy of a dictatorial regime, remained unchanged during the days of democracy. He said that military operation started during the Musharraf regime.
He said situation in Balochistan had deteriorated over the past 10-12 years and situation was not conducive for holding elections in the province.
People, he said, had the courage to achieve their ultimate goals, adding that they would not be deterred or give up hope.
The Baloch leader said that the struggle of the Baloch people was not based on a lust for power.
Proclaiming that efforts aimed at finishing off his party had failed, Akhtar Mengal said that he had faced a hard time during the exile, adding that he had come back to take part in the political process with the consent of the party's parliamentary board.
Stressing the need for tracing out all missing person from Balochistan before May 30, he said that the previous government had done nothing for restoring peace in the province.