While Wazir was recently granted bail in a case pertaining to ‘anti-state’ speech, he remains behind bars as another case registered against him is still pending….reports Asian Lite News
A hearing of incarcerated Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM)-linked MNA Ali Wazir’s case has been postponed once again in Pakistan, with rights activists raising concerns about absence of due process, Friday Times reported.
While Wazir was recently granted bail in a case pertaining to ‘anti-state’ speech, he remains behind bars as another case registered against him is still pending.
On Friday, the PTM held a protest in Islamabad calling for the release of Ali Wazir, as well as Hanif Pashteen and Uwais Abdal, among other PTM members. Rights activist Tahira Abdullah and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Farhatullah Babar were among the participants, the report said.
In early January, Ali Wazir’s lawyer, Qadir Khan, had his house ransacked in Karachi. Several close to the attorney claimed the raid was the work of the Sindhi Rangers, whom they also alleged harassed the lawyer’s family, including his daughter, the report said.
Ali Wazir, a lawmaker from South Waziristan elected in 2018, was arrested in Peshawar in December 2020 on charges of sedition, along with 10 other PTM members. Wazir was granted bail by the Supreme Court in November last year, but remains incarcerated in another case.
Over the past few weeks, Balochistan has been riven by protests by unsettled communities and groups putting a harsh light on ham handedness by Pakistani security forces. ..writes Rahul Kumar
The Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) held a protest rally of thousands of people in Balochistan capital Quetta against the imprisonment of its leaders-Ali Wazir and Muhammad Hanif besides putting other civil demands.
PTM leader Ali Wazir, who has been under arrest for 11 months, is Member of Parliament from South Waziristan.
The PTM rally also asked the government to take back the ‘Criminal law Ordinance’-by the Balochistan assembly that bans protests in the province. Under the ‘Criminal Law Balochistan Amendment Ordinance’, the government can arrest anyone without warrant for three to six months and impose a fine of Rs 10,000. The ordinance has come into immediate effect.
Significantly, PTM Chief Manzoor Pashteen who addressed the rally also said that Pashtun soldiers in the Pakistani Army and paramilitary forces should not battle Baloch nationalists, reports The Balochistan Post.
The PTM demanded removal of checkpoints, opening up of the Chaman border with Afghanistan, releasing missing persons and ending emergency rule in the region.
It also sought the release of activists Mohib Wazir and Said Rasul, who were arrested for raising their voice against oppression of Pashtuns by Pakistani forces. The leaders also want an end to checkpoints in South Waziristan near the Durand line that separates Pakistan from Afghanistan.
Historically, the Pashtuns have not observed the border as they claim it has divided their community into two countries and has split families.
Over the past few weeks, Balochistan has been riven by protests by unsettled communities and groups putting a harsh light on ham handedness by Pakistani security forces.
For nearly three weeks, students of the Balochistan University have been on a strike in Quetta demanding that Pakistani forces release two students allegedly kidnapped from their hostel by Pakistani forces. The students have boycotted their classes and examinations while continuing their sit-in at the university campus.
Many of the PTM’s demands echo those by Baloch nationalist leaders who have been leading both civil and violent movements against Islamabad.
Baloch protestors in the port city of Gwadar have blocked roads for a fortnight demanding social development, opening up the Iran border, reducing security checkpoints, improving livelihoods and providing water and electricity to the local people.
Towns and cities on the entire Makran coastline have joined the agitation demanding more facilities for the Baloch people. They have also threatened to close China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) facilities if their demands are not met as many Baloch feel that the economic benefits due from the mega project have not percolated to the local people.
(The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)
PTM said in a statement that members party in New York and Connecticut participated in large numbers in this car rally held on Saturday….reports Asian Lite News
Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) held a rally against the illegal detention of Ali Wazir and Pakistan’s proxy war in Afghanistan. Ali Wazir is one of the sane voices of human rights and against military oppression in Pakistan.
PTM said in a statement that members party in New York and Connecticut participated in large numbers in this car rally held on Saturday. They demanded the immediate release of Ali Wazir and the end of the Pakistani proxy war in Afghanistan. The legislature is in illegal detention for raising the voice for a Pashtun peaceful life, they said.
“The continued detention of Ali Wazir is illegal as the detention is ordered by General Bajwa. This shows the courts in Pakistan are not independent and we don’t expect justice from judges who are controlled by the military” said PTM USA leader Himat.
Although the Pakistani National Assembly is a rubber stamp but still off and, in the country, a mighty military briefs the legislatures on critical issues. In a recent off-camera briefing to the parliament on a question of Ali Wazir, the Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Bajwa replied in the parliament, “Ali will apologize and then can be released”.
For the last four decades, Pashtuns on both sides of the Durand have been in an unending war. The uncertainty has destroyed the social, economic and political lives of the residents.
“Pakistani interference in Afghanistan is crystal clear. The Taliban leadership and shuras are residing and planning in Quetta, Peshawar and Miranshah. The Taliban can’t sustain a single day without Pakistani support. To end the war in Afghanistan will require pressing Pakistan to end its support to Taliban and other terrorist groups,” said Amin Jan Ibrahimi, PTM Vice Coordinator in Connecticut.
The car rally ended at the UN office and demanded the world to play a positive role and support the elected government in Afghanistan. (ANI)
The Pashtun Tahafuz Movement has seen strong support of Pashtuns from neighbouring Afghanistan, which has an uneasy relationship with the government of Pakistan…reports Mrityunjoy Kumar Jha
Social media is buzzing. A large gathering of Pashtun leaders is being held on July 27, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistans “wild west” on the issue of Afghanistan. Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), a civil society group composed of ethnic Pashtuns living in Pakistan’s tribal areas, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces, and parts of Karachi, has organised the “jalsa” in support of the peace and stability in Afghanistan.
“MNA @mjdawar is inviting you all to attend the #PTM upcoming jalsa which will hold on 27th July in Makin S. Waziristan in order to show solidarity with the people of Afghanistan & to support the peace & stability in Afghanistan. #PTMMakinMarch4AfghanPeace”
The PTM has seen strong support of Pashtuns from neighbouring Afghanistan, which has an uneasy relationship with the government of Pakistan, amplified by a massive trust-deficit. The PTM leaders have criticized the Pakistani military establishment for terrorising Pashtuns.
Thank you Makin for telling the players of the new Great Game that we will not allow our land to be used as a staging area for Afghanistan's destruction. I hope the crowd today conveyed the costs associated with trying to sell our youth & land for profit #PashtunLongMarch2Makinpic.twitter.com/MwAbiKuCbs
The senior leader of the PTM and Member of Pakistani National Assembly says that the eminent jurists, lawyers, intellectuals are going to participate in the large gathering of all Pashtun leaders to discuss Afghanistan and consult for lasting peace in the country.
Mohsin Dawar has consistently spoken against the torture and killings of Pashtuns who are treated by the Pakistani authorities as “third-class citizens”. Dawar is an ardent critic of Pakistan and Taliban relations and their activities in Afghanistan.
About a fortnight ago, he tagged a video of Taliban leaders roaming freely in Quetta and posted on his twitter account.
“Taliban terrorists continue to roam freely in different parts of Pakistan including Quetta. Such brazenness is not possible without the state’s consent. Killers of Afghans and thousands of our people are being supported openly. We will continue to oppose such suicidal policies,” he said.
Dawar has been quite vocal against Pakistan’s policy towards the Taliban and Afghanistan.
“Despite losing thousands of Pakistanis, the State refuses to change its policies. Look at the way the Establishment controlled media is exaggerating Taliban achievements in Afghanistan. If Taliban are so dear to the Establishment, then why not select them for Pakistan as well,” in his speech in the National assembly earlier this month.
“Pakistan is once again repeating the mistakes that its military and political leaders of the past and present have lamented. Once again Pakistan is sowing the seeds in Afghanistan the fruits of which will be harvested here as well. #StopAfghanBloodshed before it’s too late,” he justified the allegations by the Afghan government on Pakistan fighting along with the Taliban inside Afghanistan.
“Taliban are exported to Afghanistan from here while the FM and President justify @AmrullahSaleh2’s claims about Pakistan’s role in Afghanistan with their statements. Dead bodies of Taliban fighters are brought back to Pakistan for burial. Taliban continue being supported openly.”
During a meeting with the Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, he raised the issue of “forced disappearances” in Balochistan and KP and the problem of Pashtuns but he was “threatened” by the military establishment and was told to “keep quiet.”
Over the last two years, PTM has been hitting the streets for the constitutional rights for Pashtuns living in Pakistani tribal areas. At 35 million, Pashtuns are the largest single ethnic group in Pakistan. The organisation has been organising peaceful protests demanding greater accountability from the Pakistani army, which has “waged” the war on terrorism as an excuse to kidnap, kill and intimidate citizens living in the northwest area.
“We demand an end to the Pakistani army’s support for the terrorists, who are now regrouping again,” he said in his last rally in January this year, “When the Pakistani regime recruits Pashtuns for war and terrorism, it considers us patriots. But when we ask for our rights, we are no longer even considered Pakistanis,” Dawar told the gathering.
Today we gathered in the thousands for #PashtunLongMarch2Makin to send a message to Taliban proxies and their war mongering masters that they will not succeed in taking over Kabul by force. We will resist their violence. The Afghan identity cannot be wiped away. لر او بر يو افغان pic.twitter.com/nbjkcYPHQE
Since Pakistani media have been ignoring them, the PTM has been extensively using social media to get messages out.
The PTM has been regarded by the Pashtuns, especially from the tribal belt, who have suffered a lot because of continued operations by the Pakistan Army in the pretext of fighting anti-state elements, as the true representative of their voice. They feel that as a social movement, PTM has been able to articulate their grievances well through peaceful sit-ins, protest marches, and enthusiastic use of all forms of media.
Over the years, Pakistan has carried out several military operations against armed groups, including the Taliban in the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). The region, which has been merged with the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2018, has long been used as a base by the Taliban, the Haqqani network and other local and international armed terror groups, including al-Qaeda.
(The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)
