Diary - Balochistan
 
Balochistan yet in flames, NATO restoration, human smuggling
Visits 378
July 13, 2012
The Balochistan government has expressed its inability to provide security to NATO supply vehicles because of shortage of law-enforcement personnel.

“We are unable to give full security to Nato supplies along 850km route from Karachi to Chaman with the present available security manpower,” Home Secretary Nasibullah Bazai said. The Balochistan government has informed Islamabad about the situation and demanded that the federal government should provide extra resources and manpower for the safe passage of Nato vehicles.

“We need at least 50 new vehicles, latest weapons and communication system for the safety of Nato containers,” Mr Bazai said.

The provincial government asked the federal government to send 30 platoons of Frontier Constabulary for deployment along the route between Hub and Chaman.

Balochistan faces a serious law and order problem, attacks on pilgrims’ buses and target killings.

“In such a situation it is difficult to provide security to 300 Nato containers from Hub to Chaman,” the home secretary said.

It may be mentioned that militants had destroyed 296 Nato containers and oil tankers in 117 attacks launched in different areas of Balochistan during the past four years. About 48 Nato truckers have been killed and 39 others injured.

Meanwhile, orders were sent by the National Crisis Management Cell to Customs officials in the border town of Chaman about the reopening the route for Nato supplies.

Sources said that authorities concerned asked customs officials that Nato containers parked in Chaman should be allowed to cross into Afghanistan.

There were only four containers parked in the customs house in Chaman for the past eight months.

However, these containers could not cross into Afghanistan because drivers of three containers were not present in the town.

Reports reaching Chaman from across the border said that around 50 containers started their journey towards Pakistan carrying Nato forces equipment and other belongings that Nato forces were sending back to their countries.

On the other hand, political administration completed its preparations for a smooth flow of heavy vehicles into Afghanistan after the federal government decided to resume Nato supplies.

Officials said that though they had not yet received official notification about the resumption of supplies, they have made all necessary arrangements at the Torkham border.

“We will ensure safe and uninterrupted flow of heavy traffic from our side of the border,” the official said.

Local transporters, however, expressed their reservations about the government decision and argued that their concerns were not addressed during the negotiations between American and Pakistani officials.

Shakir Afridi, president of the Khyber Transporters Union, said that they were thinking of boycotting resumption of supplies because the amount they were getting as freight charges was much lower than their demand.

He said that they were also concerned about security and called upon the government to ensure security from Karachi to Khyber.

Meanwhile Balochistan still remains in hot water due to unremitting target killings, kidnap for ransom, lawlessness and other incidents. Such an incident was witnessed on July 6 in the area of Balochistan, Turbat when 18 people died who were on their way to Iran.

The Balochistan government suspended on Saturday the Deputy Commissioner (DC) Turbat, Muhammad Aslam Tareen over Friday’s killings in Kohudan area of Turbat.

The provincial government, in a notification issued on Saturday, ordered suspension of Muhammad Aslam Tareen over the incident and posted Additional Commissioner Naseerabad, Muhammad Fateh Bhangar as the new Deputy Commissioner of Turbat.

Unknown assailants had killed 18 people, who were travelling to Iran on Friday last. Giving details about the incident, Home Secretary Balochistan, Naseebullah Khan Bazai said the bloody incident took place in Kohudan area where the gunmen attacked passengers in a ‘waiting lounge’ from where they had to cross the Pakistan-Iran border as illegal immigrants. They intended to head for Europe via Turkey.

Some armed men barged into the lounge and opened indiscriminate firing and killed all the eighteen people, he added.It has been learnt that the waiting lounge had been set up there and was used for immigrants seeking to go to Iran illegally. People from Karachi used to be brought via Gwadar from where they were sent to this area close to the border of Iran.

Officials of the Turbat administration confirmed that they dispatched the bodies of all the deceased to their native districts in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh. Muhammad Idris, who had attempted to cross the Pak-Iran border last year and was arrested later, told The News that a large number of people are willing to do so at the risk of their lives or detention in an alien country. All of them seek employment abroad mainly because of rising unemployment in the country, he added. Idris said Taftan and Mand Tehsils of Chaghai and Turbat districts on the Pak-Iran border are two exit points and hundreds of people attempt to cross the Pak-Iran border every month from these two places. The real ordeal, he added, begins for the illegal immigrants from this point onwards. They are asked to walk through the desert area of the Gulf towards their destination.

Serious circles believe that rise in human smuggling incidents are a source of concern adding institutions involved in these heinous activities must be halted as such incidents are augmenting with each day passing hence it must be controlled otherwise consequences could be ‘dangerous’.

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