 |
|
|
Pak papers blast govt over Bugti killing
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Unpardonable, says Asma Jehangir
Musharraf’s talk offer to Baluch rebels
World’s oldest woman dies at 116
|
|
Pak papers blast govt over Bugti killing
New Delhi, August 28 All leading English dailies of Pakistan today came out with hard-hitting editorials on Nawab Bugti’s killing and its possible repercussions for Baluchistan and Pakistan. “Daily Times” takes the cake for the most critical editorial. It says whoever in Pakistan’s national security establishment decided to eliminate Nawab Bugti physically “is clueless about the force of politics, history and nationalism.” It says Nawab Bugti, already 80-plus, wanted a heroic death and whoever took military action against him granted him his wish to be a martyr. “This is a political nightmare that the PMLQ will find hard to handle here and now and Pakistan in the hereafter…Whatever his personality and past, Nawab Bugti’s death is bound to become part of the heroic lore of Baluch history of resistance against the state since 1947 and strengthen the separatist emotion in the province ... Islamabad has erred most grievously and might have to pay a high price for it. It has let Nawab Bugti win the final battle. He will now be the all-Baluchistan symbol of resistance to Islamabad. If there is external interference in Baluchistan it will only be strengthened.” Daily Times” concludes: “Baluchistan will be ready to ignite at any time in the future. A pall of gloom has descended over Pakistan that will not lift in a hurry. This is the biggest blunder committed by the military since the execution of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.” The Dawn says the repercussions of the killing may not be immediately visible but they will appear in time, as Pakistan’s troubled political history has shown whenever force has been employed to solve a political problem. “His killing could easily lead to a recrudescence of nationalist sentiment, not merely in Baluchistan but also in Sindh, and the acts of sabotage in Baluchistan which appeared to be waning may return in a more violent form...It doesn’t do the state any good to be remembered as an executioner of former prime ministers and chief ministers.” The News says Nawab Bugti’s death could well be a watershed in the troubled relationship between Baluchistan and the Centre. “It may well reinforce the sharp mistrust of Islamabad, Punjab and the military among a section of the Baluch population. The repercussions of his death will cast a long shadow over Baluch-Centre relations for the foreseeable future.”
|
|
Unpardonable, says Asma Jehangir
Lahore, August 28 "The HRCP's worst fears and predictions have come true. The military establishment made its intentions of pursuing, hunting and killing Nawab Bugti and other Baluch nationalists quite clear. This unpardonable act of extra-legal killings is an affront not only to the people of Baluchistan but it also threatens the integrity and solidarity of the country. By delaying the disclosure of the news of the murder of the Nawab the government has only added to its guilt. HRCP hopes that the Bugti tribe's desire to give their departed chief a burial in keeping with their traditions will not be frustrated by petty minded satraps," the Daily Times quoted Asma as saying in a statement issued here last night. She said that this latest tragedy in the Baluchistan operation "bade ill" for the country. She added: "It threatens its integrity and solidarity. In particular, the irrelevant vilification of the late Nawab by official propagandists and the false portrayal of the situation in Balochistan ring a familiar note of the Bangladesh fiasco. In the absence of any neutral and independent mechanism to investigate these killings, HRCP calls upon political forces and civil society to protect and preserve the evidence of foul play so that at an appropriate moment
those responsible can be brought before public trial." — ANI
|
|
Musharraf’s talk offer to Baluch rebels
Islamabad, August 28 President Musharraf said: “The doors for a negotiated settlement are always open. We had neither closed these channels in the past nor we could do so in future”. Political parties and even members of the ruling alliance have been demanding the resumption of a peace dialogue with the rebels for past few months. The BBC today reported that several agencies and advisers, including the Interservices Intelligence (ISI) and the Intelligence Bureau, had asked Gen Musharraf to talk to the Baluch leaders. Reporting for the BBC, journalist Ahmed Rashid said: “Gen Musharraf’s lack of understanding about the Baluch issue, his under-estimation of the growing sense of alienation in smaller provinces, and the attack on his helicopter by Baluch rebels last December, led him to take the decision to kill Bugti”. Pakistan newspapers today praised the deceased Baluch leader Bugti and criticised the government for choosing the military option. Cautioning that violence would continue in the absence of a political dialogue, newspaper editorials called for the resumption of “sincere political dialogue” with the Baluch rebels. Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf also said that the body of Bugti would be handed over to his family members when found.
— ANI
|
|
World’s oldest woman dies at 116
Quito (Ecuador), August 28 Capovilla died yesterday at 3 am local time in a hospital in the coastal city of Guayaquil two days after coming down with pneumonia, said her granddaughter Catherine Capovilla. Her funeral was planned for today. Born on September 14, 1889 — the same year as Charlie Chaplin and Adolf Hitler — Capovilla was married in 1917 and widowed in 1949. Robert Young, senior consultant for the Gerontology for Guinness World Records, said Elizabeth Bolden, of Memphis, Tennessee, is the likely successor as the oldest person. “Guinness World Records will have to make an official announcement from London,” he said. “For all practical purposes, the next oldest person is going to be presumed to be Elizabeth Bolden. She is 116, but she was born 11 months after Capovilla.” Capovilla was confirmed as the oldest living person on December 9, 2005, after her family sent details of her birth and marriage certificates to the British-based publisher. Emiliano Mercado Del Toro, of Puerto Rico, retains the title as oldest man. He turned 115 last Monday. — AP |
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
