44 missing persons traced in 3 months: Commission

QUETTA: President, Commission on Enforced Disappearances and former senior judge of Supreme Court of Pakistan, Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal Saturday said that commission was perusing the case of missing persons vigorously and 44 missing persons have been traced during the span of last three month.

As many as 15 missing persons belonging to different areas of Balochistan have reached home in last one week due to these efforts, he said while addressing a press conference at Civil Secretariat Quetta here.

We have credible reports about the 11 to 15 missing persons of Balochistan who are in the Paktia and Policharkhi jails under the control of US Army in Afghanistan.

Expressing his grave concern over the recovery of dead bodies in Balochistan, he said that external involvement in the case of missing persons and worsening situation in the province could not be ruled out as there was credible proves of the involvement of the anti-Pakistan forces who are creating law and order situation in the province to destabilize Balochistan.

Issue of missing persons is not as easy as being assumed in the country, former judge of supreme court said adding hurling news statements to gain political mileage, criticizing the performance of state institutions and staging protest demonstration would not be leading us to the amicable solution to the problem.

Extensive, interactive and comprehensive political strategy on ground is indispensable to counter the intelligence network of anti-peace element and retrieve this part of the country from the clutches of the international players, he said.

Referring to the lack of trainings and resources available to the security forces, he deplored that with meager resources available to security forces as they were unable to counter the well-equipped and trained forces who are working on single agenda of deteriorating the law and order situation in Balochistan.

Giving the total number of missing persons with the commission in the country, he said that a total of 445 people are missing, out of them 170 people belonged to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 117 to Punjab, 74 to Sindh, 42 to Balochistan, 18 to Islamabad and 12 each to FATA and Azad Kashmir.

I assure that the commission does not believe on merely the paper work and it is sincerely working for the mitigation of the suffering of the victim families, he said.

Replying to a question, he said that people who criticize the outcome of the commission should assist instead of politicizing the issue. I would leave the commission when I found it useless and ineffective practice, he said.