QUETTA: A shutter down strike was observed in several districts of Balochistan on Saturday in protest against an alleged search operation in the Tutak area of Khuzdar district.
The strike was called by the Baloch Students Organisation-Azad (BSO) which claimed two of its activists were killed and several others were arrested during the alleged operation carried out by paramilitary troops - and was backed by various Baloch nationalist parties.
Businesses remained shut in Khuzdar, Kalat, Mashkey, Awaran, Hub, Pasni and Turbat. Most shops, including pharmacies, were closed and roads presented a deserted look. Many schools and colleges in these towns also remained closed.
Meanwhile, Qalandarani and Sumalani tribesmen staged a demonstration at the Quetta Press Club condemning the operation in Khuzdar. “The (security) forces have failed to take action against Baloch insurgent groups and are avenging their failure by killing unarmed and innocent people,” a protester said. Others chanted slogans against the government, accusing it of killing innocent people. They said that it cannot win the loyalty of the Baloch tribes by using brute force.
A BSO-spokesperson claimed that security forces besieged the Tutak area, which falls in Baghbana tehsil of Khuzdar district, for more than 10 hours to carry out a house-to-house search operation. “The forces killed two activists of the BSO-Azad. More than 30 of our workers were arrested during the operation and personnel manhandled the Baloch elders and women” he said.
A former member of provincial assembly and leader of Balochistan National Party, Mohammad Akbar Mengal, agreed with BSO-Azad assertions and said: “The security forces want to deter the Baloch people from carrying on their struggle for national rights.”
Published in The Express Tribune, February 20th, 2011.
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