Hazarawals demand separate province: One man shuts down 3,000-strong protest rally

City-wide strike on April 12 riot’s first anniversary.

ABBOTTABAD:

An angry party worker pulled out a chord, disconnecting the microphone’s power supply, and taunted the visibly surprised Baba Haider Zaman, “If you want your own party then bring your own mike.”

Over three thousand people looked on. They had gathered on Jinnah Road amid tight security to observe the first anniversary of Abbottabad riots, where seven people died and several others were injured when police opened fire on a group of unarmed protesters. They were demanding for a separate province.

The sound system being used at the time had been provided by the man, who was not happy with the mention of a separate party to fight for Hazara’s right to a separate province. Baba Zaman, during his speech, had said that while he will not contest elections, he will support all those who join this newly created party.

Just three days ago, in an all party conference, Baba Zaman had agreed to not breech the controversial subject during the rally. Under this condition all local political parties had agreed to participate in the rally.

Dr Azhar Jadoon, standing behind Baba Zaman, stepped forward, took the microphone from his hand, and tossed it over to the man in disgust.

The crowd, agitated, started pelting the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) worker with empty water bottles and sticks. The man reached inside his car and took out a gun, ready to take on the crowd.

But before things could get worse, Abdul Razzaq Abbasi, a local Jamaat-e-Islami leader, grabbed the man by the arm and uttered a few sentences to him, before packing him inside the car and sending him back home.

The rally had ended.

Naseer Ahmad Khan, local MQM leader, justified the worker’s actions by saying that Baba Zaman had broken his promise, which riled up the man.

Shuttered down strike

Shops in Abbottabad stayed shut on Tuesday. Only a few public transport vans and buses were seen on the road. The attendance in government and private offices was low. Schools and colleges were remained closed. The city courts, too, gave a deserted look following a boycott the lawyers.

Police officials were called in from nearby districts and deployed at all entry points of the city to deal with any possible law and order situation.

The main rally at Jinnah Road, to be addressed by prominent local leaders, was to start at 3pm. People from nearby towns continued to trickle in as preparations were made. Police had installed walk-through gates at all entry points of the rally. Those slotted for speeches included Baba Haider Zaman, Gohar Ayub, Sardar Muhammad Yousuf and Dr Azhad Jadoon.

Almost all political parties including Pakistan Muslim League (Q), Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, Jamaat-e-Islami, Muttahida Qaumi Movement, Hazara Awami Ittehad, Tehrik-e-Insaf, Suuni Tehrik, Pakistan Peoples Party (Sherpao) and Pakistan Peoples Party participated in the rally.

The first attempt at starting the rally was interrupted by thunderstorm, which lasted for a good 45 minutes. When the rally finally resumed, the number of people in attendance had dropped from more than 10,000 to around 3,000.

Baba Zaman called upon President Zardari to get an FIR filed against the people responsible for the April 12 riots.

Other political leaders did not get a chance to address the crowd, as the incident during Baba Zaman’s speech cut the rally short.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 13^th, 2011.