{"id":43181,"date":"2024-01-03T04:07:45","date_gmt":"2024-01-03T04:07:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/remarks-unbecoming-pm-kakars-views-on-missing-persons-touch-a-nerve\/"},"modified":"2024-01-03T04:07:45","modified_gmt":"2024-01-03T04:07:45","slug":"remarks-unbecoming-pm-kakars-views-on-missing-persons-touch-a-nerve","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/remarks-unbecoming-pm-kakars-views-on-missing-persons-touch-a-nerve\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Remarks unbecoming\u2019 \u2014 PM Kakar\u2019s views on missing persons touch a nerve"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div dir=\"auto\">\n<p>Caretaker Prime Minister Anwa\u00adar\u00ad\u00adul Haq Kakar\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1802535\/pm-kakar-loses-his-cool-over-baloch-protests-in-capital\">outburst against Baloch protesters<\/a>, who have been camped out in Islamabad, has struck a nerve \u2014 both among his supporters and critics.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is not something new he has said about Balochistan\u2026 it may be new for the rest of the country,\u201d says Asif Baloch, who is editor of the daily <em>Azaadi<\/em>, an Urdu language newspaper in Quetta.<\/p>\n<p>Indeed, there are many in the province who believe that his words on Balochistan\u2019s missing persons\u2019 issue were quite calculated, well thought out, and planned.<\/p>\n<p>Mr Kakar\u2019s view on the issue has been consistent, at least since his tenure as the spokesman for former chief minister Nawab Sanaullah Zehri in 2015.<\/p>\n<p>In a column about his first meeting with Mr Kakar during a seminar on Balochistan in Quetta, noted journalist Zahid Hussain recalled: \u201cHe vehemently disputed my assertion on missing persons. \u2018Why do you only talk about missing persons?\u2019 he asked, in front of the military top brass sitting in the front row.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>These views are not unique to Mr Kakar, either. There are many in the Balochistan hierarchy who share his stance on the issue.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media  sm:w-1\/2  w-full  media--right  media--embed  media--uneven\">\n<p>    <iframe class=\"nk-iframe\" onload=\"setInterval(()=&gt;{try{this.style.height=this.contentWindow.document.body.scrollHeight+'px';}catch{}}, 100)\" width=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" style=\"height:400px;position:relative\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/card\/1802535\" sandbox=\"allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Jan Achakzai, the incumbent caretaker information minister for the province, also fully endorsed the caretaker prime minister\u2019s words.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHis statement is straight and candid\u2026 none [of the politicians] can challenge the militants in Balochistan who kill innocent people, while [PM Kakar] challenged them, nor his stance is vexed,\u201d he told <em>Dawn<\/em> on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHis stance is not compromised, and he is not using it for a power grab. What he feels, he says it,\u201d said Mr Achakzai, who is also known for his hawkish views.<\/p>\n<p>Professor Mumtaz Baloch, who teaches political science at the University of Balochistan, told <em>Dawn<\/em> that as the prime minister, Mr Kakar should avoid making such inflammatory remarks.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe is now the representative of the nation, as well as having the highest position in the land,\u201d he told <em>Dawn<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is said that the state is like a mother,\u201d he says, paraphrasing an oft-used term in Urdu. \u201cIf a citizen asks a question, [those in power] should respond affectionately, instead of giving harsh statements, which are tantamount to cornering the marginalised. That is detrimental to the state itself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In Balochistan and elsewhere in the country, the missing persons\u2019 issue has been a major bone of contention between citizens and the state apparatus.<\/p>\n<p>Even Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, in his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1802576\/sc-intends-to-wrap-up-lifetime-disqualification-case-at-next-hearing-to-prevent-confusion-for-ros\">observations<\/a> during Tuesday\u2019s hearing at the Supreme Court, noted that the issue was a genuine one. \u201cThis country belongs to all of us, even those who may have other points of view. This matter will only be resolved when we all work together and take responsibility,\u201d he observed.<\/p>\n<p>For those affected by the issue, such as the families of those who have been missing for many years and months, the prime minister\u2019s words have come as a major blow.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, the story of Dr Deen Muhammad Baloch, a Baloch physician and politician who has been missing for 14 years, is a case study in enforced disappearances.<\/p>\n<p>His daughter, Sammi, has been campaigning for his return since she was a young girl of 10, being a permanent fixture at sit-ins, hunger strikes and other demonstrations in Quetta and other parts of Balochistan.<\/p>\n<p>At the age of 15, in 2014, she participated in the Voice of Baloch Missing Persons march to Islamabad. Now, as an adult, she is one of those at the forefront of the sit-in currently being held in Islamabad. However, the young Baloch girl has yet to get any sort of closure.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTwo things matter: policies and behaviour,\u201d says Mumtaz Baloch. \u201cThrough good policies and behaviour, the state or its leaders can resolve the people\u2019s issues. If the state of Pakistan\u2026 acts in the light of the 1973 Constitution to resolve the genuine issues of its people, including those from Balochistan, it can make a difference and pave the way for a peaceful environment in the country.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But such inflammatory statements do not suit a prime minister, let alone the caretaker one as the province he is talking about has already been bereft of peace for over 20 years \u201cdue to such attitudes\u201d, says Quetta-based analyst Jalal Noorzai.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBalochistan\u2019s issues, which are political in nature, have to be dealt with through dialogue and the door of negotiations should always remain open, particularly at a time when there is a caretaker setup mandated to hold elections in the country,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>In the immediate aftermath of the prime minister\u2019s outburst, human rights activists and members of civil society roundly denounced his \u201cinsensitive, provocative\u201d remarks.<\/p>\n<p>In a statement issued on Tuesday, former senator Farhatullah Babar said the prime minister should have \u201csought to put balm on the wounds of the people\u201d since he himself hailed from Balochistan, but instead, \u201cchose\u2026 to rub salt into the wounds of the people of the province. This is most unfortunate and condemnable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lawyer and rights activist Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir also said Mr Kakar\u2019s \u201cirresponsible and provocative statements\u201d had no intent other than to \u201cpush peaceful people to take up arms against any form of injustice\u201d.<\/p>\n<p><em>Published in Dawn, January 3rd, 2024<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Caretaker Prime Minister Anwa\u00adar\u00ad\u00adul Haq Kakar\u2019s outburst against Baloch protesters, who have been camped out in Islamabad, has struck a nerve \u2014 both among his supporters and critics. \u201cIt is not something new he has said about Balochistan\u2026 it may be new for the rest of the country,\u201d says Asif Baloch, who is editor of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":43182,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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