Friday 30 September 2016

BRP Rep. exposes CPEC & Pakistan sponsored terrorism at the UN Human Rights Council

Geneva: Baloch Republican Party Representative to the UN Human Rights Council, Mr. Abdul Nawaz Bugti, in his speech to the UNHRC criticized the China Pakistan Economic Corridor saying the project is not of any development or improvement in the occupied territory but rather a threat to the existence of the indigenous people of Balochistan, the Baloch nation.
“Trade between countries and development projects are key to improve the living conditions of common people and bring prosperity in their lives. It is the responsibility of the states to ensure full protection and promotion of human rights in all kinds of trade agreements and development projects. UN technical assistance & capacity building should be put to work to make that happen,” Mr. Bugti said in his speech.
He added that It was very concerning that it has not been the case for Balochistan and its people, but quite the opposite – rights abuses intensified after Pakistan and China signed 46 billion dollars projects in the name of China Pakistan Economic Corridor last year. The corridor aims to connect China to the Arabian Sea through Balochistan`s Gwadar Port.
“The indigenous people of Balochistan, the Baloch nation, have legitimate and genuine reservations on the CPEC. The local people were not taken into confidence before signing the agreements with China and the Baloch see these projects as a plan to convert them into a minority in their homeland and exploit their natural resources. Instead of addressing the genuine grievances of the Baloch people, Pakistani state has responded with more atrocities to silence any opposition to the CPEC. Human Rights abuses by Pakistani security forces have escalated” He said.
He continued on saying that Enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings had become a routine practice, saying “Only 8 of total 330 projects are allocated for Balochistan while most of the 16 thousand security personnel are deployed there, which raises fear of more rights violations by state forces.”
He further said “Recently, UN designated terrorist Hafiz Saeed has announced to “defend the CPEC by all means” which further exposes the nexus between Pakistani state and terrorist groups against the secular Baloch & their peaceful demands. Baloch populations are being forced through military operations to migrate from the areas along the CPEC route. More than 200 thousand Baloch have been forcibly displaced along the CPEC route. We call on this council to ensure that Pakistan respects the UN resolutions as a member state and stop state atrocities and massive human rights abuses in Balochistan.”

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