Missing persons issue a big challenge, law minister tells Senate

• Aimal Wali calls for truth and reconciliation commission to rectify past mistakes
• Ali Zafar says talks with govt not for sake of Imran’s release, but people’s rights

ISLAMABAD: Amid growing concerns in the upper house of parliament over the worsening law and order situation in two provinces, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar on Wednesday informed the Senate that the issue of missing persons was a major challenge for the prime minister and his cabinet.

“We believe that the state of Pakistan should function under a democratic dispensation,” he said, after JUI-F parliamentary leader Kamran Murtaza raised the issue in the Senate.

The minister assured that everything possible within the legal framework would be done. He said the commission on missing persons had been reconstituted, consisting of a retired Supreme Court judge with an unblemished record. He emphasised that maintaining law and order is the responsibility of the provinces, although federal forces can be requisitioned by them under Article 245 of the Constitution.

Earlier, Senator Kamran Murtaza, speaking on a point of public importance, expressed alarm over the increasing incidents of enforced disappearances in Balochistan, saying that, rightly or wrongly, security forces and agencies are held responsible for these incidents.

He noted that in retaliation, national highways in the province are being blocked. Stressing that the use of force cannot resolve the issues, he called for the development of a mechanism to improve the situation.

“Balochistan and its people are distancing themselves from you, and public support is growing for those who are not with you,” he added. ANP chief Aimal Wali Khan held successive governments responsible for the woes of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, stating that the province had willingly been turned into a “heap of gunpowder” once again.

He said that from 1988 until the 9/11 episode, Pakistan continued to promote the Taliban. He added that in 1990, 1993 and 1997, Nawaz Sharif had supported Talibanisation and Taliban. Criticising the state’s “past policy of promoting Talibanisation for dollars”, he said KP was the ultimate sufferer of this strategy.

He said that in 2013, even governments were installed on the wishes of Pakistani Taliban. TTP leader Baitullah Mehsud or a member of his family announced from Waziristan that only PML-N, JI and PTI would be acceptable for them. Consequently, PML-N formed the government in the Centre and PTI and JI in KP, he added.

After this, PTI openly supported the Pakistani Taliban and discussed mainstreaming them. He said that the National Action Plan (NAP) clearly called for action against the facilitators of militants.

Mr Wali called for forming a truth and reconciliation commission to accept and rectify mistakes of the past with the pledge that the same would not be repeated. “It is our bad luck that one army general comes to form the Taliban and other comes to eliminate them.” He also said that there should be some way out to compensate for the losses of KP in terrorism, adding that the whole nation should form a united narrative to curb terrorism.

PTI’s parliamentary leader in the Senate Syed Ali Zafar strongly defended former prime minister Imran Khan and his spouse in the Al-Qadir Trust case, insisting that political persecution was not a sign of strength, but an admission of fear.

He also said dialogue with the government does not mean that Imran Khan was seeking any concession for himself.

“Dialogue is for restoration of fundamental and human rights, protection of Constitution and rule of law. Imran Khan will win his cases from courts,” he added.

Published in Dawn, January 16th, 2025