News Analysis |
On Wednesday, the protesting Hazara community in Quetta called off its sit-ins and protest after COAS General Qamar Javed Bajwa met the community elders in Southern Command and assured them that measures will be taken to protect the lives and properties of the oppressed minority.
General Bajwa arrived in Quetta late on Tuesday night and met with elders from Hazara community. After his assurances, the elders agreed to call of the sit-ins in three different locations of Quetta city.
“Those targeting Hazara community will suffer twice as much and the state and Pakistan Army will provide security to the community,” General Bajwa said during the meeting with the community elders.
Balochistan has become a hub of sectarian violence where local Shiites and pilgrims from other parts of the country have been targeted. Security forces have been successful in clamping down upon the sectarian outfits in the province but sporadic violence still persists.
Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal and Chief Minister Balochistan Bizenjo also accompanied the Army Chief and assured that measures will be taken to eliminate those who are spreading sectarian violence in the province.
Also on Wednesday, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar took suo motu notice of the continued attacks on the Hazaras.
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“It has been pointed out by the Bar and media alike that during the last several years, the Hazara community in Quetta has been a target of repeated terrorist attacks driven by ethnic and sectarian hatred,” said the CJP as he fixed the hearing of the case for May 11 at the top court’s Quetta registry.
Hazaras are one of the most persecuted minorities in Pakistan. According to a report by the National Commission for Human Rights Pakistan released in March this year, the Hazara community has suffered 509 killings in Quetta alone during the last five years. Whereas, during April this year, there have been four separate terrorist attacks on Hazara men resulting in six casualties.
General Bajwa arrived in Quetta late on Tuesday night and met with elders from Hazara community. After his assurances, the elders agreed to call of the sit-ins in three different locations of Quetta city.
In the last several years, Balochistan has become a hub of sectarian violence where local Shiites and pilgrims from other parts of the country have been targeted. Security forces have been successful in clamping down upon the sectarian outfits in the province but sporadic violence still persists.
Read more: COAS Gen Bajwa steps in to address grievances of Hazara community
Renowned security analyst, Mahnoor Shafqat while talking to GVS stated that these acts of violence must not be viewed in isolation rather they must be seen in the broader anti-CPEC campaign in Balochistan. She also admired the security forces for their sacrifices to restore the writ of the state and peace in the province and expressed hope that more will be done to protect religious minorities in Pakistan’s largest province.
COAS and CJP’s initiatives are expected to end the plight of Hazara community which has suffered a lot at the ends of terrorist outfits in recent decades.