Karachi Violence .. Updates & Discussion ..

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KARACHI: Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain on Thursday apologized to the Sindhi intellectuals and nationals for his previous statements and urged the people of Karachi to remain calm, DawnNews reported.

Hussain said that the statements he made were for those who slander the muhajir nation and their sacrifices.

Through a video message, Mr Hussain asked the people of Karachi to remain peaceful at all costs and continue the dialogue process with other political and religious parties.

He said that due to attacks from extremists, the city could suffer from a situation like that of Qasba Colony. He also asked the people to collect and store ration.

Moreover, the MQM chief thanked the Rangers for their operation to rid the city of criminal elements.

 

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ISLAMABAD:
The violence in Karachi and proposals of asking the army to take control of the city overshadowed the National Assembly session on Thursday.
On Wednesday, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain, in a telephonic address to party workers, had said that the Pakistan Army be called to control the killings in the city. The Awami National Party, another stakeholder in the city, had suggested that the army be called for a month to control the situation.
(Read: MQM, ANP call for army deployment in Karachi)
Chief of his own faction of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, Maulana Fazlur Rehman said: “I oppose military operations in Fata and other parts of the country, including Karachi.” Army is a national institution and should not be brought into conflict with the public, he added.
He, however, questioned the role of the government saying it had failed to control the ongoing killing spree in Karachi.
The JUI-F chief urged all political parties to sit together and find a political solution to the violence in the financial capital. “Parliament cannot find a solution to the problem through mere debate, which is marred by allegations between rivals,” he said, while the Pakistan Peoples Party and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz exchanged personal allegations.
Hanif Abbasi from the PML-N criticised the government for failing to curb the violence and said President Asif Ali Zardari and other top leadership of the PPP had been negligent.
Abbasi said that his party supports the creation of more provinces on an administrative basis and not on linguistic one, while alleging the ruling party was trying to repeat the history of 1971, when Bangladesh was created.
In response, PPP Punjab President Safdar Waraich, instead of discussing the situation in Karachi, started counting corruption cases against the PML-N.
Upset over the point-scoring campaign in the house, Bushra Gohar from the ANP said it seems that some parliamentarians are not interested in discussing the situation in the metropolis.
She criticised Interior Minister Rehman Malik for issuing “irresponsible” statements regarding target killings in the city. Gohar said that it is the responsibility of the ruling party to demonstrate tolerance and patience even when faced with the harshest criticism from the opposition.
Meanwhile, PML-N deputy secretary general Ahsan Iqbal renewed his party’s demand of inviting intelligence agencies and law enforcement agencies’ heads to brief legislators.
The PML-N staged a token walkout from the house over load-shedding during Ramazan.
SCBA statement
The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) also expressed its concern over the killings. President of the SCBA, Asma Jahangir, said if the country descends into chaos, no one will be safe.
In a statement issued in Lahore on Thursday, she said the situation was complex, but the violence mostly stems from political polarisation and escalating ethnic and religious intolerance.
Asma also spoke against the practice of extortion, which she said was being used by all political parties in Karachi to arm and recruit cadres. The parliament must form a committee, with members from all political parties to address the issue.
“The parliament should not transfer its burden to other institutions and not expect that its sovereignty will be tarnished,” she said.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 5th, 2011.

 

[somebozo]

Judging from the looks on his face, it looks like Zardari has played a game with him which has forced him to give up all his made up rant and actually beg for his own fate..

People should remain calm, appeals Altaf
Updated at: 1657 PST, Thursday, August 04, 2011
People should remain calm, appeals Altaf LONDON: In a video message, MQM Chief Altaf Hussain has appealed to the residents of Karachi to remain calm and have faith in God, Geo News reported.

The MQM Chief said in his statement asking people of Karachi to buy one month's ration was in reaction to what had happened in Qasba Colony, where due to days of attacks being conducted from Katti Pahari people were trapped at home without any food.

He feared that a situation similar to Qasba Colony could also have been created in other parts of the city because terrorist attacks were spreading, thus he made the statement.

The MQM Chief said it was a good sign that the Rangers were deployed to affected areas and helped in restoring peace. He thanked the Rangers for the role they played.

And earlier, he was inciting riots in the name of honour.

Altaf asks people to buy one-month ration
Updated at: 0122 PST, Wednesday, August 03, 2011
Altaf asks people to buy one-month ration LONDON: Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Chief Altaf Hussain has asked people that keeping in mind the insensitivity of Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) buy at least one-month ration, Geo News reported.

In a statement issued from London, Altaf Hussain asked people of Sindh particularly Karachi to purchase at least one-month ration even if they have to sale their expensive belongings.

MQM Chief said despite his 48-hour notice, no action had been taken against miscreants involved in bloodshed; torching bikes of workers and grid stations of KESC etc in the presence of police and Rangers.

He said they had burnt their boats in 1947 when they migrated to Pakistan, adding that since then they had been bearing genocide, massacre besides torture by the government and state.

Altaf said they would prefer to die honorably rather to live a humiliated life. He warned people to be ready mentally and physically for this.

Moderate islamisation or controlled islamisation could be the answer for Pakistan woes as it will promote tolerance in the name of religion and people will not think in the bounds of ethnicity. That had been the vision of Jinnah!

 

[somebozo]

Altaf apologizes 'if he hurt statements'
Updated at: 2219 PST, Thursday, August 04, 2011
Altaf apologizes LONDON: Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Chief Altaf Hussain Thursday extended apology to 'Sindhi nationalists and scholars' in case his previous day's statements hurt their sentiments, Geo News reported.

In a clarification issued today, Altaf Hussain said in his speech the other day he pointed finger at those elements who were openly disparaging Urdu and Punjabi speaking Mohajirs who had sacrificed thousands of lives in the struggle for Pakistan.

"Whatever I had said was to point out those ridiculed and belittled the sacrifices of Mohajirs," he clarified, adding he might have failed in clearly making his point or the Sindhi nationalists and scholars might have failed to grasp the spirit and depth of my viewpoint.

He said: "Being a citizen of the soil of Sindh I extend my honest apology to the Sindhi nationalists and scholars in case my words have hurt their sentiments." (But resident and citizen of UK)

 

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KARACHI: Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Farooq Sattar has demanded a judicial inquiry into incidents of violence in Karachi, Express 24/7 reported on Friday.
Addressing the National Assembly in Islamabad, Sattar said an inquiry should be launched into the incidents of violence in Malir, Landhi and the Qasba Colony areas of Karachi.
The MQM leader presented a list of 500 alleged gang members involved in incidents of violence in Karachi. He said that terrorists from the northern areas and local mafia in the city had joined hands.
(Read: Karachi violence: MQM warns against ‘ethnic cleansing’)
Sattar said his party had no criminals in its ranks. He alleged that the government was involved in the worsening law and order situation in Karachi and said it should stop the “state of civil war” in Karachi.
The MQM leader said police in Karachi could not be trusted as it had been politicised.
The session of the National Assembly on Thursday was overshadowed by the violence in Karachi and proposals of asking the army to take control of the city.
(Read: Solutions elude as opinions dominate Karachi debate)
On Wednesday, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain, in a telephonic address to party workers, had said that the Pakistan Army be called to control the killings in the city. The Awami National Party, another stakeholder in the city, had suggested that the army be called for a month to control the situation.

 

[Jango]

The word judicial inquiry is being turned into a joke in Pakistan i tell you.

 

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ISLAMABAD: Members of different political parties in the National Assembly on Friday recommended unity and harmony among all the political parties on all national issues to remove ethnic, sectarian and political divides in Karachi and in other parts of the country.

Taking part in the debate, PML-N leader Shireen Arshad said Karachi was the economic hub of the country but unfortunately the law and order situation in the city was not under the provincial government’s control.

She said indiscriminate action should be taken against criminal elements and assassins. They should be punished in public so that they become an example for others, she said.

Ms Arshad said all political and religious parties would have to join hands against anti-state elements and criminals to establish lasting peace in Karachi.

She recommended modern training for the police force and the Rangers and provision of state of the art weapons to them.

MQM MNA Abdul Wasim said terrorism, price hike, inflation, unemployment and poverty were the main causes of unrest in Karachi and other parts of the country.

He said time had come to address the issues and problems of the masses especially the poor.

The parliamentarian deplored that feudal lords and rich segments of the society wanted to rule the country without giving opportunity to intellectuals, scholars, professionals and experts.

Laiq Mohammad Khan criticised the government for not apprehending and punishing the assassins of former premier Benazir Bhutto and questioned that if the government could not arrest the killers of Ms Bhutto, how would it establish its writ in the country.

He suggested that heads of all political parties would have to leave all their political activities and sit together to explore measures for durable peace in Karachi.

Hayat Khan said anti-state elements are endeavouring to divide Karachi ethnically and to destroy the economic hub of the country with an aim to destabilising Pakistan.

He said anti-state elements term each and every killing as ‘target’ killing just to create a sense of panic and hate among different segments of society.

Mr Khan further said that all political parties needed to rise above party politics and sit together for a peaceful Karachi.

 

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KARACHI: Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Friday ruled out any compromise to restore law and order in Karachi.

He was speaking to media representatives after presiding over high-level meetings with officials dealing with the city’s security situation. Mr Malik also met with Sindh Home Minister Manzoor Wassan.

“We will not spare anybody,” he said, adding that action against criminals would be taken without any discrimination.

He said that soon those arrested would be brought before media representatives to tell their modus operandi and also on whose directions criminal actions took place.

Speaking at the occasion, Mr Wassan said all efforts were being made to bring normalcy in Karachi and other parts of Sindh with the help of the federal government.

“About 800 people have been the victims of violent shootings in the last seven months,” Zohra Yusuf, chairwoman of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), told AFP.

The HRCP previously said 490 people were killed in the first six months of the year and on Friday that another 300 people died in July.

“The figures compiled by our staff and the death toll for the last month confirmed by the police shows the number of victims of violence was not less than 300,” Yusuf said.

The government has campaigned to end the clashes and deployed hundreds of additional police and paramilitary forces in the city, but the killings have continued with 58 people reported dead in five days alone this week.

 

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ISLAMABAD: MQM presented a list of 500 individuals involved in destroying peace in Karachi to the National Assembly and blamed the government for the unrest in the city, Geo News reported.

The debate on the situation in Karachi continued in the National Assembly and PML-N MNA, Shereen Arshad said that the government had failed to take action against those destroying peace in the city.

MQM leader, Farooq Sattar said all those individuals on the list submitted by his party were criminals and terrorists and Karachi had been handed over to the underworld.

He added that if the government was sincere then peace could be restored in Karachi within three days. According to Sattar 1,500 people had fallen victim to target killing in the metropolis since 2007and the government was involved in ruining the situation in the city and this was being done on purpose.

The National Assembly session was adjourned till Monday evening.

 

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KARACHI: At least three more persons have been killed and eight injured in ongoing row of violence in Karachi today, SAMAA reported on Friday.

According to police, one tortured youth’s hands and legs tied dead body was recovered near KMC Worlshop on Lawrance Road in Eid Gah area. Some unknown culprits kidnapped and tortured him brutally before killing.

Another 30-year-old person Ramzan was gunned down by unknown armed attackers near Muhammadi Market in Malir, Khokhrapar area. His dead body was move to Jinnah Hospital.

The police have informed that deceased Ramazan was a resident of Khokhrapar No-1 and after his killing tension prevails in the area.

In a separate incident of firing, six persons sustained bullet wounds near Tribal Mosque in Baldia Town’s area Nayabad Sector 4-C. All inured including Naeem Khan, Shaukat, Zahid Khan, Yar Muhammad, Razzaq and Fida were moved to Civil Hospital. Later on, one injured succumbed to injuries.

Entire area has been gripped by the fear and tension after today’s firing by some unidentified gunmen while police have arrested four culprits for creating unrest in the area.

The latest firing incident took place in Garden area this evening where two more persons sustained bullet injuries and tension gripped the area. SAMAA