Says target killings down by 53pc; foreign agencies stopped from working in Pakistan; no Blackwater agent present in country; submits report on performance of Interior Ministry in NA
ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on Thursday said there had been an 80 percent reduction in acts of terrorism in Karachi since the start of the operation on September 5, 2013. He said considerable reduction in the occurrence of other crimes including target killings (53%), murders (30%) and robberies (35%) had been witnessed. The minister said no foreign agency was allowed to carry out activities in the country and there was no agent of Blackwater in the federal capital.
“Neither is any Blackwater agent present in Islamabad nor is any foreign agency allowed to operate in the country,” the minister, while laying a report in the National Assembly on ‘Achievements of the Ministry of Interior’, said. He said foreign agencies had been stopped from working in Pakistan.
Chaudhry Nisar said the security audit of all the houses in Islamabad had been conducted and difficulties were faced in the case of around 400 houses where it was not known who was occupying these buildings. “I want to tell you that we know the data of each and every house in Islamabad,” he said.
He maintained that no local agency in Pakistan was allowed to work with any foreign agency. He said the licenses of local private security agencies working with foreign agencies had also been cancelled.
The minister admitted that the Joint Intelligence Directorate was yet to be established but there had been significant progress on security matters. “Security reports have also been shared between agencies and with the provinces which also resulted in some important operations,” he said.
He pointed out that there had been considerable improvement in coordination between the federal intelligence agencies with the provinces, particularly Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh.However, he said the war against terror was not over, saying the terrorists had been marginalised and they could try to undertake desperate sabotage acts. “They have been made to run across the border but still they have not been eliminated,” he said.
Chaudhry Nisar said all theformalities including funding had been completed and the Joint Intelligence Directorate would be a reality in the next two to three months. The minister told the House that he had also been showing zero tolerance to corruption in the ministry and subordinate departments. “Not only officials have been suspended but they were also arrested wherever the red line was crossed,” he said.
In this connection, he mentioned that three section officers of the ministry were suspended and arrested on charges of corruption. He said the purpose of laying the report in the House was not pointscoring or levelling allegations on the past governments. “Every minister is answerable to parliament for performance of his ministry,” he said, adding that he would also request the prime minister that all the ministers should lay their reports in the House.
He pointed out that he also faces security threats but never desired publicity on the issue, saying that he also surrendered many security personnel. “I also have to face displeasures when I order to withdraw unnecessary security personnel deputed with VIPs,” he said.
The report laid by the minister on the floor of the National Assembly revealed that the National Action Plan (NAP) was being implemented with full commitment in coordination with all the provinces, security agencies and stakeholders. “Effective implementation of the NAP has registered a significant improvement in the overall law and order and internal security, including visible downward trend in terrorist incidents thus establishing the will of the government.”
The report said the Ministry of Interior also endured extraordinary pressure in challenging the circumstances in the face of prolonged stand-off between the federal government, PTI and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT).
“The dharna that laid siege over Islamabad was indeed a formidable internal security hazard, threatening lives of citizens of the capital, diplomatic community, protesters themselves and officers deployed on security,” the report said.
The report said the ministry was an integral part of the Operation Zarb-e-Azb combating terrorists and violent extremism. “It has synergised internal security and law enforcement for effective implementation of the NAP,” the report said. It said there was a complete end to the VIP culture in the ministry and its attached departments while entry of foreigners had also been banned in the premises of the ministry.
A strong system of internal security has also been devised while ordering 2,666 inquiries against officers and other employees of the Ministry of Interior and its attached departments and 49 cases had also been registered against officers. The report also mentions public welfare measures and reforms undertaken in attached departments of the ministry, including FIA, Islamabad Police, Islamabad administration, Nadra, Civil Armed Forces Wing, National Counter Terrorism Authority, National Police Academy, National Police Bureau, Directorate General Immigration and Passports.