Is Hazara community not Pakistani, asks CJP

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Mian Saqib Nisar on Wednesday took suo moto notice of continued attacks on the Hazara community in Quetta and sought a comprehensive report from the Ministry of Interior and the Government of Balochistan as he questioned whether the community was not a part of Pakistan and who was responsible for maintaining the law and order situation.

The notice was taken during the course of hearing of other cases. The CJP observed, “It has been pointed out by the members of the Bar and it has widely been published in the media that during the last several years, the Hazara community living in Quetta has been a target of repeated terrorist attacks driven by ethnic and sectarian hatred.”

According to a report by the National Commission for the Human Rights released in March this year, the Hazara community has suffered 509 killings in Quetta city during the last five years, January, 2012 to December, 2017.

During the month of April, 2018 alone, there have been four separate terrorist attacks on Hazara men resulting in the death of six persons. The right to life is the most sacred human right guaranteed by the Article 9 of the Constitution. “This right has been violated with impunity by miscreants against the small and dwindling community which is otherwise peaceful and law abiding. There has been failure by the law enforcement agencies of the state to protect the fundamental rights of this community.

“Such a state of affairs affects the fear and indemnity of Shia community in Pakistan and represents a matter of great public importance”. Taking suo motu notice of such an alarming situation, the CJP issued notices to the Government of Balochistan through its Chief Secretary and Home Secretary, its IGP, Frontier Constabulary, the Government of Pakistan through the Interior Secretary and the Secretary Ministry of Defence for filing their reports within 10 days, on measures taken by the respective forces and agencies under their charge to ensure the security of Hazara community in Quetta and also to report causes for their failure to safeguard the lives of the members of the Hazara community.