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The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) president has said a separatist movement is gaining momentum in Balochistan and to retain the restive province within the federation of Pakistan, all political parties must wake up to the alarming situation. "The situation in Balochistan is really alarming and it is heading towards separation. It cannot be compared with the situation in the three other remaining units of the federation where law and order is precarious," The Express Tribune quoted Yasin Khan Azad, as saying. Azad said it is now the government's turn to implement the recommendations moved by top political and military leaders at a conference on Balochistan, hosted by the SCBA in Islamabad on May 26, where a 15-point resolution was unanimously passed, calling for an end to the ongoing military operation in Balochistan, and the withdrawal of military and paramilitary troops from the province. The declaration emphasised that the crisis could only be resolved through political dialogue' negotiations and through building confidence between the people of Balochistan and the Federal Government. It maintained that a politics of garrison should be replaced by the civilian authorities who genuinely represent the will of the people. It said an effective mechanism should be adopted to ensure that all natural resources in Balochistan are under the control of locals. It added that all those citizens settled in Balochistan, irrespective of their language, caste or belief, be equally respected and their social and economic rights protected. The conference commended the Supreme Court for taking up the case of missing persons in Balochistan, but urged that those accused of heinous crimes of target killings and disappearances should be brought to justice.

'Separatist movement gaining momentum in Balochistan'