Pakistan Army and ISI is kidnapping and killing people of Gilgit Baltistan

LONDON - Mirza Wajahat Hassan Khan left for Dubai unaccompanied on October 28 2010, for a family business venture. He being a sugar patient with a broken knee and hypoglycemia patient, usually takes along his wife and sons but as his son Captain Danyal Hassan was to be struck off from army service on November 5, 2010, and his wife had domestic compulsions, he went alone.

He was to come back on November 1, 2010, on the independence day of Gilgit Baltistan, so as to participate in the ensuing political activities in Gilgit and Kashmir. He did not return on the given date and on November 2 a probe by the family members revealed that he checked out from Palm hotel Dubai and was dropped at the airport by the hotel transport.

On inquiry, it was authentically revealed from the PIA (Pakistan International Airlines) computer records that he was being offloaded from the flight and was probably taken into custody either by Dubai immigration or ISI in connivance with Dubai Intelligence on a concocted charge.

On November 3, 2010, Mirza Nadir Hassan Khan along with Danyal Hassan Khan went to the UAE Embassy to check the whereabouts of Wajahat Hassan Khan and were informed by the UAE ambassador, that he boarded the PIA plane and disappeared in Pakistan.

Consequently, Mirza Wajahat Hassan called up on the night of November 3, 2010, and said or was made to say that he was alright and would take 2 to 3 more days in connection with the business.

On the used telephone number, one Mr. Abdul Aziz Afghani was responding, only as and when, he deemed it fit to talk. He said that Mirza Wajahat Hassan is absolutely alright and is in good health and has checked out on November 9, 2010, from a Hotel in Dubai and has gone along with his Kashmiri friends and will be back home in 2 to 3 days before the Eid.

On November 13, 2010, in the evening, Mirza Wajahat Hassan gave a ring that he is about to board the PIA flight 212. Mirza Wajahat Hassan Khan arrived in the international arrivals and was authentically seen. He undertook all the procedural formalities at the airport terminal and when after having an eye contact with his son Danyal Hassan, he was about to come out but was stopped.

Mirza Wajahat Hassan then gave a ring to his son and brother and said that the Intelligence Bureau people want to record his statement about his Dubai episode and they should go home as he will come back within a couple of hours after meeting the formalities.

Nadir Hassan and Danyal Hassan refused and insisted on meeting him. He briefly came out and said that he was kidnapped in Dubai.

When he was being taken away by the four to five ISI people in plain clothes in a white Corolla car with a white number plate, on November 13, 2010, under the personal supervision Lt. Colonel Shoaib of 63 FF, who now serves in counter intelligence department of the ISI Islamabad.

Further probes were made and the dependents were advised that because of the Eid and Sunday holidays they should wait, so that the case is smoothly resolved without any fuss. The family has no contacts whatsoever with him and doesn’t know anything about his whereabouts and well being.

It is worth mentioning that Mirza Wajahat Hassan Khan has in the past undergone imprisonments many a times in Gilgit jail, Adiala jail Rawalpindi and various police stations of Gilgit only for speaking about rights of Gilgit Baltistan .

The family does not trust the GHQ of Pakistan Army and its ISI. They do not trust the legal procedures of the State of Pakistan and consider the presence of the government of Pakistan in Gilgit Baltistan as illegal, immoral, cruel and undesirable.

a. On November 20, 2010, the ISI people assured the family to remain patient and wait till Monday i.e. 22nd November 2010.

b. On November 22, 2010, the ISI higher ups informed the family that they should wait till 10:00 hrs on 25th November 2010. They were cautioned that if the family members initiate an action then there will be no looking back and the events can lead to unknown and uncontrollable limits.

c. He was released by ISI on 2nd December 2010 without producing him in any court, which has been the practice in Pakistan according to its legal procedure. n view of the above, all the freedom and justice loving people, organizations and governments of the World and their commonly internationally constituted concerned organizations are requested to take prompt and strong measures to straighten the situation.

They are requested to vigorously force the GHQ and its ISI to behave and stop their cunning, unchecked and immoral activities. All the family members of Mirza Hassan Khan’s family strongly feel that it is now high time that they must be safeguarded and protected under the umbrella of the United Nations and the Human Rights organizations of the World.

To kidnap an innocent person and prominent nationalist leader of Gilgit Baltistan from Dubai without any legal instrument is clear violation of international law committed by Dubai Authority and Pakistan Army (ISI is the subordinate organization of Pakistan Army).

It should be noted that the kidnapping, killing, terrorist trainings and terrorist attacks anywhere is carried out by General Pasha the head of ISI under the special orders of GHQ (headed by General Kiyani) without the knowledge of the so-called democratic government of Zardari.

General Kiyani and Genral Pasha of ISI have shown their criminal attitude against a highly respected nationalist person and chairman of APNA, which represents both PoK and Pakistan occupied Gilgit Baltistan. Before this ISI had also kidnapped Mr. Bilal Qazalbash a school teacher from Gilgit in 2005.

The case of kidnapping was registered in Lahore High Court against ISI with full names, Military Nos, residential and home address. After 9 months of kidnapping Bilal was framed in Arms smuggling and punished by the so-called Pakistani court. One can imagine how a person can smuggle while he was in ISI torture cell. But this is Pakistan where anything is possible, which has successfully managed to use US money and weapons to promote Taliban and Al-Qaida against US interest.

Mr.Abdul Hamid Khan Chairman Balawaristan National Front has strongly condemned the kidnapping of All parties National Alliance (APNA) Chairman Wajahat Hassan by Pakistan ISI Mr. Wajahat Hassan hails from a Pakistan occupied Gilgit Baltistan and was actively opposing and exposing Pakistan’s occupation and demanding the independence of Gilgit Baltistan. He remains steadfast in his opposition to Pakistani occupation and strong critic of its policies of plundering resources of the region and denying people from their fundamental freedoms and rights since 1947.

He also opposed the so-called Gilgit Baltistan empowerment and self-rule presidential ordinance which is an attempt not to change the disputed status of Gilgit Baltistan but annex this region under the garb of this ordinance. He is also chairman of APAN which is comprising nationalist parties of Pakistan occupied Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan.

APNA became leading voice of Pakistan controlled Areas of former state Jammu and Kashmir, and generated a substantial resistance to Islamabad’s policies of illegal annexation of region; exploitation of resources and denial of rights in both parts POK and OGB.

The kidnapping of Wajahat Hassan by Pakistan’s notorious intelligence agency ISI- known for its infamous character for decades in controlling Pakistani politics and victimising political opponents, supporting proxy insurgencies in Afghanistan, Kashmir and Indian Punjab; killings of hundreds of Balochis and thousands of enforced disappearances of Baloch, and mastermind of Taliban and other extremist groups, kept him under illegal detention more than a month and tortured him to silence the voice of oppressed people of Gilgit Baltistan and POK. It is widely believed that kidnapping of Mr. Wajahat Hassan in Dubai was collective operation of ISI and Dubai authorities.

Mr. Abdul Hamid Khan lashed out to the role infamous agency ISI’s continued oppression, harass and torture of nationalist activists and leaders of Gilgit Baltistan for decades to silence their voices. There are more than 100 people who are facing sedition charges for demanding their basic rights and fundamental freedoms while Pakistan government using extra-constitutional measures and other tactic to silence these voices. Mr. Khan appealed to the UN human Rights Council, Amnesty International, European Union and US to press Pakistani authorities to stop human rights violations in Gilgit Baltistan and stop ISI’s oppressive activities there.

He has also appealed international bodies to press Pakistani authorities to bring to the perpetrator to the justice. Mr. Khan said that Pakistani oppressive tactic cannot stop people of Gilgit Baltistan from their struggle to free their homeland and people from the illegal occupation of Pakistan. by Dr. Shabir Choudhry (ANI)

Attn: Dr. Shabir Choudhry is Chairman of the Diplomatic Committee of the London-based Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) and the views expressed in the above article are of the author.