ISLAMABAD: The caretaker federal government on Monday claimed to have released all the remaining 290 Baloch protestors, in light of the deliberations of the committee formed by Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar.
The protestors were taken into custody during a crackdown on demonstration demanding an end to enforced disappearances and extra-judicial killings in Islamabad.
The decision to release the arrested protestors was taken in view of the directions of the honourable court, an interior ministry spokesperson said in a statement on Monday.
He said that peaceful protest was the right of every citizen, but no one was allowed to take the law into their hands. The security of the Capital’s Red Zone, where constitutional institutions and the Diplomatic Enclave were located, would be ensured at all costs, the spokesperson added.
He said that a special assistance centre was set up by the Islamabad Police, which could be contacted at telephone numbers 0519001534 and 03459600622 or email address [email protected].
The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), the main organiser of the long march, had delivered a three-day ultimatum to authorities. Their demands included the dismissal of cases against students and activists and the release of all protesters.
The march initiated in Turbat on December 6 following the alleged extra-judicial killing of a Baloch youth, reached the federal capital on Wednesday.
The Islamabad police’s use of force to disperse and detain the demonstrators drew widespread condemnation from human rights organisations, politicians, the Islamabad High Court (IHC), and even the highest offices, including President Dr Arif Alvi and PM Kakar.
