JEDDAH, 23 April 2007 — The Pakistan Repatriation Council (PRC) has called on the governments of Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) to play their role to resolve the longstanding issue of the stranded Pakistanis.
The council adopted a resolution calling on Islamabad to take steps to bring back its people who have been in camps in Bangladesh for over three decades. It also urged Dhaka and the OIC to play their roles for the resolution of the humanitarian issue. The PRC urged the OIC to take up the issue at its conference scheduled in Islamabad this year.
Islamabad was also urged to assign its high commissioner in Dhaka to look after the stranded people until their repatriation to Pakistan.
The meeting asked the government of Pakistan to seek the intervention of the UN, the United States and other countries for the resolution of Kashmir issue.
Speakers at the function, organized to mark the anniversary of the death of the poet Allama Iqbal, paid tributes to him and called for making his teachings well-known.
Habib Siddiqui, who presided over the function, said it was the need of the hour to understand and follow the teachings of Iqbal.
Maqboolur Rahman Abbasi said holding meetings and praising leaders would not solve problems. The key to development is action not rhetoric, he said. “While we harp on our achievements, we tend to forget that we owe a lot to some people who have made sacrifices for the country,” he said and added that those living in camps in Bangladesh are patriotic Pakistanis and deserved attention.
Chairman Pakistan Saraiki Forum Rasheed Chishti said that the need of the hour was to educate the new generation of Iqbal’s philosophy.
Mohammad Jamil Rathore, general secretary of Pakistan Journalists Forum, said Iqbal’s poetry reflected the teachings of Islam. He said that Pakistan, Bangladesh and international Islamic agencies such as the OIC and the MWL should join hands to solve the issue of stranded Pakistanis.
Gulab Khan said it was Iqbal who inspired Mohammad Ali Jinnah to assume the leadership of Muslims and struggle for a separate homeland.
PRC convener Ehsanul Haque said that Iqbal’s vision and Quaid-e-Azam’s strong leadership made Pakistan a reality. He said it was unfortunate that Pakistan lost its eastern wing in 1971 and its patriotic citizens who tried to safeguard the country in East Pakistan were left to live in camps. He hoped that the committee formed by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz to review the issue of stranded Pakistanis would carry forward the mission of the Rabita Trust and bring back the stranded Pakistanis. The function was conducted by renowned poet Naseem Sehar.
