Awami and Sindhiyani Tehreek organized rallies in Sukkur city and Kario Gahnwar town of Badin district
Sukkur | Badin, Sindh
On the occasion of World Water Day, Awami Tehreek organized protest demonstrations in Sukkur and Badin cities of Sindh.
In Sukkur, the demonstration was held at the banks of the Indus River near Sadh Belo. As a tribute to the Indus, flowers were showered on the river. The protesters vowed to continue their movement against the construction of six new canals and demanded access to clean drinking water for seventy million people of Sindh.
They also called for the removal of all dams and canals built on the Indus River to restore the natural water cycle (hydrological cycle.) Furthermore, they emphasized the need to release at least 30 million acre-feet of water annually downstream Kotri Barrage on an emergency basis to protect Indus Delta.
Addressing the demonstration, Awami Tehreek’s central president Advocate Vasand Thari, senior vice president Noor Ahmed Katiar, Sarwan Jatoi, Advocate Sachal Bhatti, Ayaz Kaloi, Sarwech Sindhi, Fayaz Soomro, Sindhiyani Tehreek’s Sukkur district president Shamshad Bapar, Paras Bhatti, Hina Baloch, Noor Bano Brohi, Fiza Phulpoto, and other leaders strongly criticized the government. They stated that with the support of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), the Maryam Nawaz-led Punjab government has expedited the construction of the Cholistan Canal. They alleged that Sindh’s Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah was aware of Punjab’s plans to build this canal eight months ago, yet he misled the public by falsely claiming in the media that no such project was underway. According to the leaders, the PPP is pretending to oppose these canals while actually working to sabotage Sindhi people’s struggle against them.
The leaders also declared that the Sindhi nation would not participate in the PPP’s so-called protests. They asserted that the movement to save the Indus River would not be led by the PPP but by Sindh’s farmers and laborers. They accused the PPP of attempting to hijack the struggle for its own political gains, but emphasized that Sindhis would carry forward their movement under the leadership of the working class rather than feudal lords. Women, children, the elderly, students, farmers, and laborers of Sindh would be at the forefront of this struggle.
The leaders further highlighted that while the world was observing World Water Day, Pakistan’s rulers were implementing projects that would further contaminate the country’s water resources. They pointed out that the blockage of water to the Indus Delta has already led to the destruction of mangrove forests, causing severe environmental devastation. They warned that glaciers were melting at an alarming rate due to number of dams and canals. The protesters demanded that at least 30 million acre-feet of water be released below Kotri Barrage to restore mangrove forests and ensure the protection of glaciers.
Meanwhile, in Kario Gahnwar town of Badin, Awami Tehreek organized a rally from Nizamani Pump to Shaheed Fazil Rahu Chowk to protest against the amendments to the IRSA Act, corporate farming, and the construction of six new canals. The rally was led by Awami Tehreek’s Central Information Secretary Lal Jarwar, Sindhiani Tehreek leader Zarqa Halepoto, Awami Tehreek Badin’s president Mehran Dars, Mukhtiar Bakari, Jakhro Nohani, Hamero Mal, Imamuddin Nizamani, Noor Ahmad Nizamani, and others.
Speaking on the occasion, the leaders strongly condemned the Pakistan People’s Party for its deceitful tactics and demanded the immediate withdrawal of the notification allocating 52,713 acres of Sindh’s land to Green Corporate Initiative. They also called for the reversal of President Asif Ali Zardari’s amendments to the IRSA Act and the consent to construct new canals from the Indus River, terming these moves as anti-Sindh.
The leaders accused PPP of supporting Green Pakistan and corporate farming projects at the cost of Sindh’s land, resources, and water rights. They dismissed PPP’s announced protests against the canals as a “sham and a fraud”, arguing that the party was shedding crocodile tears to mislead the Sindhi people. They claimed that Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah himself admitted that work on the Cholistan Canal began eight months ago, proving that the Sindh government had secretly approved the project.
The protesters declared that workers, farmers, students, children, elderly, and women from all over the Sindh would continue their struggle to protect the Indus River. They urged the public to boycott PPP’s protests, arguing that participating would only serve to cover up PPP’s deception. They further added that any forces supporting PPP’s protests were also complicit in Sindh’s exploitation.
Read: Indus River: Lifeline of Sindh
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