Pak. flayed for mass arrests

WASHINGTON, MARCH 25. The human rights watch group of the Amnesty International has vehemently condemned the military regime in Pakistan for the mass arrests of political leaders and activists of the Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (ARD) in Punjab province.

The 16-party ARD had called a rally on March 23 to launch a campaign to end military rule. The arrests were made to stall the rally, the group in its report asserted.

``With crackdowns like this one, it is hard to see how the Pakistani authorities expect their claims of restoring democracy in the next few years to be taken,'' Mr. Sydnes Jones, executive director of the Asia division of human rights watch group based in New York said. The report said police had arrested around 250 persons. The ARD, however, put the arrests at 2500 in Punjab, including 200 in Lahore.

- UNI

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Section  : International
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