Ayaz Latif Palijo’s Address in Houston — Concern Over Sindh’s Resources and Public Issues
By Raja Zahid Akhtar Khanzada
Houston: Qaumi Awami Tehreek (QAT) Chief Ayaz Latif Palijo, while speaking with the Sindhi community and various delegations at the residence of Shah Latif Cultural Institute Houston’s head, Mahmood Dahri, said that more people of Sindh will come under pressure and be targeted, which will ultimately increase public anger and resentment.
He stated that blocking the flow of rivers, building dams and canals, destroying forests and land, damaging seas, mountains, islands, and the environment are against the interests of both Sindh and the country. According to him, any attack on the Indus River is essentially an attack on the life of Sindh, as the river represents the foundation of Sindh’s five-thousand-year-old civilization.
Ayaz Latif Palijo accused the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) of colluding with “bandits of the Indus” and deceiving Sindh on the water issue. He claimed that PPP’s policies are aimed at turning Sindh into a barren desert. He further alleged that there is a conspiracy to label Sindh as enemy territory, break it into pieces, and seize its lands and resources through corporate farming.
He said that the plan for bloodshed over the Indus River is in reality a scheme to destroy the agricultural economy, while continuous restrictions imposed on Sindh are holding its people hostage. According to him, elections are also being used as a weapon to suppress Sindh’s resources and rights.
Palijo noted that Sindh has given the world a message of peace, love, and struggle, but today it suffers from hunger, insecurity, and poverty. People in villages and informal settlements are struggling for a single meal, while Sindh has been turned into a hub of corruption, feudalism, extremism, crime, and landlord rule. He added that in both urban and rural areas, women, children, and minority communities are unsafe, and opportunities of merit and employment have been closed for Sindh’s youth.
He stressed that land and water seizures under the guise of agricultural projects must be stopped immediately, and political parties should abandon ethnic and extremist politics pursued for power. He said that the federation, parliament, and judiciary have remained silent spectators to the grievances of Sindh’s people, while the parties elected from Sindh have also disappointed the public and must engage in self-accountability.
Ayaz Latif Palijo made it clear that Sindh’s water, lands, islands, and resources cannot be usurped under any circumstances. He also demanded that all illegal immigrants in the country should be sent back.
He added that Pakistan seeks peace and wishes to move forward with the world, but this requires an end to terrorism, corruption, and divisions. “A country cannot progress through corruption, fear, and repression, but only through equality, justice, and tolerance,” he said.
Highlighting Pakistan’s current economic challenges and terrorism threats, Palijo stressed that the nation must defeat extremism and move forward in step with the international community. He also called upon overseas Pakistanis to play their role in promoting equality, education, healthcare, merit, and development.
On this occasion, Shah Latif Cultural Institute Houston’s head, Mahmood Dahri, and several representatives of the local Sindhi community were also present.
