By Our Reporter

Dawn

http://www.dawn.com/2006/11/08/nat4.htm

ISLAMABAD, Nov 7: Civil society organisations have
warned the government against going ahead with the
proposed Diamond Bar Island City Project, saying any
such initiative would face tough resistance,
particularly from the 500,000 strong fishing community
in Karachi.

These remarks were made by Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum
(PFF) Chairperson Mohammad Ali Shah, People’s Rights
Movement (PRM)’s Aasim Sajjad and Mustafa Talpur of
ActionAid at a press conference held the camp office
of Rawalpindi-Islamabad Press Club.

The PFF and PRM representatives said a coordinated
plan of protest had been outlined to force the
government into scrapping the project, and that
efforts were being made to generate support for the
resistance movement from all walks of life including
political parties, professional organisations and
intellectuals.

Meanwhile, speakers at a seminar on Monday sought
immediate reversal of the Island City project, saying
it would endanger livelihood of millions of indigenous
people as well as marine life.

The seminar on ‘Diamond Bar Island City: A Development
Or Disaster Project’, was organised by the Sustainable
Development Policy Institute (SDPI) in collaboration
with the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF), Karachi.

The prime minister has approved in principle the
development of the Island City off Port Qasim in a
period of 13 years at a cost of $43.135 billion.

Speaking on the occasion, Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum
(PFF) Chairman Mohammad Ali Shah said the project
would not only add to the sufferings of the indigenous
people of the area, but also pose a threat to its
natural beauty and resources as well as environment.
More importantly, over five million fishermen from
Karachi District and Tatha would also be deprived of
their livelihood.

He said the indigenous fishermen had been surviving on
sea resources for ages, and commissioning of such a
huge project would directly affect their livelihood.
In the past, too, such mega projects were launched,
and hundreds of displaced fishermen were properly
compensated.

Mr Shah criticised the government for planning to
commercialise all 300 islands in the area. He said the
mega city project was a violation of many national and
international commitments made by the government,
including Ram Sir Convention of 1971. He said the
fishermen were much disturbed by the plan to build a
city on the twin islands.

Naseer Memon of Leads, Pakistan, called for collective
resistance against the project on various grounds. He
said Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was
mandatory for any development project exceeding the
limit of Rs50 million under Pakistan Environment
Protection Act 1997.

He said no EIA had been done which was another grave
violation of the Act. He, however, stressed that
livelihood of millions of indigenous people and
precious sea life should be saved. Keeping in view the
project’s environmental and bio- diversity impacts,
many reputable bodies such as IUCN and the WWF have
already raised many technical questions, he added.

People’s Party Parliamentarians’ MNA Chaudhry Manzoor
Ahmad said the selling of two islands to a foreign
company was not an isolated issue, but a continuity of
the government’s privatisation policy of selling
national assets to foreign companies at throwaway
prices.

He urged the participants to lodge a strong protest to
compel the rulers to abandon the ‘disastrous’ project.
“Only a strong protest in the parliament, particularly
in the Sindh Assembly, can force the government to
cancel the project,” he maintained.

Karamat Ali of Pakistan Institutes of Labour Education
and Research, Karachi, said there was no rule of law,
and repeated violations of the Constitution by the
rulers had become order of the day. He said Port Qasim
Authority was not entitled to signing a deal
concerning the Island City project as it did not own
the land, and was itself a leaseholder.

He said by signing the deal, the government was
violating not only the domestic laws and regulations,
but also various UN conventions and treaties which
guaranteed the social, economic and cultural rights of
the people.

Dr Aly Ercelan, an economist, lamented that it was not
a matter of development, but of democracy in the
country. He said the construction plans of the mega
projects had exposed the non- participation and
non-consideration of provincial and local governments
in the decision-making as they had been completely
excluded from the process of privatisation of such
important public enterprises.

PFF opposes Diamond Bar Island City project

Pakistan Observer

Ijaz Kakakhel

http://www.pakobserver.net/200611/08/news/islamabad05.asp

Islamabad—The Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) has warned the government that if the proposed Diamond Bar Island City project went ahead, there would be enormous resistance from fishing community in Karachi and other parts of the country. People’s Rights Movement (PRM) and ActionAid also opposed the propose project. Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum chairperson Mohammad Ali Shah, Aasim Sajjad of the PRM and Mustafa Talpur of ActionAid made these remarks at a press conference here Tuesday. The Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum and People’s Rights Movement representatives said that a coordinated plan of protest had been outlined to force the government into scrapping the project and that effort were being made to generate support for the resistance movement from all walks of life including political parties, professional organizations and intellectuals.

The Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum chiefs said that during the present government, fisherfolk on the coastal areas and inland have been subjected to regular attacks on their livelihoods.

He said that the fishing communities across the country are the true indigenous people of this area and are the custodians of marine resources, but that the state has never acknowledged their importance to society and continues to encroach upon marine resources as if they are a commodity that should be sold at all costs.

Aasim Sajjad said that the government’s overall policy paradigm is based on an extremely short-sighted concept of ‘development’.

Mustaf Talpur said it is crucial that the Diamond Bar City project is resisted by a wide array of social and political forces.