[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 160 (Thursday, September 27, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1327-E1328]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    DISAPPEARANCES AND DAMS IN SINDH

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BRAD SHERMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 27, 2018

  Mr. SHERMAN. Mr. Speaker, as the Ranking Member of the Asia and the 
Pacific Subcommittee and the founder and chair of the Sindh 
Congressional Caucus, I have long focused on the human rights 
conditions in Pakistan. I have long urged Pakistan's government to 
ensure the human rights of its citizens and uphold the rule of law. 
This is especially true in Sindh province. Today, I wish to discuss two 
issues currently confronting the Sindhi community: enforced 
disappearances and the construction of dams along the Indus River.
  The most egregious problem in Sindh is enforced disappearances. The 
United Nations defines enforced disappearances as ``the arrest, 
detention, abduction or any other form of deprivation of liberty by 
agents of the State or by persons or groups of persons acting with the 
authorization, support or acquiescence of the State, followed by a 
refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of liberty or by concealment of 
the fate or whereabouts of the disappeared person.'' Hidyat Lohar 
(Loohaar),

[[Page E1328]]

Khadim Arijo, and Aqib Chandio are just three of the hundreds of people 
in Sindh who have been forcefully disappeared. Often times, these 
people later turn up dead, and no justice is ever served. To give just 
one example, Dr. Anwar Laghari was murdered three years ago, and no 
perpetrator has been brought to justice. In fact, no one has even been 
charged.
  Another issue plaguing Sindh province is the construction of dams and 
canals along the Indus River. Sindh province's economic well-being 
depends on having sufficient access to the water supplied by the Indus 
River. For decades, Sindh and Punjab provinces have shared this vital 
water supply. Recently, however, the Pakistani government has taken to 
unilaterally constructing dams and canals along the river without Sindh 
province's consent. This has increasingly choked off Sindh's water 
supply, threatening the province's economic viability.
  These problems must be addressed. I urge the Trump administration to 
raise these issues with the new Pakistani government starting with 
Secretary of State Pompeo, who is meeting with the Pakistani Foreign 
Minister on October 2.

                          ____________________