HYDERABAD: Lawyers and journalists as well as media personnel held condolence meetings, vigils and demonstrations in almost all towns of the interior of Sindh on Tuesday, the second day of a three-day mourning being observed across the country for the many people, most of them lawyers, who lost their lives in the suicide bomb attack at Quetta Civil Hospital on Monday.

Proceedings at all courts in Sindh remained suspended for a second consecutive day in line with the call for mourning and protest given by the Pakistan Bar Council and its provincial chapters.

In Hyderabad, funeral prayer in absentia was offered at the High Court Bar Association (HCBA) office, where its president, Ayaz Tunio, announced a meeting of the executive committee to be held on Wednesday.

He and general secretary Hameedullah Dahiri spoke at the association’s general body meeting. At a separate meeting of protesting lawyers, Hyderabad District Bar Association president Basharat Memon and general secretary Imdad Unnar demanded a decisive action against terrorist and fool-proof security to the legal fraternity, judges, journalists, media workers and all other citizens.

Journalists held Fateha khwani and a candlelight vigil to pay respect to fellow cameramen, Mahmood Khan and Shahzad Khan, who were among the victims of the Quetta carnage. They also held a protest demonstration outside the local press club.

SUKKUR: No proceedings could be held at any court in Sukkur district on Tuesday as lawyers stayed away from courts to mourn the death of a large number of their colleagues in the Quetta carnage.

At a condolence and protest meeting held at the Sukkur High Court Bar Association office, Advocate Qurban Malano, Hadi Bux Bhatt, Zulfiqar Naich and others paid homage to their dead fellows after offering funeral prayers in absentia.

Later, protesting lawyers held a rally demanding immediate arrest of those behind the assassination of Balochistan Bar Association president Bilal Anwar Kasi and the suicide bombing.

Ghulam Murtaza Korai, Sikandar Junejo, Qurban Kalwar, Farah Deeba Baloch and others lawyers led another demonstration held outside the Sukkur District Bar Association office and the district & sessions court.

Similar condolence meetings, vigils, demonstrations and rallies were held in many cities and towns of Khairpur, Dadu, Badin, Mithi, Shaheed Benazirabad, Larkana, Qambar-Shahdadkot, Mirpurkhas and Umerkot districts where lawyers observed a boycott of court proceedings.

Published in Dawn, August 10th, 2016