No hope of justice, says brother of slain journalist Ijaz Mengal

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 14 February 2019

Five years after journalist Ijaz Mengal's murder, his family feels hopeless in seeking justice. Despite the passage of time, his killers remain free.

Summary

KHUZDAR – The family of journalist Ijaz Mengal (pictured) has given up hope of being delivered justice, five years after his cold-blooded murder.

His elder brother Riaz Mengal tells JournalismPakistan.com that nothing much has been done by the authorities to arrest the killers.

Ijaz was gunned down on February 14, 2014, in Khuzdar, Balochistan when on his bike on the RCD Road.

Riaz, who is a former president of Khuzdar Press Club, said that it was unfortunate that the killers still roam free. “It shows that the police and the provincial government are not serious to arrest the murderers.”

Watchdogs see Khuzdar as a graveyard of journalists where eight media persons have been killed in as many years.

Riaz was kidnapped in October 2007 because of his work. He, however, managed to escape after 56 days in captivity. He continued to receive death threats and later had to flee his home town along with his family.

He pointed that after his brother’s murder, the family received threats not to bury him in Khuzdar. “We then buried him in interior Sindh.”

KEY POINTS:

• Ijaz Mengal was murdered on February 14, 2014, in Khuzdar.
• His family believes authorities are not serious about arresting the killers.
• Eight journalists have been killed in Khuzdar in recent years.
• The brother, Riaz Mengal, faced threats and was previously kidnapped.
• The family had to bury Ijaz in Sindh due to threats in Khuzdar.