The Sindh Sabha long march was impeded from entering Punjab by the Pakistani security forces and several of its participants were reportedly manhandled and subsequently arrested on Wendesday.
Sindh Sabha long march was launched by the families of the Sindhi missing persons on November 10 from Karachi and was aimed to culminate in front of the General Headquarters (GHQ) of the Pakistani Army in Rawalpindi.
The march started from Karachi and passed through Hyderabad and various other cities of Sindh. It finally reached Ghotki, a district in northern Sindh, from where it was to enter Punjab. But the police barred the march from entering Punjab and arrested several of its participants.
Hani Gul Baloch, an activist, has also participated in the Sindh Sabha long march. She went missing along with her fiancée Muhammad Naseem in May 2019 from Karachi and was released after three months of confinement. Her fiancée remains missing to this day.
She told the media that the march was barred from entering the premises of Punjab by the police, who then told them that Inaam Abbasi – the leader of the march – had a First Information Report (FIR) filed against him, and he must, therefore, be arrested. Abbasi himself had gone missing but was released after some time. Since his release, he has been protesting in front of the Karachi Press Club against enforced disappearances and for the safe recovery of Sindhi missing persons.
Abbasi says after several days of protest, they were not approached by anyone and their pleas remained unheard. They then decided to launch a long march towards the General Headquarters of the Pakistani Army in Rawalpindi.
After not being allowed to continue the march, the participants protested on the highway, but the police forced them to back off. They then pitched a makeshift tent near the highway and staged a protest camp.
Hani Gul Baloch said that they had been told to take the coronavirus test, and only then they will be allowed to enter Punjab. She claims that despite the tests, they were not allowed to enter.
According to the sources, the police arrested several participants of the long march, including women and children, and locked them into jails. The political parties of the city approached the police and pleaded them to at least release the women, if not all of the arrestees, but the police did not budge.
One journalist told the media that he had contacted the relevant authorities on the issue, who then informed him that they were ordered not to let the long march enter the premises of Punjab.
Soorath Lohar, the convener of the Voice for Sindhi Missing Persons, said on Thursday that the social, political and nationalist parties of Sindh will hold protests in Larkana, Hyderabad, Nawabshah, Sukkur, Karachi and other cities of Sindh against the arrest of peaceful Sindhi long marchers.
She said that the act of stopping a peaceful protest with the use of force and violence is the peak of the “atrocities” and “aggression” of the state.
She said that the Voice for Missing Persons of Sindh, political parties and the civil society will organize a protest in front of the Karachi Press Club. The protest will continue until the arrested long marchers are released.