Author: Farooq Noor
Enforced disappearance has been a grave situation in Balochistan since the killing of stalwart Baloch leader Akbar Bugti by Pervaiz Musharraf, a dictator.
Since then thousands of Balochs have been abducted, killed and dumped across Balochistan. However, the recent bill on enforced disappearances, which has been proposed by a committee of Pakistani parliament due to the pressure of United Nations and international human rights organisations, is unable to stop the abductions rather it has aggravated the situation further.
A new stratagem of fake encounters with the help of Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) is being followed in recent times. Those missing persons which are registered with Voice For Baloch Missing Person (VBMP) are being brutally killed in the name of counter terrorism. Though, there are hundreds of witnesses but people fear the reprisal of abduction to themselves and therefore refuse to come forward. However, the family members who are the direct victims of state terrorism have revealed on social media that their loved ones were abducted, disseminating the dates and places of abductions, by the Army.
Today on the Day of Enforced disappearance, the minister for Human rights, Shireen Mazari, has revealed that they have unanimously passed the bill in the parliament and have been successful releasing some of missing persons and are tracing others. But she did not comment about the perpetrators and their punishment as the bill ensures a punishment for illegal detainment.
Thus, the political string of the government is with establishment and these ministers and Prime minister are their product who have no authority to implement the bill in the letter and spirit. The hopes of victim families are bonded with international community and international organizations who can pressurise establishment of Pakistan to immediately release all of the missing persons or face the sanctions.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of The Balochistan Post or any of its editors.