The Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) said that the Pakistani authorities have not taken any solid measures to end “enforced disappearances” in Balochistan. The group said that we have asked the Pakistani authorities to criminalize the practice and fix responsibility on the people behind these disappearances.
VBMP Chairman Nasrullah Baloch said that those guilty of a crime should be legally prosecuted, and the families of the missing persons should be supported and compensated by the government. He said that the law criminalizing “enforced disappearances” in Pakistan has not been put into practice effectively. He said that the United Nations and rights groups had their reservations about the sincerity of the Pakistani government and the implementation of the law against enforced disappearances. He said that we appeal to the government to work with the United Nation’s Committee on Enforced Disappearances and other rights groups and officially make the bill a part of the constitution. He said that if the authorities ignore our demands, we will organize protests throughout Balochistan and in other major cities, like Karachi and Islamabad.
Mama Qadeer Baloch said that history bears witness that the Baloch nation has always stood up for its national interest and rights. He said that whenever someone has raised their voice for their rights, they have been pressured into silence. The rulers of this country violently quell any resistance against their rule. The security forces – the FC, the CTD, Police – are systemically “abducting” and killing innocent Baloch civilians only because they dare to raise their voice for their rights.
Enforced disappearances have become a major human rights crisis in Balochistan. Every year, hundreds of political and rights activists, journalists, writers and student leaders are picked up on an arbitrary basis and thrown into dungeons. According to the VBMP, tens of thousands of Baloch have gone missing in the past two decades and only a handful of them have returned, and these suffer from all sorts of psychological issues like PTSD, depression and even memory loss.
The practise has become prevalent in Balochistan – barely a day passes by without the news of someone’s abduction somewhere. On Tuesday, for example, the dead body of a Baloch missing person was found in the coastal region of western Balochistan. He was identified as Younas Baloch s/o Muhammad Dawood, a resident of eastern Balochistan, who went missing a few days ago, allegedly at the hands of Pakistani intelligence agencies. His dead body was found on the coastline in Chabahar.