Families of Baloch missing persons carried out a sit-in protest in front of the Karachi Press Club for the safe release of their loved ones. VBMP Vice-Chairman Mama Qadeer Baloch and other Baloch activists joined the protest to raise their voice for the recovery of Baloch missing persons.
The protest was called by the family members of missing Abdul Hameed Zehri, a resident of Khuzdar, who was allegedly picked up from Karachi by the Pakistani security forces. The protestors carried placards and banners featuring his photo and called for his safe recovery.
Addressing the gathering, Zehri’s daughter said that the Pakistani security forces dressed in civilian clothes raided our house in Karachi in the middle of the night and forcefully abducted my father. She said that we went to confront the police for the illegal raid on our house and the abduction of my father, but they denied raiding our house. She said that my father is a diabetes patient and he needs the daily intake of his prescribed regimen. We are afraid that his health could critically deteriorate in prison, she said.
She said that we have now come out on the roads in pursuit of justice for Abdul Hameed Zehri. She said that people around the world happily welcomed the New Year and we are protesting for the recovery of our loved ones.
Mama Qadeer Baloch said that 2021 was a year of death and misery in Balochistan. Enforced disappearances and kill-and-dumps continued as families lamented the abduction of their loved ones. The New Year has begun the same: the families are once again on the roads asking for the release of their loved ones.
He called on national and international human rights groups to raise their voice for the release of Abdul Hameed Zehri.