A two-month-old infant is among the five Baloch ‘missing persons’, all of them from one family, who were released on Monday. The missing persons also include two women and two men who were allegedly picked up by the Pakistani forces from different locations.
The relatives of the five missing persons confirmed their alleged abduction at the hands of the Pakistani forces earlier in April and shifted to an FC camp. The lawyer representing the missing persons had filed a petition in the Balochistan High Court and the trials were underway when the five missing persons were released. The lawyer and the family members confirmed their release.
The five missing persons hail from the Gichk area of district Panjgoor and were identified as Abdul Rehman, Abdul Haq, Shah Bibi, Shahzadi and an infant who was 6 days old when they were picked up. The two men were detained on April 26 and the two women and the child were picked up a day after.
In an interview with BBC Urdu, a relative of the missing persons said that his two other relatives, Madad Baloch and Haroon Baloch, were detained by the Pakistani forces kept in an FC camp for three months and then released on the condition that they will confine themselves within the premises of their houses. They were reportedly told that even if they wanted to attend a wedding or a funeral, they would have to take permission from the FC camp before doing so. The relative said that Madad Baloch, a labourer in UAE, was tortured while in confinement and when he was released, he immediately fled to Dubai out of the fear that he may be hunted down once again.
The family members of the five missing persons and the rights campaigners blamed the Frontier Corps for their “abduction”, the FC denied the allegations and said that it is not involved in these disappearances.
Protests have erupted in different areas of Balochistan in the past few weeks over the disappearance of Baloch women and children. A large number of civilians have come out on roads in Panjgoor, Turbat, Karachi and Quetta against “enforced disappearances.” The protestors blocked major roads and highways in protest and said that the Baloch women are being arrested on make-believe charges.
“Enforced disappearances” have seen a spike in the past two months, especially since BLA’s deadly attack targeting Chinese nationals at Karachi University. Rights campaigners and student leaders claim that out of desperation, the Pakistani forces have cracked down on innocent civilians. The wave of “abductions” that began a few weeks ago has not subsided yet. As the five family members returned to their homes on Monday, ten others were picked up from different areas of Balochistan, including six members of one family. BNM leader Nasir Baloch confirmed the news on social media and said that human rights violations are rampant in Balochistan at the hands of the Pakistani forces.
The six family members were identified as Khuda Baksh and his sons Ali and Qadir, and Sanaullah and his sons Shabir and Hasan. They were picked up from Mackay, allegedly by the Pakistani security forces.
The Voice for Baloch Missing Persons also identified four others who were reportedly picked up by the Pakistani forces. VBMP said that Dost Muhammad s/o Khuda Baksh Marri and Muhammad Ismail s/o Kareem Khan Marri were picked up from New Kahan in Quetta in the middle of the night and their relatives Mangal s/o Ghulam Haidar Marri and Gulzar s/o Ali Murad Marri were detained from the Northern Bypass.