Three more cases of enforced disappearances have emerged from Quetta, the capital city of Balochistan, on Thursday.
According to eyewitnesses, Pakistani forces have allegedly detained three Baloch youths from the Killi Shahnawaz area of Quetta and have subsequently shifted them to an undisclosed location.
The detainees have been identified as Sohail Shahwani, Shoaib Sumalani, and Sajawal. The local authorities have not yet commented on the matter.
It’s pertinent to mention that enforced disappearances are not uncommon in Balochistan, as every upcoming day sees new cases emerging from different parts of the region. On the other hand, families of the victims continue to record their protests against the enforced disappearances for over a decade.
Recently, Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti made a controversial statement regarding forced disappearances, terming these cases as “self-disappearances”, which provoked criticism and outcry from the rights activists and victim families across Balochistan and Pakistan.
It should be noted that in some cases, Pakistani forces have taken the youths into custody and confirmed their arrest, publishing their photos in the media, but later their arrest was denied by the authorities. In a similar incident that took place on August 31, 2018, in Zangi Navar, a recreational area of Nushki, several people were arrested, and their tortured photos were published on social media and in newspapers, but no case was filed against them, and their locations are still unknown to this date.
Among those arrested from Zangi Nawar, are missing Rasheed and Asif Baloch, the sister of whom is still protesting for the recovery of her brothers.