In a press conference held in Quetta on Friday, Balochistan government representatives presented a registered Baloch missing person in front of the media and presented him as a “surrendered” commander of the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), an armed “pro-independence” group. The man, identified as Talat Aziz, was presented to the media by Balochistan Government Minister Abdul Rehman Khetran, government spokesperson Shahid Rind, and IG CTD Balochistan.
According to media records, Talat Aziz, the son of Professor Abdul Aziz Shahwani of Sheikhan College, was forcibly disappeared from Sariab Road, Quetta, on August 25, 2024. Sources reported that Talat was handed over to Levies officers and investigator Ismatullah near the Kangri area of Musakhel on August 28, 2024. He was later transferred to the Quetta police station on August 29.
After being held in the Quetta police station for three months, authorities presented Talat Aziz as a commander of the BLA during the press conference. This, however, is not the first time that individuals who were previously disappeared have been presented as members of various organizations in Balochistan.
Such actions have been seen as part of a broader strategy to suppress Baloch student organizations and peaceful protest movements in the region. In previous years, there have been similar press conferences followed by reports of fake encounters where individuals were killed. For example, in 2015, Balochistan’s Chief Minister and then-Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti held a press conference where Shafqat Rodini, a resident of Khuzdar, and Ibrahim Nechari, a resident of Kalat, were presented as members of the BLA. Both were later killed in a fake encounter.
Another similar case occurred last year when a Baloch woman named Mahal Baloch was presented as a suicide bomber in Quetta. However, the court later acquitted her, declaring her innocent.
These incidents have drawn strong criticism from international human rights organizations. Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan have both expressed deep concerns over such cases, warning that they pose a significant threat to the human rights situation in Balochistan.