Veteran human rights defender and Vice Chairman of Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP), Mama Qadeer Baloch, has been hospitalized in critical condition, according to a statement released by the organization. He was admitted to Aria Hospital in Quetta after his health deteriorated significantly, marking the third such emergency in recent months.
Mama Qadeer Baloch is widely regarded as one of the most persistent and powerful voices against enforced disappearances in Balochistan. For over 16 years, he has led a continuous protest camp in Quetta, demanding the recovery of missing persons and justice for the families left behind. His activism includes leading the historic long march from Quetta to Karachi and onward to Islamabad, a protest that drew national and international attention to the plight of the forcibly disappeared.
VBMP has appealed to the Baloch public and supporters around the world to pray for Mama Qadeer’s recovery.
Despite Mama Qadeer’s absence due to hospitalization, the protest camp he founded continued on Friday, reaching its 5897th consecutive day. VBMP Chairman Nasrullah Baloch is currently leading the sit-in at Quetta Press Club.
Various civil society members, activists, students, and citizens from different walks of life visited the camp to express solidarity with the families of the disappeared and inquire about Mama Qadeer’s well-being.