The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) on Thursday welcomed a statement by United Nations-appointed human rights experts condemning the life sentences imposed on its leaders Dr Mahrang Baloch and Sibghatullah Shahji.
The UN experts said on Wednesday they were “gravely alarmed” by the sentences handed down by an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Quetta and described Dr Mahrang’s punishment as a “travesty of justice”.
“Dr Baloch’s punishment is a travesty of justice, following an unfair trial and the misuse of counter-terrorism and murder charges to suppress peaceful protest and freedoms of association and expression,” the experts said in a joint statement.
They added that the right to a fair trial under international law “must always be respected”, even when national security or counter-terrorism measures are invoked, and called on Pakistan to comply with its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and its own constitutional guarantees.
Welcoming the intervention, the BYC said the experts had “rightly described” the convictions as a “travesty of justice” and recognised that counter-terrorism and murder charges had been used to criminalise the peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association.
“The experts have rightly described these convictions as a travesty of justice, underscoring that they stem from an unfair trial and the misuse of counter-terrorism and murder charges to criminalise the peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association,” the BYC statement said.
The BYC said its leaders had been detained for around 16 months and faced more than 50 cases, which it described as fabricated. For 26 days, it added, they had been subjected to “faceless trials”, proceedings they had consistently protested and boycotted.
Despite their refusal to accept state-appointed legal representation, lawyers were imposed on Dr Mahrang and Shahji against their wishes, the BYC said, adding that both were subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment while trials in several other cases remained under way.
The group urged the United Nations, foreign governments, international human rights organisations and civil society groups worldwide to maintain sustained attention on Balochistan and press Pakistan to end what it described as the persecution of human rights defenders.
The BYC reaffirmed its “unwavering commitment” to resisting injustice, promoting accountability and protecting the fundamental rights and dignity of the Baloch people.