Author: Adil Baloch
Pakistan introduced the kill and dump policy in 2009 after killing three prominent Baloch leaders Ghulam Muhammad Baloch, Lala Muneer Baloch and Sher Muhammad Baloch and later dumped their bodies in the River of Murgaap, Kech. It was a clear message to all the Baloch leaders and activists who were involved in the independence movement of Balochistan that if you don’t stop your demand for an independent Balochistan then be ready to face the consequences.
Over the years, we’ve seen many Baloch leaders and activists, who were actively involved in the independence movement of Balochistan, get abducted and killed by the Pakistani ISI and Military forces. Those who were lucky managed to flee Pakistan and take refuge in the western countries. Sometimes i think what would’ve happened to them if they didn’t manage to escape Pakistan? Two things come to my mind, first is that they would’ve suffered the same fate as their leaders Ghulam Muhammad Baloch, Lala Muneer Baloch and Sher Muhammad Baloch and the second is that maybe they would’ve went missing for over a decade like Zakir Majeed Baloch, Ramzan Baloch and Dr Deen Muhammad Baloch.
Even those who’ve managed to escape Pakistan were already victims of Pakistan’s torture. They’ve been abducted and kept in the Pakistani military’s secret torture cells for months and years. They were lucky to be released by the Pakistani army but they’re still haunted by the traumatic memories of the dark torture cells of Pakistani military forces and they haven’t managed to recover from all the torture they’d suffered in the dark dungeons of Pakistani army.
It was made evident by the Pakistani government that there’s no place for any kind of peaceful politics or activism in Balochistan. The outcome for anyone who demanded independence for Balochistan was abduction and death. Some of those who were brave enough to challenge the establishment like the martyrs of Gwadar, Lala Hameed Baloch, Comrade Qayyum Baloch, Ahmed Daad Baloch, Mehboob Wadhela Baloch and Rehman Arif Baloch were all abducted and killed one by one.
Even after banning all the nationalist parties and any kind of activism, the abduction and killings of the Baloch people hasn’t stopped. Anyone who demands for basic living rights goes missing or gets killed in Balochistan. Even those who haven’t had any connection or involvement in politics are also not spared. Hayat Baloch, an ordinary Baloch student of Karachi university who was on vacation at his hometown Absor, Kech was shot 8 times infront of his parents in broad daylight by the Frontier Corps (FC) forces of Pakistan. Recently, two minor Baloch siblings 6 year old Gazzain Jameel and 10 year old Sanam Jameel were abducted by Pakistani army on 18th October 2021 from Washuk, Balochistan.
The situation in Balochistan is getting worse day by day. The introduction of the new policy of fake encounters of Baloch missing persons by the so called Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) of Pakistan shows that the Pakistani army is not interested in slowing down the Baloch genocide anytime soon. According to a report from The Balochistan Post “The Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) of Pakistan recently claimed that it had killed five members of a Baloch “pro-independence” group in a firefight. Baloch National Movement (BNM), a nationalist political party, has identified two of the murdered individuals as its members and claimed that they were Baloch missing persons. BNM identified Saddam Ismail, a resident of Dasht, Kech and Abdul Ghani Liaquat, a resident of Soorak, Kech. BNM said that Saddam worked as a labourer in the United Arab Emirates. He had returned to Pakistan for vacation when he was detained by the Pakistani forces in a raid on the house he was staying at in Karachi. Abdul Ghani was also in the custody of Pakistani army for the past four years. He was forcibly disappeared by the Pakistani security forces from Zero Point in Pasni when he was returning to his home from Karachi, where he worked as a menial worker.”
The Pakistani military forces are committing a systematic genocide of Baloch people and the silence of International Media and Human Rights Bodies is alarming. The Baloch leadership have always demanded for UN intervention in Balochistan but the international organisations seem to turn a blind eye when it comes to Pakistani army’s atrocities in Balochistan. Pakistan has been given an free hand to kill, disappear and torture Baloch people. People are getting forcibly abducted, mutilated dead bodies are found dumped on the roadside, unidentifiable bodies are found from mass graves which are buried without any identification, military operations are being carried out on a daily basis. The Human Rights violation in Balochistan is serious and sooner the world realises it, the better.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of The Balochistan Post or any of its editors.