Author: Fahad Baloch
The enforced disappearance of a person is a sign of blockading and confined encirclement of a person’s liberty of movement. Here, it has become a common act against the Baloch for last five decades, which began with the abduction of Asad Ullah Mengal and his friend Ahmed Shah. Asad Ullah Mengal’s whereabouts are still not traced.
This trend did not freeze there and is continued in an incessantly manner against the Baloch masses who, as a nation, have been suffering to date. After the disappearance of Asad Ullah Mengal, rest of Baloch – particularly students – were at a point that they might be abduct by the LEAs (Law Enforcement Agencies). But the abduction of Zakir Majeed (A Baloch student leader) and Dr Deen Muhammad Baloch (an MBBS Doctor at Ornach Hospital from Mashkay) fostered a reprehensive state of circumstances for the other Baloch in general and for students in particular.
From here on, a deluge of unbinding and elevated form of disappearances commenced. Many Baloch political, social, human and Baloch rights activists have been whisked away, allegedly by LEAs, including teachers, professors, doctors, advocates, lawyers, students and the other common masses. Some belonged to Baloch mass parties and some from student organisations, but most of them were not even the members of any organization or party.
The recent wave of enforced disappearances of students from the precincts of universities is now an other embodiment of collective punishment. Students of different universities are being picked up secretly by armed men. This is now intensifying in the agitation and panic of the other students studying in higher institutes inside Balochistan and outside as well.
The state, on one side, is claiming for bringing peace and furnishing of better educational quality and, on the other hand, it has insisted not to let the Baloch students obtaining education in a free environment. We may take this claim of the state as a simulacrum. Because these all acts are being practiced by state which has contradiction between the claim and practice.
These acts are the mark of confliction in its own constitution. As in the constitution, it is defined and prescribed that neither an individual will be abducted nor will be imprisoned without a lawful justification.
An Act, known as Habeas Corpus 1679, discuses that “If any person is abducted/whisked away by LEAs, the state institutions are bound to produce the person before a public court with in 24 hours”. But in reality, it is not being so, which is a paradox to its own constitution.
This conflict is leading to a severe and tense set of circumstances for the Baloch students. We comprehend that we might be eliminated out soon, if the situations remain as such. The recent ‘abductions’ of Baloch students by LEAs from Karachi is bringing about a perturb situation. This act must be censured and denounced by all the international human rights organisations.
Because the state itself is not bound to follow its own constitution. This failure will surely lead the state towards basic human rights eradication and crisis. As, it has expressed and stated the fundamental rights for human (which include Freedom of speech, freedom of expression, Right to assemble, right to public meetings etc) in its constitution. Chapter 1 of the Constitution of Pakistan contains articles about the fundamental rights. Articles 8 to 28 of the constitution deals with all fundamental rights provided to the citizens.
But as the Baloch masses were protesting against the enforced disappearances of two Baloch students, Gamshad Baloch and Doda Ellahi Baloch (students of Philosophy department at University of Karachi) in Karachi, the police attacked on them and beaten-up with sticks at night and used force of violence to sabotage the protest and disperse the protesters. They also detained the activists including Sammi Deen Baloch (Deputy GS Voice for Baloch Missing Persons), Amna Baloch (Organiser Baloch Yekjehti Committee Karachi) and others while dragging them down. This was really a disgusting and a revolting moment for any living-conscious Baloch.
We, at last, appeal to the human rights commissions and organisations to take notice against the enforced abductions, extra judicial killings, detaining of women and baton charging women and children and other masses.
As summing-up the views in short that, being a Baloch is not easy here, because you have to face, brutalities, enforced abductions, being beaten by Police or by the Extremists Groups like Jamiat Islam etc, Unethical and roguish statements by the Politicians and also have to bear the chauvinistic comments from ill-matured cast of mindsets.