(Representative image) | Baloch activists join London Kashmir march, call for united stand against rights abuses in Pakistan
Baloch activists gathered in Bremen, Germany, to protest against what they described as a worsening human rights crisis in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, accusing Pakistani authorities of enforced disappearances, custodial killings and collective punishment. Organised by the Baloch National Movement (BNM), the demonstration called on the international community and human rights organisations to intervene, citing fresh allegations of military raids and civilian abuses in Gwadar district.Addressing the gathering, BNM speakers alleged that Pakistani authorities were carrying out large-scale collective punishment against the people of Balochistan. They claimed enforced disappearances and custodial killings had become routine, while homes were being demolished and families forcibly displaced.The group also highlighted what it described as the psychological toll of enforced disappearances on families.”They further stated that the uncertainty created by enforced disappearances develops into deep psychological trauma. It is no longer only the issue of the disappeared individual but becomes the suffering of entire families. Mothers wait daily for any news, fathers live under severe mental stress and helplessness, while children grow up in fear and emotional instability. Life does not remain normal, and even routine daily activities become difficult,” the BNM stated.According to the organisation, families of political activists face sustained pressure beyond the disappearance of their relatives.”The speakers further emphasised that, based solely on an individual’s political activities or affiliations, their family members are subjected not only to psychological, financial, and social harm but, in some cases, are also killed to intensify pressure and spread fear within Baloch society. Families of the disappeared are often forced into silence; nevertheless, they continue to receive bodies of their loved ones, killed in custody by the Pakistan Army,” it added.The BNM further alleged that over the past two days, the Pakistan Army had carried out repeated raids in Panwan village and surrounding areas of Gwadar district, demolishing several homes and subjecting more than 60 people to enforced disappearance. It also claimed that five of those who had disappeared were later killed in custody and their bodies dumped.Describing the broader situation in the province, the organisation said Balochistan had become increasingly isolated from international scrutiny.”This situation reflects the overall state of Balochistan, which has been turned into a media black hole. News from Balochistan rarely reaches the international press, allowing the Pakistani state to violate human rights with absolute impunity,” the BNM stated.The group alleged that Panwan had repeatedly been targeted by the Pakistan Army in recent years, with numerous young men from the area disappearing for prolonged periods.It further claimed that military operations along Gwadar’s coastal belt were driven not only by efforts to counter the Baloch insurgency but also by a bid to tighten control over what it described as lucrative international smuggling routes.”The Army’s smuggling interests along the coast are a major driver of these actions. While the state frames these actions as a response to the Baloch liberation movement, that is only one dimension; it primarily serves as a convenient pretext for the Pakistan Army,” it noted.The BNM also alleged that similar tactics had previously been used in villages along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor route, including repeated raids, enforced disappearances, the burning of homes and sexual violence, resulting in the displacement of residents from dozens of villages.Concluding the protest, the organisation appealed to neighbouring countries, the international community and human rights organisations to recognise what it described as the deteriorating situation in Balochistan and take steps to halt the “genocide of the Baloch nation”.Pakistan has consistently rejected allegations of systematic human rights abuses in Balochistan, maintaining that its security operations target militant groups involved in insurgency and terrorism in the province.
