Balochistan, Pakistan, is grappling with a deepening crisis as reports reveal that 99 individuals have been forcibly disappeared in just the month of October 2024.
This stark figure lays bare the grim reality of enforced disappearances—a phenomenon that has become increasingly brutal, particularly in the last fortnight where six additional cases have been documented, including the alarming abduction of three young men during a poetry event.
The three victims, identified as Ismail, Imran, and Dr. Liaquat Ali, were seized by Pakistani forces during a raid at a local market while en route to commemorate a prominent cultural figure.
Such occurrences are not isolated incidents; they exemplify a growing trend that is casting a long shadow over civil liberties and human rights in the region.
According to The Balochistan Post, the landscape of Balochistan continues to be marred by a chilling count of over twenty years of disappearances encompassing students, activists, journalists, and ordinary civilians. Entire families remain frozen in a state of anguish and uncertainty, clinging to hope for the return of their missing loved ones.
The chilling statistics, come just as the United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) has released its latest report on Pakistan, offering key recommendations aimed at improving the country’s human rights record. The report was presented during Pakistan’s second review under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
For many, this anguish is compounded by the physical absence of fathers as thousands of children grow up longing for paternal affection and guidance.
Protesters like Sammi Deen Baloch and Mehlab Deen Baloch have spent their formative years in protest camps, relentlessly advocating for their fathers' return—often confronting deafening silence in the process.
In some instances, women find themselves in a state of agonising limbo, uncertain if they have become widows, while elderly parents grapple with the despair of never knowing if they will see their sons again.
Many pass away clinging to the vestiges of hope, never receiving answers or closure.
Human rights organisations combined with Baloch nationalists have pointed fingers at Pakistan’s intelligence agencies and security forces as the principal culprits behind these enforced disappearances.
However, the Pakistani government continues to refute these allegations, presenting a façade of normalcy in the face of systemic human rights violations. Activists and rights groups have gathered evidence that paints a grim picture, suggesting a pervasive and worsening climate of fear.
The enduring silence from governmental bodies has led rights advocates to adamantly call for accountability. They are demanding that the Pakistani government not only adhere to international human rights standards but also undertakes thorough investigations into these disappearances that continue to proliferate.
As October starts to fade, the heart-wrenching statistic of three forced disappearances per day serves as a glaring reminder of the suffering endured by families across Balochistan.
As the count of missing persons continues to rise, families across the region are left hoping for resolution, their joys marred by loss, with many clinging to the thin thread of hope that their loved ones might one day return, transcending the chilling narrative that has taken hold in Balochistan.
The Star