Baloch Activist Highlights Enforced Disappearances Crisis in Pakistan

Baloch activist Hakeem Baloch accuses Pakistan of using enforced disappearances as a control strategy in Balochistan, involving increasing numbers of women and children. He urges international intervention, highlighting the UK's historical responsibilities. Alleging state propaganda, he calls for accountability as global silence persists in enabling these human rights abuses.

Baloch activist Hakeem Baloch has charged Pakistan's security forces with continuing to use enforced disappearances as a controlling strategy in Balochistan. Despite international scrutiny, these abductions increasingly include women and children, reflecting intensified state repression, according to Baloch's interview with ANI.

He alleges that targeting women is a calculated move by Pakistani authorities to pressure families and undermine involvement in the Baloch movement. Women leaders from the Baloch Yakjehti Committee, central to rallying protests, have now become 'direct targets,' he claims. State authorities allegedly justify these arrests using 'baseless propaganda,' linking the women to armed groups without presenting evidence in courts.

Baloch argues that enforced disappearances inflict physical trauma on victims and psychological distress on families. Despite the state's efforts, he claims it is 'failing to crush the Baloch national movement,' resorting to such tactics as suppression. He calls on the international community, particularly the UK, to acknowledge its historical role and demand accountability for these ongoing human rights violations.

(With inputs from agencies.)