The year 2025 has not been very promising for the Baloch as a nation so far. In the Makoran region, enforced disappearances are outnumbered, with a new policy of targeting the Baloch scholars and those who were once forcibly disappeared by the forces. In the Jhalawan region, abductions and road blocks, in fact, in the holy month of Ramazan, have been the sole left option for the indigenous people to safeguard their fundamental rights. The Rakhshan division has faced communication and reporting issues where forced disappearances and state-killings have become a norm without being recorded or highlighted in the media and to the stakeholders. In Mashkay [of Awaran] alone, several cases of state-abductions have been reported with four of them killed in a staged encounter, while many others are yet pleading to be reported owing to the fearful atmosphere and lack of communication. In simple, the past two months have witnessed mourning for the Baloch.
The so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) road is continuously facing blocks by the families of abducted Baloch. Terming it “Protest Road” instead of M-8 or CPEC road would be more suitable, reflecting state’s unending policy of staged-killings and forced disappearances. Not a single day goes without the news of a disappearance from Balochistan involving the law enforcement agencies.
Because all the victims are civilians, they are never produced before a court of law. Not producing them before a court has two reasons: one, the forces cannot prove any charge because they themselves have no proof. Two, if they present them before the courts, it means they endorse the forced disappearances or arrests of the Baloch which is, as per Pakistani constitution and international laws and treaties, an illegal act.
Another important aspect is the cases going unreported in Balochistan. For example, only in Mashkay and Barkan areas, in the last one and a half month, several persons have been forcibly disappeared by the forces, but most of the cases are not coming out on media or on the record. When I managed to contact people from both the areas to confirm the data of the abductees, they said the families are reluctant to come on media for two reasons: one, due to excessive state pressures – directly and through their locally hired death squads. Two, they are ensured of their safe release in few days after necessary interrogations and if they report the cases, their persons would “not be released”. In both the situations, many cases go unreported, which is an even harder consequence.
Relying on the two reasons mentioned above, fear and hope, four lifeless bodies were shifted to Mashkay this month, who were forcibly disappeared a week ago before being executed. On the same day their bodies were transferred to the hospital, the same day the cases came to media. Had the cases appeared in the media earlier, perhaps, the fate of those killed in state’s fake-encounters would have been different.
I am not of the view either that bringing the cases to media would eliminate the tension of their persons from being killed illegally, but at least, that would contribute little in safeguarding them in one way or other – or even for the strengthening of the case, in case (God forbids), such an incident takes place. Silence, by all means, is an open invitation to further oppressions.
What we have not learnt from the past is that we take the state and its notorious institutions for granted. The more we drag ourselves back and believe on their, and their civil administrations, the more we are playing with the lives of our loved ones in state’s illegal and torture cells.