‘Enforced disappearances’ on the rise in Pakistan’s Balochistan province

Balochistan [Pakistan], June 14 (ANI): The cases of “enforced disappearances” are rising in Pakistan’s Balochistan as 16 people were reportedly “abducted” by the country’s security forces in the month of June alone, said the Balochistan Post.

Four of them were abducted on June 12 allegedly by the security forces in Kech district of Balochistan, whereas another went missing on June 11.

According to sources, Pakistani forces arrested and took away four Baloch youngsters on June 12 to an undisclosed location, after a raid in Kech district. The abductees have been identified as Abdullah, Sohrab, Guharam, and Sattar.

In another incident, a Baloch man identified as Dawood Lateef was allegedly abducted by the Frontier Corps (FC) during a raid in Aabsur, Turbat city on June 11.

In the month of June itself, cases of ‘enforced disappearances’ have seen a rapid rise in Balochistan. On June 11, three persons were reportedly “abducted”. The victims were identified as Sameer Murad and Rustam Hassan of Kech district and Waseem, son of Shareef of Khuzdar.

Previously, Pakistani forces on June 8 allegedly abducted two Baloch students near Bolan Medical College. The students were identified as Qasim and Bilal.

On the same day, another case of enforced disappearance was reported in Quetta. According to the sources, a Baloch mountain climber Mansoor Qambrani, member of a hiking group ‘Mureed Adventure’, was reportedly abducted from Quetta, the capital city of Balochistan.

On June 7, three Baloch youngsters, identified as Yasir, Bahadur Khan and Ghulam Qadir were reportedly abducted from the Khuzdar and Kalat districts of Balochistan.

Prior to that on June 3, two Baloch men were allegedly arrested and moved to an unknown location by the security forces. Voice for Baloch Missing Persons has been campaigning against the ‘enforced disappearances’ in Balochistan for over a decade.

The organization has stressed that “on one hand, state forces are releasing a small number of previously abducted people but the number of new abductions in Balochistan are rising at a much higher pace.” (ANI)