Baloch rights group condemns violence against protesters

Balochistan [Pakistan], March 2 (ANI): The sit-in protest by the relatives of forcibly disappeared Baloch people entered its third day at the Hub Bhavani Bypass, where six affected families are protesting for the recovery of their kin, a statement by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee said.
The state administration has not been able to recover the forcibly disappeared people, nor is it ready to take legal action against the state army, as per the statement.
On the contrary, the affected families are being continuously threatened and harassed in the name of negotiations.

حب دھرنے کے شرکاء پر تشدد اور بلوچ خواتین کی گرفتاری ناقابل برداشت ہے – بلوچ یکجہتی کمیٹی

بلوچ جبری گمشدہ افراد کے لواحقین کا احتجاجی دھرنا گزشتہ تین دنوں سے حب بھوانی بائی پاس پر جاری ہے، جہاں چھ متاثرہ خاندان اپنے پیاروں کی بازیابی کے لیے سراپا احتجاج ہیں۔ ریاستی انتظامیہ نہ… pic.twitter.com/UF6z1dMtB1

— Baloch Yakjehti Committee (@BalochYakjehtiC) March 2, 2025

On Sunday, state troops and plainclothes intelligence agents brutally beat the protesters up, firing bullets and baton-charging them. Several people were arrested and shifted to an unknown location, including Seema Baloch, the sister of enforced disappearance victim Shabbir Baloch; Mazeeb Baloch, the niece of Rashid Baloch; and several women, including the frail mother of Zafar Geshkori.
The affected families are steadfast in their stand and are not ready to allow their kin to be turned into mutilated bodies or killed in fake encounters by state institutions. The sit-in in Hub continues despite intense state repression and arrests, as per BYC.
The Baloch Solidarity Committee (BYC) reiterated its commitment to stand with the families of the forcibly disappeared in this struggle and appeals to the entire Baloch nation, especially the people of Karachi and Hub, to immediately reach the Hub sit-in.
"We want to make it clear to the state that violence against unarmed protesters and arrests of Baloch women are absolutely unacceptable. We warn the Hub administration that if all those arrested, including Baloch women, are not released immediately, we will announce our future course of action, for which the full responsibility will rest with the state and the Hub administration," the statement read.
Earlier in the day, Paank strongly denounced the excessive use of force by Pakistani authorities against the families of victims of enforced disappearances in Hub, Balochistan.
As stated in a post shared by Paank on X, reports reveal that police employed tear gas, conducted baton charges, and arbitrarily arrested peaceful protesters, including elderly women and young activists, on Sunday. (ANI)