VBMP marks 16 years of protest, warns of rising enforced disappearances in Balochistan

Quetta [Pakistan], June 14 (ANI): The Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) marked the 5,849th day of its continuous protest camp outside the Quetta Press Club on Thursday, intensifying its call for justice in the face of a worsening crisis of enforced disappearances across Balochistan.
Founded in 2009, VBMP has become a symbol of resistance and resilience in the struggle to recover thousands of Baloch individuals allegedly abducted by Pakistani security forces.
For over 15 years, the group has documented cases, led protests in Quetta and Karachi, and demanded accountability from the Pakistani state, which continues to deny involvement in these disappearances.
As per The Balochistan Post, VBMP Vice Chairman Mama Qadeer Baloch stated that May witnessed over 100 new cases of enforced disappearance and more than 20 extrajudicial killings. He warned that the practice of custodial killings is resurging with alarming intensity.
"The situation in Mashkay is on the verge of a massacre," said Mama Qadeer, referencing the June 11 killing of Ali Muhammad, s/o Hakeem and Nazar s/o Jan Muhammad. Both men, previously reported missing, were found dead at a hospital. Family members accuse military officials of torturing and killing them in custody.
Dozens of civil society members, journalists, students, and political workers visited the VBMP camp to express solidarity with the families. "There is no sign of this tragedy ending. Every day, more families join us in grief," said Mama Qadeer.
VBMP called on international human rights organisations and the United Nations to intervene immediately, warning that continued silence would result in further loss of life. "The longer the delay, the more bodies will fall, and the worse the situation will become," he said.
The VBMP protest remains one of South Asia's longest-running human rights demonstrations, a persistent reminder of the unresolved trauma faced by thousands of Baloch families. (ANI)