JSMM Chairman urges UN to hold Pakistan accountable for rights abuses, ethnic oppression

Frankfurt [Germany], September 22 (ANI): With the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly currently underway, Shafi Burfat, the Chairman of Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz (JSMM), has released an open letter demanding global attention toward Pakistan's treatment of its ethnic minorities and national movements.
In the letter, Burfat has accused Pakistan of being built on religious manipulation and using it to oppress historical nations such as the Sindhis, Baloch, Pashtuns, Saraikis, and Brahuis. He has claimed that these communities have been politically sidelined, economically exploited, and culturally erased for decades.
According to Burfat, Pakistan's power structures, including the military, intelligence services, and diplomatic corps are overwhelmingly controlled by ethnic Punjabis, creating an imbalance that leaves other nations under effective occupation. He has described this as a modern form of slavery.
The letter also outlines serious allegations of enforced disappearances, torture, and state-sponsored violence against political activists, journalists, and civil society members. Burfat has highlighted how voices of dissent are often labeled as terrorists and silenced through brutal means.
He also condemns what he sees as the deliberate erasure of indigenous cultures, including native languages and historical identities. Burfat has further accused the Pakistani state of supporting religious extremism and terrorism, both within its borders and in the region, to serve its political goals.
In his appeal to world leaders, Burfat urges the United Nations to reconsider Pakistan's participation in global platforms without accountability. He believes that allowing Pakistan to speak at such forums without scrutiny only legitimises oppression.
The letter makes two key demands: first, that the international community recognise the right to self-determination for Pakistan's historical nations; and second, that freedom movements not be dismissed or labeled as terrorist organisations. Burfat has also called for legal proceedings in international courts against those responsible for what he describes as ongoing atrocities. (ANI)