Balochistan to Sindh: A heap of mutilated bodies

By Fateh Jan Baloch

Pakistan has started its latest phase of abductions, Kill and dump policy in Balochistan after the abduction and subsequent killing of Baloch political leaders Ghulam Mohammad Baloch, Lala Munir Baloch and Sher Mohammad Baloch in April 2009. It is an inhuman and heinous crime which continues with full impunity till date. Baloch sources claim that more than 1600 bodies of previously abducted Baloch were found dumped across Balochistan and Karachi since 2009 and another 169 bodies were found from three mass graves in Khuzdar, Balochistan in January this year.

On the other hand, the enforced-disappearances of Baloch political activists also continue unabated. According to Voice for Baloch Missing Persons around 20000 Baloch have been abducted by Pakistani security forces since the beginning of the new phase of Baloch liberation struggle in early 2001. Baloch pro-liberation forces and Human Rights Organisation put the blame of these crimes on Pakistan where the intelligence agencies of Pakistan are involved in these crimes against humanity directly and indirectly.

Last year the Voice for Baloch Missing Persons walked a track of 3000 km to from Balochistan to Islamabad to highlight the enforced-disappearances in Balochistan. The marchers instead of being welcomed were threatened, intimidated and met with hostility as they entered Punjab. Hamid Mir, Pakistani Journalist, who dared to call the relatives of Baloch Missing Persons on his TV show ‘Capital Talk’ was later shot and seriously wounded. Mr Mir and his family accused the ISI of the deadly attack on him.

After these barbaric acts in Balochistan, the Pakistani state functionaries have expanded their ‘abducted, kill and dump’ policy to Sindh where the intelligence agencies have started to kill the pro-freedom Sindhi activists exactly in the same manner that they have been doing in Balochistan. The Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz, Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (Bashir Qureshi), Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (Aresar), Jeay Sindh Tehreek and their student wings are the prime target of state forces in Sindh. Pakistan security forces have been abducting the pro-freedom Sindhi activists from past many years but it initiated the kill and dump policy with the killing of Vice Chairman of Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz Mr Sarai Qurban along with his five friends. They were set alight while still alive. So far Pakistani forces killed Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz General Secretary Muzzafar Bhutto, they poisoned Sindh Qaumi Mahaz leader Bashir Khan Qureshi and several other pro-freedom Sindhi activists from different areas of Sindh.

According to the Asian Human Rights Commission at least, one hundred Sindhi activists were abducted in 2014. In November alone of Kamlesh Sindhi, Fayaz Sheikh were disappeared and Paryal Shah was killed (his brother Zamin Shah was killed in a staged encounter earlier). It is pertinent to mention that Paryal had been receiving threats since he hosted the Voice for Baloch Missing Persons Long March last year. The mutilated body of Sindh Qaumi Mahaz Abdul Wahid Lashari was also discovered in November. On 25 November the body of Mutahida Mahaz district leader Asif Phanwar was recovered. Asif was abducted from a friend’s house on 15 August 2014. The Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz had given a Sindh-wise protest call on 30 November to protest state’s abduction and kill and dump policy in Sindh. Along with other Sindhi nationalist parties, the Baloch National Movement and the Baloch Republican Party has issue news statement in support the JSMM protest. Bodies of two JSMM activists have been found after the Sindh-wide protest on 1^st December 2014.

In a recent report, the Asian Human Rights Commission has alleged that Pakistani state forces are involved in crimes against humanity in Sindh in the same manner that it has been committing in Balochistan. The report also alleged that Pakistan was strengthening religious groups by giving them impunity to counter the Sindhi people’s nationalist movement. The AHRC also appealed Pakistan to end extrajudicial killings and arbitrary arrests.

Since long the Baloch pro-liberation forces have been saying that Pakistan has disappeared thousands of Baloch activists and killed hundreds in custody. They have also been urging the international community to intervene and play their role to stop this human tragedy. But, so far there is been no the international community and international Human Rights Organisations failed to take any tangible action against state atrocities in Balochistan. Due to the silence of UN and other Humanitarian organisation and the International impunity, Pakistan has expanded its crimes against humanity to Sindh now. If the international community continues to remain silent, the history of Holocaust will be repeated in the region [against Sindhis and Baloch] and this time Pakistani ISI and other intelligence agencies will play the role of Gestapo.