United Kingdom’s claims to be a champion of democracy and Human Rights is just a facade: Hyrbyair Marri

Pro-independence Baloch exiled leader and President of the Free Balochistan Movement, Hyrbyair Marri, said in a statement that the United Kingdom’s claims to be a champion of democracy and Human Rights is just a facade; it has double standards regarding Human Rights and it’s security and legal institutions are inherently racist.

Hyrbyair Marri said that British intelligence and political establishment criticised and sanctioned Russia because Alexei Navalny was poisoned and basic Human Rights such as access to health care not being respected, yet the British government’s attitude toward pro-independence Baloch activists is no different.

Hyrbyair Marri has never previously made a statement with regards to his personal matters or family, but on 21st December 2021, when he and a terminally ill family member – his wife – were being transferred from a London hospital to Germany, the UK intelligence tried their best to disrupt the process through the means of blackmail, pressure, and the involvement of the vulnerable patient.

Mr Marri stated that when they were being transferred, the Intelligence agents had surrounded the ambulance on which they were brought to the airport – they had already been waiting for him at the gate before his arrival. “During the departure process, British intelligence agents arrived in plain clothes, without identifying themselves. I was stopped under Schedule 7 and brought to a building for investigation, during which, our mobile phones were confiscated.”  Mr Marri said that the British intelligence agents wanted passwords to both his and the family member’s personal mobile phones, to which he had refused to give consent.

Hyrbyair Marri said that “despite the medical situation, the British Authorities who knew very well that their actions would disrupt and delay the entire emergency flight and witnessed the severity of the patient’s condition, refused to return our phones. I was told that they would not allow me to accompany my wife who was on a stretcher, onto the plane to Germany unless I complied with their coercive demands and blackmailing, despite knowing I was the carer and only family member accompanying her.”

The mobile phones had personal and necessary documents such as Digital Registration on Entry and Covid19 PCR test results of Mr Marri and the terminally ill family member. Mr Marri had stated that these were necessary to legally enter and travel abroad, particularly as Germany restricted non-German citizens to arrive from the UK from the 19th of December 2021 onwards but made exceptions for medical emergencies.

“I was told that it is my [your] ‘problem’ as to whether German authorities will allow the patient without a COVID pass or proof of vaccination, despite knowing that these documents were only accessible on our mobile phones.” Thus, putting the patient at the risk of being rejected entry to Germany for urgent medical care, unless Mr Marri complied to disclosing the passwords to their – the patient and Hyrbyair Marri- personal phones.

To highlight: the family member has no involvement in Hyrbyair Marri’s political involvement and yet the British Intelligence Agency involved the terminally ill patient, violating her privacy and rights, and unethically using the personal emergency as leverage to pressure Hyrbyair Marri into complying to their unjustified demands. Mr Marri asks if there are any international organisations who would take up this case and further investigate the violation of Human Rights through force, arm-twisting and confiscating personal possessions of a terminally ill patient with no political involvement.

Hyrbyair Marri says that, in spite of Pakistan’s direct involvement in the death of more than 400 British soldiers in Helmand, Afghanistan, the British establishments would go to any length to appease the killer of their own soldiers. The British government can claim whatever they want regarding Human Rights, but the reality is that there is not much difference between Boris Johnson’s government and the Abdel Fattah el-Sisi administration when it comes to the violation of Human Rights.