State To Justify Brutalities Through Fourth Schedule: Baloch Students Council

ISLAMABAD: The Baloch Students Council Islamabad has expressed serious concerns over the recent decision by the Pakistani federal government to place the names of Baloch activists in the Fourth Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act. The Council’s spokesperson condemned this move as an attempt by the state to legalise its ‘barbarism’ against the Baloch nation.

The BSC Islamabad highlighted in its statement that last week, the federal government granted the military the authority to arrest and detain individuals without trial for up to three months based on suspicion. This decision has been heavily criticized by Baloch students, activists, and the general populace, who see it as a legal manoeuvre to justify enforced disappearances.

According to media reports, provincial assembly centres will soon be established in Balochistan to detain individuals under this new authority. The Baloch Students Council said this action was part of a broader strategy to stifle peaceful activism and suppress the Baloch people’s rights.

The Council highlighted a troubling history of state violence against Baloch activists, noting that since 2009, the “kill and dump” policy has resulted in the enforced disappearance and murder of numerous political and human rights activists. Notable victims include Ghulam Mohammad Baloch, Sheer Mohammad Baloch, Lala Muneer, Qamber Chakar, Ilyas Nizar, Sangat Sana, and Comrade Qayyum. The Counter Terrorism Department has been accused of staging fake encounters to justify these killings.

The BSC pointed out that the Pakistani state added the names of around 300 individuals—including human rights activists, professors, writers, journalists, lawyers, and students—to the Fourth Schedule. This expansion is seen as part of a continuing campaign of harassment, surveillance, and forced disappearances aimed at suppressing dissent and controlling the Baloch populace.

The Baloch Students Council has called upon national and international human rights organisations to take immediate action against what they describe as the manipulation of law to suppress the Baloch nation further. They urge these organisations to raise their voices against these violations of human rights and to demand accountability from the Pakistani state.