Balochistan Becomes a Blind Spot for Media: BYC

QUETTA: The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) has strongly condemned the recent wave of military brutality in Balochistan, which has resulted in the enforced disappearances of dozens of Marri Baloch individuals in Dukki, Harnai, and surrounding areas.

In a statement issued to the media 1st Januay, 2025, the committee highlighted the intensifying state repression and the lack of attention from both national media and international human rights organizations.

According to the statement, during the last week of December, multiple individuals from the Marri Baloch tribe were forcibly disappeared following military offensives in the region.

Among those missing are Syed Mohammad Marri, Khair Mohammad Marri, and Abdul Nabi Marri, all of whom were abducted during military action in Dukki. Another family member, Hussain Bakhsh son of Syed Mohammad Marri, was reportedly abducted while travelling through the Pir Sahib checkpoint in Harnai.

The committee further revealed that Gul Mohammad Marri, Imran Marri, Sher Mohammad Marri, and Safar Khan Marri were also abducted during a military operation in Harnai. In total, at least 16 Marri Baloch individuals from Dukki and Harnai have been subjected to enforced disappearances, although the complete details of some cases remain unknown.

The committee said that Pakistani forces were engaged in widespread atrocities, including burning homes, looting livestock, assaulting civilians, humiliating individuals at checkpoints, and dumping mutilated bodies after enforced disappearances. Due to communication blackouts and a total media blockade, these abuses remain largely hidden from both the international community and the general public in Balochistan.

“The region has effectively become a ‘black hole’ for media,” the committee stated. “The atrocities committed here are not only ignored by the global community but also concealed from the people of Balochistan. The state has blocked mobile networks to prevent news from spreading and refuses to grant the right to free expression.

“Families of the disappeared are prohibited from speaking to the media or protesting, while state-run media mocks these enforced disappearances by calling them ‘drama.’ This is adding insult to injury for the victims and their families.”

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee has called on international human rights organisations to take urgent action in locating and recovering the disappeared individuals from Dukki, Harnai, and other affected areas. They also appealed to the Baloch people to unite and resist the ongoing genocide and repression in the region.

“We urge the Baloch people to come together and form a collective public resistance,” the statement continued. “Families of the disappeared should bring their loved ones’ cases to the media and raise their voices. Every case of enforced disappearance must be reported so that these injustices can be exposed to the world.”

The committee’s statement serves as a stark reminder of the dire situation in Balochistan, where state-sponsored oppression is driving the region into deeper turmoil. With communication networks severely restricted, the Baloch Yakjehti Committee has called for global attention and intervention to address ongoing human rights violations and ensure justice for the victims.