Still no OK from Pakistan to access Balochistan: UNHRC Chief

GENEVA: The United Nations Human Rights Chief Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein held a special Facebook Live event on December 10, 2016 – Human Rights Day.

He answered social media activists’ questions that were asked prior to the event, discussing human rights issues from Kashmir, Baluchistan, Biafra, Burma and other conflict regions where, he said, “the states have refused to give permission for visit by UNHRC.”

The Baloch Social Media activists also send in their questions and evidence of Pakistani state atrocities in Balochistan.

In his reply about Balochistan the UNHRC chief said, “In terms of Balochistan we had long been asking for the Pakistani government for us to send a human rights representative to Pakistan and to deploy one, we still have not received an OK to that.”

Journalist Ghida Fakhry mentioned Balochistan with the list of other conflicts regions that need UN’s urgent attention and intervention.

Although she described Balochistan as a province of Pakistan, the pro-independence Baloch parties and organisation argue that Pakistan illegally and forcibly occupied their independent country in 1948 and now they are fighting to regain their sovereignty and independence.