Balochistan: Families of abducted Baloch end their sit-in after PM promises to meet them

ISLAMABAD: The families of abducted persons from Balochistan have announced to end their sit-in at D-Chowk Islamabad – the capital of Pakistan – on Saturday.

Around 13 families from Balochistan had set up the sit-in protest at D-Chowk Islamabad to demand the recovery of their loved ones who were abducted by Pakistani forces.

 According to details, the sit-in was called off on the assurance of federal Minister for Human Rights, Shireen Mazari.

On Saturday, the Minister visited the sit-in of the protesters at D-Chowk and conveyed to them assurance of Imran Khan, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, that he would meet a three-member committee of family members in March and efforts would be made to trace their abducted loved ones.

After the meeting with families, she released a Press Release on Twitter that on the instruction from PM she met visited the sit-in and met with families of missing persons. She conveyed the following message from PM to the protesters.

1. They end their dharna (sit-in protest)
2. He would meet a three-member representative committee from amongst them in March and Dr Mazari would arrange this meeting.
3. They would hand over the list of their missing persons to Dr Mazari so that their status could be ascertained and conveyed to the PM before the meeting with families’ representatives. Families requested that priority be given to the missing persons of the 13 families present at the dharna and Dr Mazari noted the request.

Sammi Baloch, daughter of abducted Dr Deen Mohammad Baloch, also confirmed the meeting between families and the HR minister and said that they have been promised that PM Imran Khan will meet them on 15 March and update them about the issue of missing persons.

She added, “The families have given a list to the HR Minister. We have waited a lot for our loved ones and our lives have become hells. We need justice……..”

She thanked the media, civil society, AWP, PTM leaders Mohsin Dawa and Manzoor Pashteen and others.

In the view of past bitter experiences, she said, “in the past, we have been promised many times but no promise was fulfilled. Hoping that Imran Khan will stand by his words. Pakistan will remember him if he resolves this issue.”

Sammi Dr Deen Mohammad Baloch

Given Pakistan’s history of false promises to Baloch and betrayal, the Baloch activists on social media have expressed their pessimism and doubted that the PM of HR Minister Shireen Mazari would keep their promise.

However, it is yet to be seen whether Imran Khan will keep his promise to meet the families of Baloch missing persons and trace their loved ones or it will be yet another false promise to the Baloch people.

Meanwhile, the Pakistani forces have abducted three persons from the Kech area of Balochistan during military offensives in Kolwah.

Three men abducted from Kolwah have been named Nasir son of Wahid Bakhsh Balur, Asad son of Allah Bakhsh Balur, Hussain son Naseer Balur.

Separately, Pakistan Rangers have arrested a Baloch student named Siraj Washdil, a resident of the Gichk area of Panjgur Balochistan, in the Malir area of Karachi.

Siraj is a student of 9^th grade in TCF (The Citizen Foundation) school in Karachi.