Baloch Human Rights Council organized another conference entitled, “70 years of subjugation; a case of genocide and crimes against humanity in Balochistan”

PRESS RELEASE:

Geneva, Switzerland – 12/09/2019: Baloch Human Rights Council organized another conference entitled, “70 years of subjugation; a case of genocide and crimes against humanity in Balochistan”. Mr. Qambar Malik of BHRC moderated the conference while the Vice President of BHRC Mr. Hassan Hamdam presided the entire session.

The prominent among the speakers were Secretary General of the UNPO Mr. Ralph Bunche, Vice President of World Sindhi Congress Dr Hidayat Bhutto, President of institute for Gilgit Baltistan studies Washington DC Mr. Senge H Sering, US based Leader of the Baloch National Movement Mr Nabi Baksh Baloch, Organizer of BHRC-US chapter Mr. Razzak Baloch, and UKPNP Chairman Mr. Shaukat Kashmiri.

In his opening remarks, Mr. Qambar Malik Baloch outlined a few of the core militant strategies the Pakistani authorities have employed to quell the Baloch dissent in Balochistan that has resulted in the extra-judicial killings and enforced disappearances of thousands of people from Balochistan.

In most of the documented cases, the perpetrators acted openly in broad daylight, sometimes in busy public areas, with apparently little concern for the presence of numerous witnesses. Several writers, singers, and poets became victims of target killings by security agencies and their proxy death squads since the start of the present conflict added Qambar Malik

In 2006, the 80 years old Nawab Akbar Bugti, the chief of Bugti tribe, was killed along with his 38 fellows. In the follow-up operations, during 2006 and 2007, army or its death squads killed 349 persons from the Bugti tribe.
In 2007, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan estimated the missing persons as 600. According to Baloch sources, in 2007, the army in Balochistan killed 938 Baloch political activists, intellectuals, writers, students, doctors, engineers, and tribal elite.
In 2008, according to the Asian Human Rights Commission and verified by the then Interior Minister of Pakistan, Mr.Rehman Malik, at least 1,100 persons were included in the list of disappeared. According to Baloch sources, during 2008, 1635 Baloch activists were killed either by security forces, intelligence agencies or their proxy militias and death squads.
A dossier published by Balochistan National Party (BNP) in 2009 claimed that 9000 people were being illegally detained. During 2009, 1104 people were killed which included well known political figures and intellectual personalities.
On 22nd February 2009, an assassination attempt was made on the life of a prominent scholar, writer and Chairman of the Balochi Academy, Mir Jan Muhammad Dashti.
On 9 April 2009, president of Baloch National Movement (BNM) Ghulam Muhammad Baloch, vice president, Lala Munir Baloch, and the Joint Secretary of Baloch Republican Party (BRP) Sher Muhammad Baloch were picked up from Turbat town by the security agencies. They were killed and their bodies were reportedly thrown from helicopters.
On 14 July 2010, Habib Jalib, the General Secretary of Balochistan National Party was murdered by one of the state’s death squads.
On June 1, 2011, a literary person Professor Saba Dashtyari was killed by one of the death squads.
On April 27, 2016, the interior minister in the government of Balochistan claimed that security forces arrested 12234 persons and killed 334.
On August 30, 2016, the Defence of Human Rights organization claimed that 549 people have been kidnapped by the security agencies between January and August. The majority of these persons were from Balochistan.
In 2017, Dr. Abdul Manan, the secretary-general of Baloch National Movement along with his four friends were taken into custody in Mastung region of Balochistan and after a few hours, their bodies were found with torture and bullet injuries.
The wife of Sardar Bakhtiar Domiki, who was also the sister of Republican Party leader Mir Brahamdag Bugti was killed by the Military Intelligence in 2012 along with her teenage daughter.
Many family members of Dr. Allah Nazar who is a prominent leader of Baloch national resistance were murdered by security agencies in recent years. According to the BNM information secretary, during the month of August 2016 alone, 157 mutilated bodies of the Baloch activists were dumped by security forces
During the first half of 2019, the mutilated bodies of 97 persons have been dumped in various places.

He added that Sardar Akhtar Mengal, leader of Balochistan National Party submitted a list of the missing persons in the national assembly of Pakistan. Following is the numbers of missing person from 2011 to 2018. Adding that the enforced disappearances of Baloch nationalists and their supporters continue to this date.

2011 82
2012 258
2013 491
2014 229
2015 145
2016 706
2017 1257
2018 564

Mr Ralph Bunche in his speech commended BHRC’s choice of choosing an ideal location in front of the UN to highlight the Baloch plight.

He maintained that the Baloch issue has not received the attention it should due to the geopolitical and economic interests of the West. Citing an example, Mr.Bunche indicated that European Union is providing Pakistan with preferential trade access, which is only meant to be available to the countries that respect twenty-seven International human rights conventions and that is categorically not allowed to happen to the countries that have death-penalty like Pakistan. This is majorly because the EU believes it is going to benefit from the Belt & Road Initiative and would not want that to be disrupted. Mr. Bunche called this a disturbing mistake.

Mr. Shaukat Kashmiri stressed that in order to have our voices heard in the world it is imperative the ethnic minorities in Pakistan make joint efforts and stand against all kinds of injustices being perpetrated by the security forces of Pakistan against its religious and ethnic minorities.

Mr. Nabi Baksh Baloch of BNM informed the audience that political dissident in Pakistan is met with brute military force and martial law regulations including ban on politics and political platforms with absolute disregard for civil rights.

Mr. Senge H Sering called for an end of human rights violations in Balochistan. He asserted that the people of Gilgit Baltistan have been made subject to the same kinds of human rights abuses as the people of Balochistan face in Pakistan. What unites Balochistan and Gilgit Baltistan is China’s interest in the region in the form of CPEC, therefore, we share the same pain and misery that China has brought in the region.

Organizer of BHRC US chapter Mr. Razzak Baloch called Pakistan a military state where the rights of the minorities are exploited without the fear of legal repercussions. He called on the International community to take seriously the human rights situation in Balochistan and to ensure a meaningful intervention to refrain Pakistan from further abuse of human rights in Balochistan.

Mr. Hassan Hamdam concluded that the intervention of International community is imperative to resolve the Baloch conflict with Pakistan. Every people have the right to self determination as enshrined in the UN charter on human rights. He concluded that BHRC has been highlighting the plight of the people of Balochistan since its inception in 2008 and will continue to expose Pakistan’s crimes in Balochistan at international fora.