Pakistan forces baton charges at protesters demanding release of missing Baloch student

PASNI: Pakistani security personnel on Thursday baton charged on the protest organized by the family members of missing student Bahadur Bashir at Pasni Zero Point in Pakistan's Balochistan, The Balochistan Post reported. Several protesters, including women and children, were injured in the security personnel action during the protest.

Bahadur Bashir, a student at Karachi University, was detained by security forces in Pasni while he was visiting his family for Eid. The family has been protesting for his release for several days. However, the protest was recently called off as the authorities made promises to release the victim.

However, the authorities did not keep their word to release Bashir and the protest resumed at Pasni Zero Point, blocking the Makran Coastal Highway and causing traffic jams. Security forces reportedly attempted to clear the highway blocked by protesters by forcibly removing them, according to The Balochistan Post report.

They baton-charged the protesters and tried to seize their phones. Several women were injured during the act, The Balochistan Post reported, citing local sources. Protesters claimed that the security personnel used an excuse to disperse the protesters.

According to protesters, security forces claimed they needed to open the highway to allow an ambulance carrying a critically ill patient to pass, The Balochistan Post reported. However, when the protesters asked to see the patient and the ambulance, the forces responded with baton charges and attempted to confiscate their phones. According to the protesters, there was no ambulance or patient present on the road.

Bahadur Bashir's family has vowed to continue their protest until he is released. A prominent social activist Fazila Baloch also raised the issue on the social media platform X.

In a post on X, Baloch stated, "Today, FC forces along with Police raided the peaceful protest, subjected the women with violence and beat elder brother of Bahadur and also took his mobile phone."

Earlier this month, the families of forcibly disappeared individuals held a protest rally on the first day of Eid in the central city of Kech, Turbat. The demonstration saw a large turnout, with participants demanding the recovery of their missing loved ones. The families, joined by supporters, have also established a sit-in at Shaheed Fida Chowk, determined to draw attention to their plight.

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee, a prominent advocacy group, has been vocal about the issue on social media. Citing a United Nations report, the committee emphasized the broader impact of enforced disappearances.

"Enforced disappearance has frequently been used as a strategy to spread terror within society. The feeling of insecurity generated by this practice is not limited to the close relatives of the disappeared but also affects their communities and society as a whole. It is a crime against humanity," the committee stated in a post on X.

The committee further criticized the state of Pakistan, accusing it of dehumanizing the Baloch people through systematic enforced disappearances and alleged genocide.

"However, the State of Pakistan constantly reminds us--by committing this crime and our genocide--that Baloch doesn't qualify to be human. The international community and human rights advocates, proud of their humanity, seem to agree with the state by keeping their silence on crimes against the Baloch people," the statement added.