The first duty of every state is to its citizens, but in Pakistan’s case, the state has always discriminated against its citizens based on religion, ethnicity, language and sex. Enforced disappearances – missing persons – is an issue that all Pakistan’s smaller nationalities have suffered from, but the Baloch brethren have suffered the most over the decades and continue to do so.
As an editorial in Dawn noted, “when it comes to the troubling issue of enforced disappearances/ missing persons — either Baloch or belonging to other ethnic/ religious groups, or political parties out of favour with the powers that be — the state clings to the same tired script. It either denies the problem exists, or comes up with unconvincing alibis to explain what may have happened to the missing individuals. When the heirs of the missing come out on the streets, the state either ignores them, or unleashes its wrath on the protesters.”
This happened when earlier in the week police clashed with supporters of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee in Quetta. “BYC supporters had been protesting in the provincial capital’s Sariab area for over a week, seeking the whereabouts of Zaheer Zeb Baloch and other missing persons. When their pleas failed to capture the state’s attention, the activists decided to march to the city’s Red Zone. They were met with tear gas and baton charges, while a number of them, including women, were arrested. BYC head Dr Mahrang Baloch said two of the injured people were in critical condition.”
The Dawn editorial warned that “if the government continues to wield a big stick against peaceful protesters, instead of addressing their legitimate demands, the gulf between the rulers and the ruled will continue to widen, creating major obstacles in the path of national cohesion.”
