Recovering missing persons: Baloch women resolve to continue protest

Say will not succumb to pressure from Tehreek-e-Nifaz-e-Aman to back down۔

QUETTA: Snubbing allegations and threats by armed organisation Tehreek-e-Nifaz-e-Aman Balochistan, female relatives of the missing persons on Wednesday declared that they will not back down from protesting and will continue the hunger-strike camp for the recovery of their loved ones.

Addressing a press conference at the hunger strike camp, female relatives of the missing Baloch persons rejected Nifaz-e-Aman’s objection over Baloch women raising their voices to recover their missing family members.

“Some narrow-minded people like Ghazi Khan (spokesperson for Nifaz-e-Aman) want to impose outdated traditions on the Baloch society. These are tactics of the forces and not the Baloch culture,” the protestors said.

Snubbing the organisation’s tactics to intimidate the relatives, they said that women had a positive role to play in society. “Baloch women continue to play their role to highlight the atrocities inflicted upon their brothers,” they said.

Expressing their resolve, the women said they were prepared to go register their protest anywhere in the world and not just the Quetta Press Club.

They deeply resented the “contemptuous words” used against them by Ghazi, alleging that Ghazi’s party was complicit with the security forces who picked up their loved ones and were now resenting their efforts to recover them.

“We will not be scared by any threats,” they said.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 20^th, 2012.