Without a trace

Some five years after the issue hit the media, we have barely moved a few paces forward in the case of the missing persons. While some of those who had ‘disappeared’ over the years, most notably since 2002, have returned home — often bringing with them dire warnings not to talk about their ordeals — others continue to go missing, particularly in Balochistan. In its latest hearing in the matter, the Supreme Court has displayed evidence of growing frustration and impatience, and summoned a slew of officials — including the interior minister, the interior secretary, their eight provincial counterparts and the five IGs of police — to explain why so little is happening.

The court has also made it clear that the various secret agencies are not above the law, and it has every intention of holding them accountable for their actions. Relatives of missing persons had complained about inaction against the agencies by the Commission on Missing Persons, set up under the additional attorney general.

The crux of the issue lies here. Courts have been convinced for years — like most others who have followed the case — that agencies are behind the ‘picking up’ of people and the terrible atrocities committed against them in some cases. The problem is that the authority to take these agencies to task has been lacking; even the media has hesitated to expose what is happening. As a result, the problem remains unsolved. In Balochistan, more people continue to vanish; it is becoming harder and harder to distinguish which abductions are the acts of criminals and which of agencies. As the court has also stressed, parliament needs to play a more active role. The issue is one that should concern each and every one of us. So far, the battle for the recovery of individuals has been led by their relatives, and a few human rights groups. We need now to see it as a wider problem — one that concerns not only a few people who have disappeared, but also the nature of our state and the role of secret agencies within it.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 15^th, 2011.