Amid talk of ceasefire: Enforced disappearances blight the Baloch heart
48 new cases of missing persons come to light in recent months.
ISLAMABAD:
Some 48 new cases of missing persons have come to light from various districts of Balochistan in recent months, according to officials associated with a special task force working under the auspices of the interior ministry.
The task force is responsible for collecting data regarding missing persons across the country, with the help of the National Crisis Management Cell (NACTA).
Some family members of these missing persons, only those affluent enough to make the journey, have converged on the capital to make their plea heard by the highest authorities.
These include at least 10 family members of missing persons staging a hunger strike in the camp set up for retrieving missing individuals, demanding the government to produce their relatives in a court of law if they are guilty of any crime.
“We will continue staging a hunger strike until the government produces them (missing persons) before the Supreme Court,” said Defence of Human Rights chairperson Amina Masood Janjua.
“The cases are under investigation,” said Director of the Crisis Management Cell in the Interior Ministry Fareed Khan, adding that as many as 150 cases have been registered with the organisation in Balochistan in recent months.
Interior Minister Rehman Malik also confirmed registration of 42 fresh cases of missing persons in Islamabad saying, “Authorities are trying to trace these [missing persons].” However, according to Malik, the ‘real’ figures have been exaggerated.
“Although, I agree that the law and order situation is worsening in the province with every passing day, it has been propagated and portrayed in an ‘overarching’ negative fashion,” asserted Malik.
According to NACTA estimates, 468 people went missing in only three years with 117 in Punjab, 69 in Sindh, 159 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), 82 in Balochistan, 9 in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) and 11 in AJK. Of these 468 people, 146 have been retrieved while 176 cases were later disposed of.
‘The missing’
Meanwhile, The Express Tribune has obtained further details of some of the Balochs who have recently been kidnapped.
These include Mehrab Ahmed of village Nok Band in district Panjgur, Johar alias Baba Bohair of Levies Station Pasni in district Gawadar, Fareed Baloch of Asian Human Rights Commission in Canton Road KLN, Hong Kong, Abid Saleem of Panjgur, Zubair Ahmed of village Hozai in district Kech as well as Ilahi Bukhsh and Shah Murad of Murad Gujjar Goth in district Lasbela.
Waleed Afzal and Muhammad Nabil of Mand Gayab of Kech district, Zaffarullah Khan of Sakozai village of District Mastung, Sardar Daroo Khan and Muhammad Tahir Khan of Sariab Mills Colony, Quetta and Munir Ahmed Mirawani of Khuzdar city in District Awaran also went missing months ago.
Munir Ahmed of village Tooran in district Khuzdar, Tariq Ali of Tazang of district Kech, Fareed Khan of village Washood of district Panjgur, Shabir Ahmed of Killi Chakar Khan in Quetta and Abdul Zakir of Killi Azizabad of district Mastung also remain missing in the province.
Zakir Majeed was kidnapped from Ghazi Mohallah Khuzdar near Saddar Police Station, Abdul Kabeer from Khuzdar, Din Muhammad Baloch from Kuzdar, Jalik Raki Baloch from Killi Ghulam Jan, Saifullah from Quetta, Iqbal Baloch from district Kech, Hafeez Saeedur Rehman from Quetta while another Ali Asghar Bangulzai of Chakki Shawani went missing near Sariab police station.
Samiullah of village Sardar Badini in district Noshki, Jawari lal from Hindu Mohallah of Khuzdar, Abdul Ghaffar of Kalli Esa Zai in Khund, Mushtaq Ali of Rodiani House Balina Khattan and Muhammad Siddique of Gali Mohallah Chandin Chowk in Khuzdar also remain missing.
Safar Khan of Sariab road near Killi Muslimabad police station in Quetta, Mazhar Khan of Killi Bulghani in Noshki, Abdul Ghani of village Talli in Sibi, Mir Sami Husain Anqa of Tehsil Mach in district Bolan, Shamsul Din of Sabzal Mandi, Sikandar Baloch of Podgali Chowk, Adul Wahab of Tump, Kech, Ali Ahmed of Basima of Washuk and Sameer Rind of Gulshan e Iqbal near Allama Iqbal University, Turbat were also kidnapped from the province recently.
The Express Tribune is also in possession of the contact numbers of the family members of missing persons.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 24th, 2012.
Some 48 new cases of missing persons have come to light from various districts of Balochistan in recent months, according to officials associated with a special task force working under the auspices of the interior ministry.
The task force is responsible for collecting data regarding missing persons across the country, with the help of the National Crisis Management Cell (NACTA).
Some family members of these missing persons, only those affluent enough to make the journey, have converged on the capital to make their plea heard by the highest authorities.
These include at least 10 family members of missing persons staging a hunger strike in the camp set up for retrieving missing individuals, demanding the government to produce their relatives in a court of law if they are guilty of any crime.
“We will continue staging a hunger strike until the government produces them (missing persons) before the Supreme Court,” said Defence of Human Rights chairperson Amina Masood Janjua.
“The cases are under investigation,” said Director of the Crisis Management Cell in the Interior Ministry Fareed Khan, adding that as many as 150 cases have been registered with the organisation in Balochistan in recent months.
Interior Minister Rehman Malik also confirmed registration of 42 fresh cases of missing persons in Islamabad saying, “Authorities are trying to trace these [missing persons].” However, according to Malik, the ‘real’ figures have been exaggerated.
“Although, I agree that the law and order situation is worsening in the province with every passing day, it has been propagated and portrayed in an ‘overarching’ negative fashion,” asserted Malik.
According to NACTA estimates, 468 people went missing in only three years with 117 in Punjab, 69 in Sindh, 159 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), 82 in Balochistan, 9 in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) and 11 in AJK. Of these 468 people, 146 have been retrieved while 176 cases were later disposed of.
‘The missing’
Meanwhile, The Express Tribune has obtained further details of some of the Balochs who have recently been kidnapped.
These include Mehrab Ahmed of village Nok Band in district Panjgur, Johar alias Baba Bohair of Levies Station Pasni in district Gawadar, Fareed Baloch of Asian Human Rights Commission in Canton Road KLN, Hong Kong, Abid Saleem of Panjgur, Zubair Ahmed of village Hozai in district Kech as well as Ilahi Bukhsh and Shah Murad of Murad Gujjar Goth in district Lasbela.
Waleed Afzal and Muhammad Nabil of Mand Gayab of Kech district, Zaffarullah Khan of Sakozai village of District Mastung, Sardar Daroo Khan and Muhammad Tahir Khan of Sariab Mills Colony, Quetta and Munir Ahmed Mirawani of Khuzdar city in District Awaran also went missing months ago.
Munir Ahmed of village Tooran in district Khuzdar, Tariq Ali of Tazang of district Kech, Fareed Khan of village Washood of district Panjgur, Shabir Ahmed of Killi Chakar Khan in Quetta and Abdul Zakir of Killi Azizabad of district Mastung also remain missing in the province.
Zakir Majeed was kidnapped from Ghazi Mohallah Khuzdar near Saddar Police Station, Abdul Kabeer from Khuzdar, Din Muhammad Baloch from Kuzdar, Jalik Raki Baloch from Killi Ghulam Jan, Saifullah from Quetta, Iqbal Baloch from district Kech, Hafeez Saeedur Rehman from Quetta while another Ali Asghar Bangulzai of Chakki Shawani went missing near Sariab police station.
Samiullah of village Sardar Badini in district Noshki, Jawari lal from Hindu Mohallah of Khuzdar, Abdul Ghaffar of Kalli Esa Zai in Khund, Mushtaq Ali of Rodiani House Balina Khattan and Muhammad Siddique of Gali Mohallah Chandin Chowk in Khuzdar also remain missing.
Safar Khan of Sariab road near Killi Muslimabad police station in Quetta, Mazhar Khan of Killi Bulghani in Noshki, Abdul Ghani of village Talli in Sibi, Mir Sami Husain Anqa of Tehsil Mach in district Bolan, Shamsul Din of Sabzal Mandi, Sikandar Baloch of Podgali Chowk, Adul Wahab of Tump, Kech, Ali Ahmed of Basima of Washuk and Sameer Rind of Gulshan e Iqbal near Allama Iqbal University, Turbat were also kidnapped from the province recently.
The Express Tribune is also in possession of the contact numbers of the family members of missing persons.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 24th, 2012.