Fighting for their rights: Baloch Martyrs Day observed with a sit-in

The day pays tribute to the dead and the missing people of Balochistan

KARACHI: We know that the government cannot arrest the assassins of the Baloch nationalists, said Saeeda Sarbazi, a Baloch woman with a traditional veil across her face. "We have merely gathered here to record our protest and remember our loved ones."

Sarbazi was among dozens of woman and children gathered at Karachi Press Club on Thursday, holding placards inscribed with slogans demanding the release of their family members and friends. Baloch Martyrs Day, observed on November 13 every year, was organised by the Baloch Martyr Committee (BMC) to pay tribute to their dead as well as those languishing in prisons for years.

"My brother, who was a journalist, was killed by the intelligence agencies," accused a woman at the sit-in. "Later, I lost my husband at their hands. We are not affiliated with any organisation, so why are they killing us?"

Ahmed Baloch, another participant, pointed towards a little girl whose father Haji Abdul Razzaque, a journalist with Balochistan's Daily Tanwar, had also been killed. "She was born on the day her father's mutilated body was found," he said.

"Thousands of lives have been lost for the betterment and the safety of our motherland," said a BMC member, giving a passionate speech to the participants of the sit-in.

According to a press statement distributed at the event, this was the fourth consecutive year that the Baloch Martyrs Day had been observed, mainly to urge the younger generation to come forward and play their part for the progress of the Baloch community.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 15^th, 2014.