SHC asks govt to submit evidence that led to Mama Qadeer's travel ban

Govt law officer says petitioners' names placed on ECL due to their involvement in anti-state activities

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday directed the federal government to present evidence  which led to a travel ban being slapped on Baloch activists, Mama Abdul Qadeer and Farzana Majeed.

On March 5, Baloch rights activist Abdul Qadeer Baloch, known as Mama Qadeer, was stopped at Karachi airport as he was about to fly to New York, where he was due to attend a weekend conference on alleged rights violations in Balochistan and Sindh provinces.

Read: Authorities stop Mama Qadeer from leaving country

SHC's direction on Monday came in response to a petition filed by Mama Qadeer, Chairperson of the Voice of the Baloch Missing Persons (VoBMP) and the organization’s secretary Farzana Majeed. Both activists challenged the placement of their names on the Exit Control List (ECL).

In a joint petition, they informed the court that they were protesting against the enforced disappearance of Baloch missing persons and have been staging protests at the Karachi Press Club.

Read: LUMS cancels talk featuring Mama Qadeer

 

The petitioner’s lawyer said that Mama Qadeer's son, Jalil Reki, was detained by law enforcement personnel and later his body was found from Mand area in Balochistan. Similarly, Farzana Majeed's brother Zakir Majeed had also been missing for the past six to seven years.

The court was told that the petitioners were invited by the Sindh Academic and Cultural Society of North America to attend a conference on March 4. However, they were denied from travelling abroad on the ground that their names were placed on the ECL.

Read: No exit: Human rights activists denied foreign travel at Karachi airport

Government's stance

The comments submitted on behalf of the government submitted stated that the names of petitioners were placed on the ECL due to their involvement in anti-state activities.

Adjourning the hearing of the case for two weeks, the SHC division bench headed by Justice Naimatullah Phulphoto directed the law officer to place on record the material on the basis of which the activists names were placed on the ECL.

The federal law officer sought time to file the respective documents.