Pakistan security agencies detained a large number of protestors, the majority of them being women who joined the Long March against the Baloch genocide in the province of Balochistan province on December 17, 2023. The police also erected barricades on the highway in Kohlu to intercept thousands of protestors marching from Turbat to Islamabad via Quetta to draw attention to the serious issues of enforced disappearance and extrajudicial killings of the Baloch people.
The Long March
The Long March was taken out a few weeks ago by the Baloch Yakjehti committee to raise the human rights violations in Balochistan. Abdul Rahman Baloch, a member of the Baloch Students Action Committee posted on X, “To impede the progress of the Long March, state forces have detained four Baloch activists namely Asif Baloch, Mairaj Khalid, Abdullah Baloch and Jameel Baloch under the pretext of negotiations,”
Baloch Women Arrested
Sources reveal that after Kohlu, a large number of people gathered in Barkhan to protest in solidarity with the Long March, which is now heading towards Dera Ghazi Khan where a large number of protestors including many women have been detained by the police, Fazila Baloch, a human rights defender posted on X, “Long March against the Baloch genocide has reached Dera Ghazi Khan and the Pakistani state is fully determined to make it unsuccessful As per reports many Baloch men and women have been arrested and tortured by the Punjab Police.”
Extrajudicial Killings
There are recurring incidents of extrajudicial killings in Balochistan by Pakistani security agencies. Public anger boiled after the Counter-Terrorism Department recently abducted and killed four Baloch youths in fake alleged encounters. The victim’s family members were holding protests in Turbat which grew to a Long March to raise a voice for justice.
Mah Rang Baloch of the Yakjehti Committee said in her address in Barkhan, “This Long March is to address the issue of extrajudicial killings of the Baloch. This government wants to eliminate the Baloch People through genocide, Our Long March will continue till we reach Islamabad,” she said.
About Balochistan
Balochistan is the largest and the most resource-rich province of Pakistan, where the people are allegedly grappling with the worst human rights crisis. The security forces, including the Pakistani Rangers along with secret agencies, are frequently engaged in incidents of forceful abduction of Baloch youth and killing them by labeling them as terrorists.
The Balochs have been fighting for their rights for many decades as they demand sovereignty and control of their natural resources. The situation in Balochistan has turned from bad to worse since the heavy investment by China as a part of its multi-billion-dollar project called the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The coastal port city of Gwadar was initially a fishing village and homeland of the ethnic Baloch tribe. The city now is the origin of the CPEC southern node.
