Baloch activist demands safe return of abducted people as Turbat protest enters 3rd day

As the five missing Baloch people’s families continued their protest for the third day, activist Mahrang Baloch demanded the safe return of the missing people.

In a statement, she said the Baloch people are protesting because the Counter Terrorist Department abducts people.

In a post on X, Mahrang said, “Why do Baloch march? Because every day, security forces break into Baloch homes, beat and abduct innocent people. Families of five missing persons continue their sit-in on Day 3, blocking the CPEC road, at Greshag demanding the safe return of their loved ones enforcedly disappeared by CTD.”

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee in a post on X shared a video appeal by Saira Baloch the sister of one of the abducted persons.

“Saira Baloch, a sister protesting for his enforcedly disappeared brothers on roads for the last six years; urging the Baloch Raj to join the Baloch Raji Muchi at Gwadar. She is an example of suffering from the collective punishment that the families of disappeared persons go through. With unity and resistance, we can end this cycle of enforced disappearances and collective punishment of our mothers and sisters, and secure a prosperous future for our generations. ” the post said.

On July 21, Families of forcibly disappeared Baloch individuals launched a hunger strike unto death in the Turbat district of Pakistan’s Balochistan, expressing deep dissatisfaction with the Pakistani government’s handling of the issue. The protest, now in its seventh day, aims to highlight the plight of family members of those who were abducted and demand their safe return.

According to a statement from the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), a Baloch rights organisation, “The sit-in camp by victim families of the disappeared people has completed seven days.

“On July 18, they announced a hunger strike. These families, from various areas of the Kech district, have been protesting in front of the DC office in Turbat. On July 19, they began their hunger strike,” the BYC said.

The BYC has also called for a national gathering in Gwadar on July 28 to protest the forced disappearance of people.