Baloch activist raises issue of enforced disappearance in Pakistan, reports abduction of Baloch people

Raising the issue of enforced disappearances in Pakistan, prominent Baloch activist Mahrang Baloch has said that five Baloch people have been forcibly abducted in Karachi. While observing Human Rights Day, she said that Baloch people have been raising demand for their right to live and exist without fear in their own homeland.

She said that Miraj Shad, Doda Elahi, Ghamshad Baloch, Muzammil, and Ismail have been forcibly abducted. She mentioned that Doda Elahi and Ghamshad Baloch, who were previously abducted and forced to abondon their studies after release, had resumed their education have been abducted again.

In a post on X, Mahrang Baloch stated, “What could be more devastating for a Nation than the daily enforced disappearances of its students ? In Karachi, Miraj Shad, Doda Elahi, Ghamshad Baloch, Muzammil, and Ismail have been abducted. Doda Elahi and Ghamshad Baloch, who were previously abducted and forced to abandon their studies after release, had recently resumed their education but have been abducted again.”

“Meanwhile, three brothers–Irshad, Mureed, and Mehboob Baloch–were forcibly disappeared from Mungochar, Kalat. Their families are protesting, blocking the main RCD highway, demanding their release. On this Human Rights Day, the Baloch people are not only seeking justice–they are demanding the right to live and exist without fear in their own homeland, from a state that has denied them their very humanity,” she added.

https://twitter.com/MahrangBaloch_/status/1866357865872847185

The students were taken into custody at around 1 am (local time) on Monday from Karachi’s Hassan Square area and their whereabouts remain unknown, The Balochistan Post reported.

The students are from different parts of Balochistan, The Balochistan Post reported, citing sources. Doda Ellahi is from Kech’s Balnegor, Ghamshad hails from Mand, Muzammil is from Pasni, and Mehraj is from Turbat’s Absar. All four Baloch students were living in Karachi for their studies.

In a separate incident, Ismail, a resident of Mand, and a relative of Gamshad Baloch, has also been reportedly forcibly disappeared from Hassan Square in Karachi. According to reports, he is currently working and living in Dubai and arrived in Pakistan a month earlier for her mother’s medical treatment in Karachi, according to The Balochistan Post report.

This is not the first time that some of the Baloch students have been subjected to enforced disappearance. Earlier on June 7, 2022, Doda Ellahi and Ghamshad were forcibly taken during a raid in Karachi’s Maskan Chowrangi area. Later, they were released on June 14, 2022, but they have now been detained again.