On the occasion of the Black Day against the forced occupation of Balochistan by Pakistan on 27 March a protest demonstration and rally was held in the city of Amsterdam, Netherlands by the Baloch National Movement Netherlands. The participants of the rally were held placards and banners against the forced occupation of Balochistan, on which various slogans were written. The participants of the demonstration raised slogans against the right to freedom of Balochistan and against forced occupation. Pamphlets were also distributed in which the local people were informed about the situation in Balochistan.

Addressing the protestors, Nabil Baloch said that 27 March is remembered as the Baloch Black Day, because 75 years ago, on March 27, 1948, the Pakistani state occupied Balochistan.Every day after that day is a black day for Baloch people and will remain so until Balochistan is freed he said. He further added ‘In these 75 years, Pakistan’s Army has tried all kinds of tactics, martyred our brothers, forced disappearance of our youth, committed all kinds of violence … .Today, the Baloch people are looking at the United Nations, which has closed its eyes to the worst violation of human rights in Balochistan and has remained a silent spectator to Pakistan’s oppression of the Baloch people. That is why we are here today.We want to send a message to the Pakistani state that the more oppression and repression you do, the more intense the independence movement of Balochistan will become’.

Jamal Baloch, a member of BNM Netherlands, said that for years, the Baloch nation has been a victim of Pakistani military brutality and thousands of people have been forcibly disappeared and martyred. While thousands of mutilated bodies have been thrown. European countries and the United Nations should take notice of the Baloch genocide in Balochistan.

Badria Murad Baloch while speaking said that cruelty and brutality is not only happening in Balochistan today, but this cruelty started on the day Pakistan forcibly occupied Balochistan and deprived all human rights. Pakistani Army is uncivilized which tortures Baloch children, women and elders as well, which is the worst form of cruelty to humanity. Badria further said ‘send a message to the world that Baloch is a nation with its own identity, its own land and its own culture. We have not accepted state slavery before and we will not do so in the future’.

Chairman of Baloch National Movement, Dr. Naseem Baloch, speaking at an event on the occasion of the 52nd regular session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, said that China-Pakistan alliance is not only a threat to Western interests, but this alliance is a threat to the basic human rights of the Baloch people. It also directly attacks rights.

The conference was organized by Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) working in consultative capacity with United Nations agencies for freedom of conscience, associations and individuals.

He said in his address that ever since Pakistan occupied Balochistan, the people of Balochistan are struggling to lead a normal life. Pakistan’s oppressive actions have threatened the livelihood, culture, traditions and languages of the region. Majority of the population of Balochistan lived in the mountains and depended on herding for their livelihood. However, with the escalation of military operations, their livelihoods are at stake, and they are forced to leave their mountains and villages.

Chairman Dr. Naseem severely criticized China-Pakistan’s so-called Economic Corridor and said that earlier, Pakistan was involved in human rights violations alone in Balochistan, but now China has also stepped up its pressure. It has allied with Pakistan to implement the One Belt One Road project, part of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The forced implementation of the project has resulted in the displacement of thousands of local people living along this route in Balochistan. To pave the way for CPEC, many villages were burnt and many military camps and posts were established in the name of protecting Chinese interests. The Sino-Pakistan alliance not only threatens Western interests but also directly attacks the basic human rights of the Baloch people.

He highlighted the current situation of human rights violations in Balochistan and said that only in February 2023, 39 cases of enforced disappearance were reported, including two women Rashida Zehri and Mahal Baloch. Mahal Baloch was first subjected to enforced disappearance and then she was falsely accused of being a militant. She was abducted along with her mother-in-law and two baby girls, and all of them went missing for more than 24 hours. She was produced in court a week later. Similarly, Rashida Zahri was abducted along with her husband and children. Although Rashida was released after 11 days of torture, her husband Rahim Zahri is still missing. Another heartbreaking incident in Awaran area,occurred in Gishkore where Bakhsh Maskan was called to an army camp and brutally tortured. After his release, he succumbed to his injuries and died.

Dr. Naseem described Pakistan as a threat not only to the region but also to the world. He said, ‘it is important that the United Nations and other international powers around the world identify and address the root causes of insecurity and loss of human life and formulate a comprehensive policy to combat them. The region can never achieve security and stability as long as Pakistan is not driven by fanaticism and terrorism. Will continue to nurture and support terrorism. Pakistan’s policy of creating and using religious militant proxies has resulted in the empowerment of most uncontrolled militants and Islamic extremists, which ultimately poses a threat to world peace. Pakistani-trained extremists have carried out terrorist attacks from Europe and the Middle East to India. The civilized world must support nations and local movements fighting against this dangerous religious fanaticism. Nations like Baloch, Sindhi and Pashtun are struggling to save centuries old secular civilizations from the clutches of religious extremists. The international community should take notice of this urgent problem and support the efforts of freedom fighters in the region.

He further said that Baloch are struggling against Pakistan’s ideologically Islamic army and its religious proxies to protect their liberal and secular values. Now he said is the time for the international community to recognize that the problem of Balochistan is not only regional but a global problem. The world should support the Baloch people in their fight for freedom against Chinese domination and growing Islamic extremism. As a global economic and political power, Europe has a responsibility to hold Pakistan accountable for its actions in Balochistan. Generalized Scheme of Preferences (GPS Plus) Agreement Pakistan demands to uphold and respect human rights laws and values. He said ‘We urge Europe to not only bring up the dire situation in Balochistan at the next meeting, but also to hold Pakistan accountable for its actions. Baloch people have suffered a lot’.

Saqib Zaib and Farhad Sajid, two Baloch victims of enforced disappearance by Pakistani forces, have been sentenced to five years in prison.

CTD has said in a statement that two youths who were taken into their custody have been sentenced by the court. According to CTD, Saqib Zaib alias Shaheek and Farhad Sajid alias Chakar belonged to BLA (Baloch Liberation Army) and have booked them on charges of terrorism. The court sentenced them to 5 years in prison. According to CTD, he was arrested in April 2022.

Saqib Zaib Sarpara, son of Haji Nisar Sarpara and Farhad Sarpara, son of Haji Noorullah Sarpara, went missing after being detained by Pakistani forces from Quetta in February 2022 from Haji Noorullah’s house.

On the night of 12 February 2022, Pakistani forces raided a house in Quetta Faizabad and took Saud Sarpara, a 10th grade student, and Sudis son of Haji Nisar Sarpara, a 11th grade student, into custody and disappeared.

Similarly, on 7 February the forces raided the house of Haji Noorullah Sarpara and took one of his sons, Farhad Sarpara, and Haji Nisar Sarpara’s son Saqib Sarpara into custody. From Haji Nisar’s house another son Haroon Waleed son of Haji Nisar was also forcibly disappeared. Four months later the missing youths were handed over to the police in Kharan and Chaman, including Haroon, Sudis Ahmed and Muhammad Aqib. Kharan and Saqib Zeb and Farhad were handed over to the police in Chaman, Haroon, Sudis and Aqib were released from police custody on June 18 and returned home.

Mama Qadeer Baloch, Vice Chairman of Voice for Baloch Missing Persons, an organization active against forced disappearances in Occupied Balochistan, said that Pakistani secret agencies are abducting and martyring innocent children by using CTD as a shield.

Mama Qadeer said that ‘the agencies have started a new trick but CTD’s lies are now clear, the state’s narrative on forced disappearances and abduction of women has always been false’.

The hunger strike camp set up by the Voice for Baloch Missing Persons for the recovery of forcibly disappeared Baloch persons in Quetta, the capital of Occupied Balochistan completed thirteen years and six months recently.

Over the years various political and social activists have visited and participated in the hunger strike camp in which recently Salman Baloch, Saeed Sulaiman, Yasir Baloch, Rashid Baloch and others came to the camp and expressed solidarity with the bereaved. VBMP Vice Chairman Mama Qadeer Baloch spoke to various delegations. He said that in the neo-demographic occupation, the Pakistani armed forces always target the unarmed people as a soft target for mass repression and they leave no stones unturned to exploit the people using targeted operations, custodial killings as well.

Mama Qadeer Baloch said that two Baloch children were sentenced in the past few days by the Pak forces who filed illegal cases and falsely claimed that they belong to an armed organization and now they have been detained by CTD. He said that ‘it is fabricated, Saqib and Farhad were forcibly disappeared by Pakistani forces last year and now they are claiming their arrest last month’.

He said that CTD is now being brought to the fore after FC Force’s inhumane acts and brutality in Balochistan.

Amnesty International has demanded the Pakistani authorities to immediately release Mahal Baloch in accordance with international human rights law.

Amnesty International wrote in its letter to the Pakistani Interior Minister that it is extremely concerned for the security of Mahal Baloch.’We are writing this letter to you out of concern, a 28-year-old Baloch woman has been forcibly detained by the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) from Quetta for more than a month without any charge. It is tantamount to deny civil and human rights’, the letter said.According to the text of the letter, keeping Mahal Baloch in prison for a long time without proving her guilt is a violation of international human rights.

Mahal Baloch, was forcibly disappeared from Quetta last month after the forces raided Mahal Baloch’s house in Quetta and detained her along with the children and other women of the house and kept her in custody for several hours. She was held on physical remand for 7 days, which is a violation of fair trial protections enshrined in international human rights law. The Amnesty letter states that Mahal was produced in court four times without being charged, the CTD requested an extension of her remand, which is illegal and shows the CTD’s arbitrariness, until the authorities prove the allegations against Mahal Baloch that her detention is in violation of international human rights law. She should be released and given a chance for a fair trial.