In Khuzdar, the Baloch Yakjehti Committee staged a large protest on Wednesday, condemning enforced disappearances and Pakistan Army repression in Pak-occupied-Balochistan. The demonstration, part of an ongoing campaign titled “Breaking the Silence: Standing Against Enforced Disappearances,” saw participation from the families of missing persons and locals from Nal, Wadh, Surab, and nearby areas.
The protest rally began at Shaheed Razzaq Chowk and marched to Azadi Chowk, where demonstrators staged a sit-in to demand accountability for the forced abductions of Baloch civilians, activists, and students.
Army Intimidation Fails to Stop Protesters
Pakistan’s security forces are trying to sabotage the protest by resorting to familiar oppressive tactics. Deployed hundreds of personnel try to intimidate the protestors, shut down communication networks, and arrested participants. They even used violence to break up the rally. Despite these efforts, the protesters carried on, demonstrating their resistance to the Army’s oppressive policies.
The military establishment has long used enforced disappearances as a tool to crush Baloch population in POB, where the population has resisted Pakistan’s control since its forceful annexation in 1948. Thousands of Baloch activists, students, and intellectuals have vanished over the years, with the Army-backed intelligence agencies and death squads orchestrating these abductions. Many abductees are tortured, killed, and discarded in the Army’s “kill-and-dump” policy.
The rally in Khuzdar follows similar protests in Karachi and Hub Chowki, underscoring the growing discontent with the Army’s unchecked authority in POB. The Baloch Yakjehti Committee’s campaign aims to mobilize the public against these enforced disappearances, which have devastated families across the region.