In a troubling escalation of repression, the Punjabi Pakistan Army and local police forces have recently intensified their crackdown on the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), a group advocating for the rights of the Pashtun community. Abdul Shaheed, the District Orkazai Social Media Coordinator for PTM, has been arrested by Kohat Police without any formal charges or FIR. This arrest exemplifies the disturbing trend of targeting peaceful activists while allowing terrorists to operate with impunity.
In a further display of the Pak Army’s heavy-handed tactics, PTM Pashin media member and poet Muhammad Samsoor was apprehended by the Pashin SHO under a fabricated FIR. The unjust detention highlights the pervasive abuse of power against those who seek justice and transparency in the region.
The ongoing oppression is underscored by recent developments involving key PTM figures. Shehzad Wazir, the South Waziristan Coordinator for PTM, has been imprisoned again following a new FIR. Additionally, Salman Turi, a PTM member from Kurram, has been forcibly disappeared by the Punjabi military. These actions reflect a broader pattern of enforced disappearances used by the Punjabi Pak Army to suppress dissent and silence activism.
The PTM’s struggle against the Pakistani establishment has intensified, particularly in light of the movement’s planned national gathering on October 11. The PTM’s vocal opposition to the militarization of Waziristan through Operation Azm-e-Istehkam and its criticism of the occupied-government’s inhumane policies have made it a target for increasingly brutal repression.
The Pak Army’s systematic campaign of intimidation and violence against PTM activists illustrates a grave violation of human rights and an alarming disregard for the rule of law since it forcefully occupied the region in 1947.