Baloch activist highlights case of enforced disappearance
The persistent problem of enforced disappearances in Balochistan has drawn the attention of prominent Baloch activist Sammi Deen Baloch, who has brought attention to the case of Diljan Baloch, who has been missing for more than a week. The 28-year-old Awaran inhabitant has allegedly been forcefully vanished after being arrested by security agents on November 12, 2024.
Sammi said in a post on X: “Awaran resident Diljan Baloch was arrested by security personnel and then forced vanished. Information on his health and whereabouts is still lacking.
The family of Diljan Baloch is reportedly seeking information about his location and his quick release via a sit-in protest outside the Deputy Commissioner’s office in Awaran. “The authorities and security personnel are harassing them and pressuring them to end the protest,” said Sammi, who has been outspoken in her support of the family. In addition, the administration has taken down the tent that was erected for the demonstration. The family’s protest has been taking place outside since yesterday.
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“If the mainstream media were to ask the Balochistan ministers about enforced disappearances, instead of questioning the affected families, they would realize the truth,” Sammi said, delivering a scathing critique of the role played by Pakistani authorities and the mainstream media in the ongoing problem of enforced disappearances in Balochistan. However, Pakistan’s major media may never pay attention to the residents of underserved communities like Awaran.”
Thousands of people, mostly from the Baloch ethnic minority, have been forcefully abducted by security personnel or paramilitary organizations in Balochistan, sometimes without cause or due process. This phenomenon is a long-standing and very concerning problem.
These people are usually held in secret places, and when their relatives try to find out where they are, they are often harassed and intimidated. Many of the persons who vanished are political figures, activists, students, and regular residents who are thought to be opposing the government or fighting for the autonomy and rights of the Baloch people.
