Washington, DC [US], January 22 : Human rights defenders will hold a peace march on January 24 in Washington, DC, to support Sindhi and Baloch activists protesting in Pakistan against the "enforced disappearances" of their loved ones.
They will chant slogans and hold banners with messages of solidarity with the families of these defenders. This 'walk' is being organised by the Sindhi Foundation, based in Washington, DC.
The protests in Islamabad are being led by Mahrang Baloch, a 30-year-old Baloch activist who is now suffering because her father was killed and her brother was abducted by Pakistani security forces.
Meanwhile, T Kumar, former International Advocacy Director at Amnesty International, said, "While all human rights abuses are painful, disappearance can be considered the most painful to those who have disappeared and their families. Successive Pakistani governments have used this gruesome practice, mainly in the Balochistan and Sindh southern provinces, to silence political activists and terrorise their communities."
Thousands of families in Sindh and Balochistan have a brother, father, husband, or son killed or "missing" for months, even years, all for the "crime" of standing up for their basic and constitutional human rights. The Pakistani government has declared them "terrorists" and carried out gruesome acts of torture and extrajudicial killings.
According to Waheed Baloch, former Speaker of the Balochistan Provincial Assembly, "Balochistan is the black hole of Pakistan, where extrajudicial executions and enforced disappearances are committed with impunity. The current uprising of Baloch masses is the result of 75 years of subjugation, oppression, and exploitation committed by Pakistan's military."
The Sindhi Foundation has organised peaceful protests against the enforced disappearances of Sindhis in New York, Ottawa, Geneva, Paris, London and Senegal.
"We invite all those who believe in equality and justice to support the demand of the missing persons' families to produce their loved ones who have disappeared," said Sufi Laghari, Executive Director of the Sindhi Foundation.
"Please join your voice with those demanding fairness and justice. Amplify their voices by spreading the word about this 'walk'. Let us all stand united in solidarity with the Sindhi and Baloch people," he also said.
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