Quetta, May 12 Naseem Baloch, chairman of the Baloch National Movement (BNM), on Tuesday strongly condemned the recent remarks made by the Pakistani armed forces regarding India's selection of the name 'Operation Sindoor' for its military action, stating that the comments reflected a regressive mindset and deep-rooted bias towards women in Pakistan.
Citing remarks by Pakistan's Director-General of Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) -- the official media and public relations wing for the country's Armed Forces -- that "Sindoor is associated with women, and a military operation should have been given a masculine name", Naseem said the statement exposed how women are perceived and treated within Pakistani society.
"This statement was not merely about a word; it reflects a deeply rooted mindset where anything associated with women is viewed as weak, inferior, or unserious," the Baloch activist stated.
He further said that women in Pakistan are often treated as socially inferior to men, which is why movements such as 'Aurat March' and women's rights campaigns are frequently subjected to "ridicule and hateful remarks".
Asserting that Balochistan stands in sharp contrast to such patriarchal attitudes towards women, Naseem said, "Baloch women have historically held a respected and influential position in society and have been part of the battlefield and resistance for centuries."
"From history to the present day, Baloch women have stood alongside men with courage, dignity, and leadership, proving that strength and honour are not defined by gender," he added.
Earlier on Sunday, human rights organisation Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) slammed Pakistan's Sindh government for barring the organisation from participating in the Aurat March programme, describing the move as "state fascism" against the people of Balochistan.
The rights body stated that declaring the BYC and Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM) as banned organisations in the conditional permit issued for the march on Sunday demonstrated the "extreme of state fascism".
Raising questions over the government's actions, the BYC asked under what law or judicial ruling it had been declared a banned organisation. The rights body asserted that no Pakistani court has banned the BYC, arguing that it remains a "peaceful political organisation" with no legal basis for such a ban.
Highlighting its role as a democratic public movement against "human rights abuses, enforced disappearances, extrajudicial measures, and Baloch genocide" in Balochistan, the BYC said, "For the past year, the state has been continuously attempting to crush this public movement through the use of violence."
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor