Karachi [Pakistan], March 25 : The Karachi commissioner imposed Section 144 across the city on Monday, following concerns over the "law and order situation," as reported by Dawn.
This came after a recommendation from Karachi South Zone DIG Syed Asad Raza ahead of a planned protest by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) at the Karachi Press Club against the "illegal detention" of leaders Mahrang Baloch and Bebarg Baloch.
Dawn reported that the Section 144 order, effective immediately for March 24, banned protests, demonstrations, sit-ins, rallies, and assemblies of more than five people in the Karachi division, citing security concerns and traffic disruptions. A post on X mentioned that the BYC protest in Karachi was planned for 4 p.m. and was being organised with the support of civil society members, while a protest in Quetta was set for noon. On Saturday, the chief organiser of BYC and 16 other activists were detained by police at their protest camp on Sariab Road in Quetta as authorities intensified their crackdown on the sit-in, which was protesting against alleged enforced disappearances.
Amid this crackdown, voices against Pakistan's actions are growing louder. The Baloch National Movement's United Kingdom chapter organised a protest outside the British Prime Minister's office at 10 Downing Street in London on Sunday, calling for international attention to the grave human rights violations committed against the Baloch people by the Pakistani state.
The Baloch Human Rights Council (BHRC) has also called for urgent intervention from the United Nations Secretary-General in response to the ongoing repression of Baloch activists in Pakistan. In a press release, the BHRC urged the UN to press Pakistani authorities for the immediate and unconditional release of Mahrang Baloch and other members of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee, who have been unlawfully detained.
Baloch people in Pakistan are facing ongoing military operations, enforced disappearances, torture, and extrajudicial killings. Their resources are being exploited, and they are being displaced from their lands. Nationalist activists advocating for autonomy are being targeted, while Baloch civilians continue to suffer from violence and human rights abuses.
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