Pakistan: Academic standstill at QAU as Baloch students protest alleged enforced disappearance

Islamabad [Pakistan] November 28 (ANI): Academic life at Islamabad's Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU) has come to a complete standstill as the Baloch Students Council (BSC) continued its sit-in for the third straight day, demanding the immediate recovery of missing student Saeed Baloch. The protest has effectively shut down the campus, forcing the administration to suspend classes amid fears that the unrest could spread if students from other groups joined in, as reported by The Balochistan Post.

According to The Balochistan Post, Saeed, a sixth-semester student of the Department of Defence and Strategic Studies, was allegedly picked up by unknown individuals on July 8 while travelling to Quetta. Eyewitnesses told the outlet that the student was taken away near Islamabad Toll Plaza between 7:00 and 7:30 p.m. by men in civilian clothes who were law enforcement officials. The BSC accused both the university administration and Pakistani state institutions of complete neglect, saying they have failed to act on the student's disappearance. The council noted that it had previously ended a protest camp in early October after being promised legal help by the administration, but no tangible progress followed.

Highlighting broader discrimination, the BSC stated that Baloch students across several Pakistani universities, including Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi, Sargodha University, NUML, and Islamia University Bahawalpur, have been victims of profiling, raids, and intimidation. Such state-backed harassment has caused severe disruption to their academic lives and created an environment of fear on campuses, as highlighted by The Balochistan Post.

The student council has now demanded a transparent investigation into Saeed's disappearance, direct dialogue with authorities, and a written guarantee ensuring the safety of Baloch students. It also urged QAU to send a representative to the Islamabad High Court on December 1 to explain its inaction. While the QAU administration has refrained from issuing an official response, a senior official stated that attempts to negotiate with the protesters were rejected. Students maintain their sit-in is not political but a call for justice, a reflection of Pakistan's growing crisis of enforced disappearances and academic repression, as reported by The Balochistan Post. (ANI)

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