VBMP accuses security forces of abducting Baloch students in Quetta protest

Quetta [Pakistan], June 2 (ANI): The Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) has demanded the immediate release of Mahjabeen Baloch, her brother Muhammad Younus Baloch, and other forcibly disappeared individuals, warning of a disturbing surge in the abduction of Baloch women in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province.

Addressing a press briefing at their protest camp outside the Quetta Press Club, now ongoing for over 5,845 days, VBMP leaders condemned the recent disappearance of Mahjabeen Baloch, a Library Science student at the University of Balochistan and resident of Basima, Washuk district.

According to VBMP, Mahjabeen was taken during a joint operation conducted by police, Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) personnel, and other security forces. Her brother, Younus Baloch, an engineering student, had earlier been picked up by the same forces and remains missing.

VBMP highlighted the continued pattern of collective targeting of families. Citing the killing of Shah Jahan Kurd, brother of missing Baloch Students Organisation (BSO) chairman Zahid Baloch, the group said such actions aim to silence dissent and intimidate activists.

Calling enforced disappearances an "unforgivable crime," the VBMP warned that the increasing abductions of women mark a dangerous new phase in the ongoing human rights crisis in Balochistan.

"This is not just a legal issue; it is a moral and humanitarian emergency. Secret trials, faceless judges, and extrajudicial tactics have no place in a just society," said VBMP representatives.

The group announced plans to stage a protest on Eid, marking 16 years since the enforced disappearance of student leader Zakir Majeed, to draw attention to the suffering of hundreds of Baloch families.

Human rights organisations, including the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), Paank, and the Baloch Women's Forum, have urged the United Nations and global civil society to intervene and ensure independent investigations into enforced disappearances in Balochistan. (ANI)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)