Quetta: On the first day of Eid al-Adha, families of missing persons and activists staged a protest outside the Quetta Press Club, demanding the recovery of forcibly disappeared individuals, an end to alleged extrajudicial killings, and the release of Dr. Mahrang Baloch and other detained leaders of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC).
Organized by Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP), the demonstration saw participation from the relatives of missing persons, as well as members and leaders of various political parties and groups including the Balochistan National Party (BNP), National Party, and Hazara Workers.
In a poignant moment during the protest, a woman brought a set of new clothes intended for her missing relative, symbolizing her enduring hope that he might return in time to wear them on Eid. “Every Eid, I prepare new clothes for him in case he comes back suddenly,” she said.
Speakers at the protest included VBMP Chairman Nasrullah Baloch, National Party leader Ali Ahmed Baloch, BNP’s Shumaila Ismail, Mehym Khan Baloch, and several relatives of missing individuals. They lamented that while most people celebrate Eid with joy, many in Balochistan are forced to protest on this festive day for the return of their loved ones.
Nasrullah Baloch claimed that enforced disappearances have once again surged in Balochistan in recent months, with between 100 to 150 people reportedly going missing each month. He further alleged that students and scholars, including MPhil scholar Ghani Baloch and university student Mahjabeen Baloch, had been disappeared within the past two weeks.
The VBMP chairman also pointed to a rise in alleged extrajudicial killings. He claimed that 21 missing persons had been killed without trial between May and June alone.
Protesters demanded the safe recovery of all missing persons and called for the immediate release of Dr. Mahrang Baloch and other BYC leaders.
Although families and activists accuse state institutions of involvement in these disappearances and killings, government officials have consistently denied such allegations. Authorities argue that certain groups are using the missing persons issue as a tool to malign the state and its institutions.
A similar protest was also held in Turbat, where participants echoed the same demands: the recovery of missing persons and the release of Dr. Mahrang and other BYC activists.
