Of Baluchistan Rights Group Zindabad
Talking to the Post, a renowned activist from Baluchistan on condition of anonymity said, “human rights abuses are mainstream in Baluchistan.”
Under the pretexts of “counter-insurgency” or “re-establishment of peace”, Pakistani forces have Carried out uncountable misdeeds. Enforced disappearances are a major human rights issue in Baluchistan. Despite the numerous negotiations with the authorities, such disappearances continue unabated, he added.
Baloch activists have also been abducted from foreign countries, like Sweden and UAE. Such disappearances compelled Mama Qadeer Baloch – a renowned human rights activist from Baluchistan – to break a world record by marching from Quetta to Islamabad. Mama Qadeer and his organisation, Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP), are protesting in front of the Quetta press club for the past ten years.
Pakistani authorities have now imposed an indefinite ban on the official website of Human Rights Commission of Baluchistan.
According to the Baluchistan Post, a local media agency, the human rights group a non-profit human rights organisation operating in the province; a region that already suffers from strict levels of media restriction. They also have firm bases in foreign countries like Sweden, the UK and France.
From the past few years, the group has been actively working in Baluchistan to collect information about the ongoing human rights abuses and report them to the international media and organisations. They employed “a network of volunteers and supporters” that assemble and communicate information from the remotest corners of Baluchistan, the media reported further.
As per The Baluchistan Post news desk; authorities have banned the group’s official website in Pakistan. If attempted to access, the website states that: “Surf Safely! The site you are trying to access contains content that is prohibited for viewership from within Pakistan.”
In an official statement, the Commission exhibited shock on this act and mentioned that they are a fair and unbiased “human rights organisation” and not “a party to the war in Baluchistan.”
Media restriction is not a new phenomenon in Baluchistan. Despite transparent and fair reporting, The Baluchistan Post network is also banned in Pakistan. The subscribers to the media are obliged to use technical stratagem to bypass restrictions and access our websites – like using VPNs or online proxies. Some other media and human rights organisations are also banned in Pakistan.
Journalist bodies and rights group allege that “Baluchistan functions under abysmal media restrictions: public opinion is suppressed, political dissent is confronted with brute force and freedom of speech is curtailed.”
According to many campaign groups, “human rights activists, political dissidents and journalists are constantly harassed through the misuse of Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act in Baluchistan. Any kind of information relevant to the Law Enforcement Agencies is considered “harmful” and, therefore, its propagation is forbidden. Furthermore, any information about CPEC is also withheld and its dissemination is deemed an issue of “national security”. Cellular networks and the internet are frequently cut off for “security reasons”.”
