- HRCP condemns alleged ‘enforced disappearances’
Unidentified men allegedly abducted a Baloch citizen identified as Muhammad Rahim Zehri along with his family members, including his mother, wife, and children, from Quetta on February 2nd. According to reports, Zehri’s mother and children have returned. However, Zehri and his wife are still missing.
According to a report released by the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances (COIOED) in July 2022, a total of 8,696 cases of missing persons have been reported. While 6,513 of these cases have been solved, 2,219 are still pending. Among the missing persons, the majority of people are from Baloch and Pashtun ethnicities.
However, human rights activists claim the number is much higher than this.
The alleged kidnapping of the family by unidentified men has renewed the debate on enforced disappearances, with many social media users terming it a “war crime against Baloch people”.
Muhammad Rahim Zehri, along with his 5 family members,were abducted on 3 February from Quetta; Pakistan has been practicing d unlawful act of #EnforcedDisappearances with impunity for decades.Would Int HR org ever ask this brutal state about its war crime against d Baloch people? pic.twitter.com/Di7bYpmkCL
— MehrZaad Baloch (@MehrZaadBSO) February 7, 2023
A protest was also staged in Islamabad against the alleged “enforced disappearances”.
BYC – Islamabad staged a protest against The unjust and brutal attack on Abdul Hafeez Zehri including his family in Karachi and the enforced disappearance of Rahim zehri along with his wife Rasheeda zehri.#SaveHafeezBaloch #SaveZehriFamily https://t.co/bPaJmtmf8Y pic.twitter.com/puDVKGA6YJ
— بشام بلوچ (@bashamBSMA) February 8, 2023
Meanwhile, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), in a statement, condemned the “alleged enforced disappearance of Mohd Rahim and his wife from Quetta by several unidentified men”.
“His elderly mother and two young daughters, who were also taken away but released soon after, depend on their father, a vegetable vendor, to support them,” the statement added.
HRCP strongly condemns the alleged enforced disappearance of Mohd Rahim and his wife from Quetta by several unidentified men. His elderly mother and two young daughters, who were also taken away but released soon after, depend on their father, a vegetable vendor, to support them. pic.twitter.com/LgL66LLLiM
— Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (@HRCP87) February 9, 2023
