The Chairman of the Baloch National Movement, Dr. Naseem Baloch, strongly condemned the killing of researcher, poet, writer, and teacher Professor Ghamkhwar Hayat, stating that this tragic incident is part of and a continuation of the ongoing Baloch genocide and collective punishment in Balochistan.
He said that fifteen years ago, in a similar attack, the state targeted and assassinated the renowned poet, researcher, and intellectual Professor Saba Dashtyari. “We pay tribute to Ghamkhwar Hayat for his martyrdom, sacrifice, and his immense literary contributions and intellectual efforts. He was the author of nearly eighteen books. Undoubtedly, his loss is irreparable for the Baloch nation and for the Balochi and Brahui languages.”
Dr. Naseem Baloch stated that, as a nation, “we must not forget that the same Pakistan killed more than one thousand poets, writers, intellectuals, and teachers in Bangladesh. On December 14, 1971 alone, the Pakistani military brutally murdered more than 200 prominent intellectuals. Today, the same painful pattern is being repeated in Balochistan. This is the systematic killing of a nation’s intellectual consciousness.”
The BNM Chairman further said that for many years, Baloch intellectuals, students, teachers, poets, and writers have been systematically targeted in order to silence the Baloch national voice and to keep society mentally suppressed and backward. The assassination of Professor Ghamkhwar Hayat is yet another tragic proof of the deteriorating human rights situation and ongoing state violence in Balochistan, where perpetrators continue committing war crimes with complete impunity.
He added that the occupying state is using various tactics to destroy the intellectual, literary, and ideological foundation of the Baloch nation. “Teachers, intellectuals, and literary figures form the intellectual backbone of any nation, and attacks on them are in fact attacks on Baloch national thought, identity, history, language, and consciousness. However, truth cannot be suppressed through oppression, murder, and fear, nor can a nation struggling for freedom, justice, and dignity be silenced.”
Dr. Naseem Baloch said that Professor Ghamkhwar Hayat played a significant role in promoting awareness, resistance, and national consciousness in Baloch society through his scholarly and literary services. “His killing is not only an irreparable loss for Brahui literature but for the entire Baloch nation.”
The Chairman of Baloch National Movement called on international human rights organizations, the United Nations, literary associations, and media institutions to take notice of the extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, and state repression against Baloch intellectuals and civilians in Balochistan, and to hold Pakistan accountable for serious human rights violations.
