On the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, the Baloch National Movement (BNM) held a protest in Utrecht, the Netherlands, to draw international attention to the ongoing crisis of enforced disappearances in Balochistan and to express solidarity with the affected families.
The protest was also attended by Pashtun political activists, who expressed solidarity with the victims of enforced disappearances and their families. Demonstrators held photographs of forcibly disappeared persons and carried banners and placards demanding justice and calling for an immediate end to enforced disappearances.
Speakers at the gathering included Muheem Abdul Rahim, President of the BNM Netherlands Chapter; Abid Jan Qadir, Coordinator of the Party’s Media, IT and Cultural Department, Dr. Latif Baloch, Sanaullah Baloch and human rights activist Zar Khan. The speakers highlighted the profound and devastating impact of enforced disappearances on Baloch society.
The speakers said that hardly any Baloch family has remained untouched by the trauma of enforced disappearance. Across Balochistan, families have endured prolonged anguish and uncertainty following the abduction and disappearance of their loved ones. In many cases, families are given no information about the whereabouts, condition or fate of their relatives, deepening their suffering and leaving them in a state of unbearable uncertainty.
They said enforced disappearances have become one of the most visible manifestations of the ongoing human rights crisis in Balochistan. People from various sections of society—including political and social activists, students, teachers, journalists, lawyers, writers, human rights defenders and ordinary civilians—have been affected by this practice.
The speakers stated that Balochistan is the homeland of the Baloch nation and that the Baloch nation is struggling to secure its right to self-determination. They also appreciated the continued solidarity of the Pashtun nation with the Baloch struggle, saying that the Pashtun nation has consistently raised its voice against oppression, injustice and human rights violations and stood in solidarity with the Baloch nation.
The speakers further said that enforced disappearances constitute part of what they described as an ongoing process of genocide against the Baloch nation in Balochistan. The continued enforced disappearance of thousands of people, extrajudicial killings and other serious human rights violations have created an atmosphere of fear, insecurity and uncertainty across Balochistan.
The Baloch National Movement called for the immediate disclosure of the whereabouts, condition and fate of all forcibly disappeared persons to their families. It demanded an immediate end to enforced disappearances, independent and transparent investigations into reported human rights violations, and accountability for those responsible.
