What Are the Risks of a Violent Police Crackdown on Protesting Baloch Activists in Islamabad?

Islamabad, July 19 (NationPress) Baloch human rights activists sounded the alarm on Saturday regarding the imminent threat of a violent police crackdown as the National Press Club in Islamabad and its surroundings were sealed off with barbed wire to prevent them from establishing a peaceful protest camp in front of the venue.

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), a human rights organization, highlighted that Saturday marked the fourth consecutive day of the sit-in protest by families of forcibly disappeared persons and detained BYC leaders in Islamabad. Since the inception of this camp, the protestors—which include women, children, and elderly family members—have faced restrictions on their right to assemble.

“We are under significant threat of a violent police crackdown. Riot police have encircled the National Press Club and its surrounding areas with barbed wire. We are peaceful protestors, including elderly women and young children, who have traveled thousands of kilometers from Balochistan to this city of power, only to confront the risk of arrest, violence, and intimidation,” Nadia Baloch, sister of detained BYC Central Organiser Mahrang Baloch, shared on X.

“We are not terrorists, militants, or violent actors. We are peaceful protestors. We have come here from Balochistan to seek justice for our forcibly disappeared and unlawfully detained loved ones. Yet today, riot police have surrounded us with barbed wire, threatening us with a violent crackdown,” she added.

Nadia emphasized that in this very city, “violent actors are often welcomed and even rewarded with cash by military personnel,” while Baloch elders face humiliation for merely demanding justice.

“We urgently call upon the civil society of Islamabad, human rights organizations, and concerned citizens to intervene immediately and help prevent this impending police action,” she stated.

Another Baloch activist, Sahiba Baloch, urged all conscientious citizens, media members, and human rights defenders in Islamabad to show solidarity and not abandon the families, advocating support for their peaceful quest for justice.

“The families of Baloch missing persons, who have been peacefully protesting for the past four days, are now surrounded by barricades. The police have encircled them on all sides, and there is increasing fear that arrests may happen at any moment,” BYC leader Sahiba stated.

Critiquing the Pakistani authorities, the BYC asserted that the ongoing restrictions on the right to peaceful assembly, combined with the targeting of BYC leadership through unlawful detentions, indicates a systematic effort to silence Baloch voices.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has also expressed its concerns regarding the treatment of “peaceful protestors” by Islamabad police.

“Many of the protestors, including women and children, have traveled from Balochistan to Islamabad, advocating for the release of political prisoners and those forcibly disappeared in the province. HRCP stands firmly behind their right to peaceful assembly and protest, demanding that authorities distinguish between advocacy for legitimate rights and militancy. Women and children from Balochistan deserve as much dignity and respect as individuals from other regions of the country,” the rights organization stated.