Occupied Balochistan: Urgent Call to End Genocide and Abolish Concentration Camps

The Baloch community in the EU have launched an urgent appeal to the international community, human rights organisations, and world leaders to address the grave human rights violations occurring in occupied Balochistan.

Waja Sohrab Baloch, a prominent representative of the community has highlighted the systemic genocide, enforced disappearances, and establishment of concentration camps by the State of Pakistan are atrocities that demand immediate global attention and action.

“Tragic incidents highlight the atrocious conditions under which Baloch individuals suffer. One such heart-wrenching example is that of Akhlaq Ahmed, a resident of Malai Bazaar, Turbat,” he said.

He further continued, “After being subjected to enforced disappearance twice and enduring severe psychological and physical torture, Akhlaq tragically took his own life. His despair symbolises the broader plight of the Baloch people, particularly teenagers, who are repeatedly abducted, tortured, and dehumanised.”

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Genocide: The Baloch population is constantly targeted through extra-judicial killings, enforced disappearances, and systemic marginalisation. Many Baloch are subjected to arbitrary detentions, with no regard for due process or basic human rights.

Concentration Camps: Reports indicate the existence of concentration camps where countless Baloch, including teenagers, are held in inhumane conditions. These camps are centers of torture, forced disappearances, and brutal repression.

Torture and Disappearances: Numerous accounts from survivors detail horrifying experiences of torture, both physical and psychological, aimed at crushing the Baloch spirit of resistance. Teenagers are particularly vulnerable, often enduring such treatment merely for their ethnicity or suspected affiliations.

International Intervention: the Baloch community calls upon the United Nations, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and other pertinent bodies to launch impartial investigations into these human rights abuses and hold Pakistan accountable for its actions.

Abolition of Concentration Camps: Immediate closure of all concentration camps in Balochistan is imperative. The detainees must be released and rehabilitated, with medical and psychological support provided for their traumas.

Protection of Human Rights: Urgent measures should be enacted to protect Baloch citizens from further abuse. Enforced disappearances must cease, and those accountable must face justice.

Support for Victims:Establish programs to support victims and their families, providing necessary aid and advocating for their rights and safety.

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Waja Sohrab Baloch emphasised the “the systematic oppression of the Baloch people by the State of Pakistan clearly constitutes a severe breach of international human rights laws and norms.

“The global community must stand in solidarity with the Baloch struggle for justice and human dignity. We implore world leaders and human rights organisations to take immediate and decisive action to end this genocide and dismantle the concentration camps.

“Together, we can ensure that the fundamental rights and freedoms of the Baloch people are respected and that such atrocities never occur again.”