Geneva: Activists at UN highlight rampant human rights abuses in Pakistan

Geneva [Switzerland], October 4 : Human rights activists condemned Pakistan on Thursday for a range of severe human rights violations, including enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detentions, and torture aimed at silencing dissent.
The event, titled "Human Rights Situation in South Asia: Enforced Disappearances, Extrajudicial Killings, Arbitrary Detentions & Torture in Pakistan," took place on the sidelines of the 57th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva.
The event was led by Fazal Ur Rehman Afridi, a Pashtun political activist and Principal Representative of TUMUKU (ECOSOC), an NGO.
Other panellists included Shunichi Fujiki, Managing Director of the International Career Support Association; Naseem Baloch, Chairman of the Baloch National Movement; Vermaut Andy, a journalist and human rights defender; Jafari Reza, Chairman of the Afghan Peace Dialogue; and Jabarkhail Azizullah, a member of PTM International Advocacy (USA).
Afridi condemned the actions of the Pakistani military against Pashtun activists in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, recounting how, even the day before, Pakistani forces had targeted members of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) in Bajaur, Aurangzeb, Lakki Marwat, Madan, and Charsadda districts.
He stated, "This brutal crackdown is condemned by all activists of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the international community present here." Afridi further explained that the protestors were attacked ahead of a planned Pashtun National Jirga (Court) scheduled for October 11.
"The police used tear gas and bullets against peaceful protestors. PTM has always been peaceful, yet the authorities are violating our basic rights, such as freedom of expression and freedom of assembly. Many activists were injured, and homes were attacked. In some cases, family members of activists were arrested illegally," he added.
During the event, Vermaut Andy brought attention to the case of Ayesha, a victim of enforced disappearance. "Ayesha is a mother of three whose husband, a teacher in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, was taken two years ago without warning or explanation. To this day, she does not know if he is dead or alive. Her children ask every night when their father is coming home, and she has no answer," Andy recounted.
He noted that Ayesha's husband is just one of 32,000 Pashtuns who have disappeared over the decades. "These disappearances are deliberate acts of terror, meant to silence those who dare to speak out and to crush those who dare to stand. In June 2024 alone, 54 Pashtuns disappeared without a trace," Andy stated, stressing the urgency of international attention to these cases.
Naseem Baloch, speaking about the plight of the Baloch people, shared his personal experience with enforced disappearances, echoing the suffering of thousands of Baloch men, women, and children. He explained that since Balochistan's forced incorporation into Pakistan in 1948, the Baloch people have faced systematic oppression.
"Pakistan has launched an undeclared war against the Baloch, aiming to crush all forms of resistance to its occupation. Thousands of Baloch, Pashtun, Sindhi, and Kashmiri people are detained in internment centers without trial, where they endure torture and abuse," he said.
Baloch added, "These centers are black holes of injustice, and many of the disappeared are never seen again, with their bodies often dumped in mass graves. The United Nations Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance clearly states that such acts are crimes against human dignity."