Quetta, August 21: A disturbing incident has emerged from Quetta, the capital of Pakistan’s Balochistan province, where two Baloch women and their minor children were reportedly abducted by Pakistani security forces. This incident has drawn strong condemnation from several prominent Baloch human rights organizations and activists.
According to human rights groups, 27-year-old Umaira Baloch, her eight-year-old daughter Parisa, 28-year-old Najma Baloch, and her one-and-a-half-year-old son Zakir were allegedly taken from their homes in the Gashkori town of Quetta by personnel from the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) and Frontier Corps (FC) on Wednesday. Since the incident, there has been no trace of the four individuals.
The Baloch Women’s Forum (BWF) condemned the incident, stating that the abduction of women and children is not only a violation of individual rights but also a serious attack on the basic protections afforded by law. The organization specifically highlighted the abduction of the one-and-a-half-year-old child as particularly horrifying.
The forum emphasized that detaining minors without any transparent and legal judicial process is a grave violation of their fundamental rights and the legal protections afforded to children. They accused the ongoing targeting of Baloch women and children as indicative of a lack of accountability and a culture of impunity in Balochistan.
Meanwhile, the Balochistan Human Rights Council (BHRC) expressed deep concern over the incident. The organization stated that the arbitrary deprivation of freedom and the alleged enforced disappearance of minors is a serious issue under international human rights law and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The BHRC has demanded that the Pakistani government immediately disclose the whereabouts of Umaira, Najma, Parisa, and Zakir, ensure their safety, and release them unconditionally. They also called for the families to be informed about their situation and to be protected from any form of torture or extrajudicial harm.
Baloch Voice for Justice (BVJ) alleged that security forces operating in Balochistan act without any accountability. The organization stated that the enforced disappearance of women and children reflects a complete disregard for the rule of law.
Sabiha Baloch, leader of the Baloch Unity Committee (BUC), also condemned the incident. She wrote on the social media platform X that what crime could an eight-year-old girl and a one-and-a-half-year-old innocent child have committed? Their only “crime” is being Baloch. She accused state agencies of enforced disappearances as the most brutal form of collective punishment.
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