Baloch protestors has made a call for the shutterdown protest across the nation on January 3. The reason as stated by the Baloch protestors behind this shutdown is that ‘the state officials were trying to label Baloch march and sit-in in Islamabad as propoaganda.’
While demanding an end to the enforced disappearances and the extra-judicial killings in Balochistan, the organizer of the protest, the Baloch Yakjehti Committee, added that, “The state has consistently shown a half-hearted and uncommitted concern regarding our demands from the beginning.”
It stated that, “Hence, on January 3, we are calling for a shutterdown protest across Pakistan. We urge people to advocate and respect our call for the shutterdown strike in the name of humanity and the Baloch nation, aiming to preserve our identity.”
On January 3rd, our ultimatum will expire. The State has consistently shown a half-hearted and uncommitted concern regarding our demands from the beginning. Furthermore, despite the seriousness of the Baloch Genocide issue, State officials are attempting to justify it by labeling… pic.twitter.com/oGrbgaoNNH
— Baloch Yakjahti Committee – Kech (@BYCKech) January 1, 2024
Baloch protesters, who have been camping near the National Press Club for over a week now, on December 28 had given the government a seven-day ultimatum to fulfill their demands which include the release of all the protestors that had been arrested during police action, thorough investigation into the rights violations in Balochistan, elimination of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings, release of all the victims of enforced disappearances, restriction on the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) and elimination of “state-sponsored death squads.”
While sharing the details via the video, one of the protest organizers, Dr Mahrang Baloch said that, “The protest march had begun after a Baloch youth was allegedly killed in the custody by the CTD.”
Adding that all the residents of the province supported the protest, she said that, “Our movement is against the decade-long enforced disappearances and murders of the innocent citizens in Balochistan.”
Dr Mahrang recalled that the Islamabad police had used force to “sabotage” the long march and numerous “fake” first information reports had been registered against protesters across the country. “We have been repeatedly told by the administration they are not ready to work on their policy of Baloch genocide,” she claimed.
Further, she urged the nation to support the Baloch people and their call for the shutter-down strike tomorrow.
