Quetta: Naseeda Baloch, sister of enforcedly disappeared youth Sagheer Ahmed, held a press conference on Saturday at the protest camp of Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) in Quetta. Addressing the media, she highlighted what she described as a heartbreaking and deeply sensitive tragedy, not just for her family, but for the entire region of Balochistan.
She said her brother Sagheer Ahmed, son of Ghulam Qadir Baloch, and her cousin Iqrar, son of Jangiyan, were forcibly detained by Pakistani security forces on the night of June 11, 2025, from the Ormara checkpoint. “It has been more than 19 days since they were taken and yet we have no information about their whereabouts. No official notification, no FIR, no court appearance just complete silence,” she said.
“This is not a new story for us,” Naseeda said, holding back tears. “But each time it happens, it tears through our soul.” She recalled how her brother had previously been forcibly disappeared on November 20, 2017, from Karachi University after an exam. “He spent a year in unknown torture cells, subjected to inhumane treatment and severe abuse,” she said.
“This isn’t just about two individuals,” she added. “This is a collective outcry of thousands of families in Balochistan who have been ignored for years.”
Naseeda highlighted the grim reality of Balochistan: a region marginalized and repressed, where youth are abducted daily and mutilated bodies are dumped in deserts, mountains, or roadside ditches.
“What kind of law is this? What kind of justice? What kind of state considers even educated youth a threat?” she asked.
Sagheer Ahmed, she explained, completed his Master’s degree from Sargodha University after graduating from Karachi University. He returned to his hometown, Awaran, hoping to serve his people through education. But facing unemployment and a lack of basic facilities, he was forced to move to Turbat and start working at an oil depot with his cousin Iqrar to earn a living.
“Their only crime,” Naseeda said, “was that they were educated, they were earning honestly and they were Baloch. On June 11, while traveling from Turbat to Karachi, they were detained at the Ormara checkpoint and since then, they have disappeared.”
She questioned the very role of the state: “When the state becomes a threat instead of a protector, where do we go? The courts are silent, the parliament indifferent and the media has different priorities.”
She emphasized: “We’re not asking for special treatment. If there are charges against Sagheer or Iqrar, present them in court. Give them access to a lawyer and allow them to defend themselves. My cousin Iqrar suffers from kidney disease and urgently needs medical care.”
“When state institutions themselves act outside the constitution, when the law is interpreted through the barrel of a gun, trust in the system collapses,” she said.
Naseeda appealed to authorities: “Through this press conference, we demand the immediate recovery of Sagheer Ahmed and Iqrar Baloch. If there are any allegations, they must be produced before a court and treated in accordance with the Constitution.”
She also called on national and international human rights organizations, the media, civil society and the Supreme Court to take the matter seriously. “Silence is also a crime and we no longer have the option to remain silent.”
“Baloch youth were not born to disappear,” she declared.
“We want to live, we want to study, we want to earn a living with dignity. But when we are repeatedly abducted, tortured and denied justice, where are we supposed to go?”
In conclusion, Naseeda said: “My plea is not just for my brother and cousin, but for every son whose mother has searched for him in vain for years. I will not rest until they are recovered, and I believe you all will become our voice.”
