Quetta: Sadia Baloch has said that the enforced disappearance of her brother, Salman Baloch, has subjected her family to endless waiting and unbearable mental anguish, as they continue to seek justice through constitutional and legal means.
According to Sadia Baloch, Salman Baloch was forcibly disappeared from Quetta on November 13, 2022. She stated that the family approached all available legal and constitutional forums, including the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances and the High Court, but has so far failed to secure his recovery or any form of justice.
In her statement, Sadia Baloch said that the judicial system, which is meant to provide relief to victims, appears in practice to be strengthening those responsible for such violations. Despite repeatedly seeking legal remedies, she said the family continues to face indifference from state institutions.
She further said that families of the forcibly disappeared are often labeled as anti-state and accused of rejecting the Constitution, law, and courts. Rejecting these allegations, she emphasized that their sole demand is the recovery of their loved ones in accordance with the Constitution and due legal process.
“The real question is not whether we accept the Constitution,” she said, “but who is failing to implement it.” She questioned who is responsible for violating citizens’ fundamental rights, including personal liberty, human dignity, and the right to a transparent judicial process.
Sadia Baloch stated that keeping Salman Baloch forcibly disappeared without any charges, indictment, or judicial verdict constitutes a violation of Articles 9 and 10 of the Constitution, which guarantee the right to life, liberty and safeguards against arbitrary detention. She described the practice as a direct attack on the rule of law.
She added that Baloch youth represent the identity, awareness, and future of their people, and that their enforced disappearances amount to an irreparable loss for society as a whole. According to her, the disappearance of Salman Baloch and other young people reflects a systematic attempt to suppress collective consciousness.
Concluding her statement, Sadia Baloch said that if demanding justice, approaching courts, and calling for the recovery of forcibly disappeared persons under the Constitution is considered a crime, then the state system itself stands in contradiction to its own laws. She stressed that the struggle against enforced disappearances is not limited to one family but is a collective responsibility of society.
