WRITER: BANADI BALOCH
A day for remembrance of those who are missing and striving for free live in state torture cells. 8th of June considered BALOCH MISSING PERSONS DAY, which was announced by BSO AZAD in 2016 regarding the tragic day of 8 June 2009, when the ex-vice chairman of BSO AZAD went missing, and to remember those who are missing and enduring pain in state prisons. This day is declared as the day of agonies of enforced disappearance of young students, children, and women. No doubt this day has a long history of repression, subjugation and brutality of Baloch political activists, student leaders and human rights activists by Pakistani military occupation.
8th of June, a merciless day for Baloch, where everyone screams out the phrase, ‘DISAPPEARED BUT NOT FOGOTTEN. Baloch people are suffering from the ruthless inhumanities of this barbaric state. The whole nation, including children, youngsters , women and elders, are suffering from this merciless crime of colonisation. To reveal all these brutalities, the Baloch nation declared 8th June a black day named BALOCH MISSING PERSONS DAY.
A day in which a person who has himself become the victim of enforced disappearance or those who are suffering behind their loved one who became the victim demonstrates all those pains they suffer. The day when the political leader of BSO AZAD and a son of a mother, Zakir Majeed, went missing; since then to now, his mother has been struggling and screaming on roads and appealing to bring back her son. A day which is very aggressive for every mother in Balochistan, crying for her beloved son who is suffering from the darkness of the citadel. It brings a chamber of horrors to every house.
In Balochistan, from every home a mother is appealing for her son, sisters are crying for their brother, and children are enduring the pain of the absence of their father. Despite all these brutalities, these victims have been protesting on roads for decades and enduring the pain which is always faced by them from state armed authorities, facing fake trials for suppression of their voice. They are continuously protesting in different areas of Pakistan to uplift the veil of silence and raise their voices from a national to an international level for their people and against the inexorable pain of enforced disappearance. On the day of the missing person, they make the state remember that their persons are disappeared but not forgotten; rather, these hardships are making them stronger and more empowered to raise their collective voice against the viciousness of the disappearance of a whole generation.
A day to remember those political activists and human rights activists of the Baloch nation who sacrificed themselves and became the victims of enforced disappearance for being part of Baloch liberation movements. The state made them disappear, thinking to demolish their ideology, but it didn’t happen; rather, today their ideas are revolving in each and every mind of Baloch youngsters. Zakir Majeed was one of those political activists who sacrificed his own life and still endured pain in torture cells but denied leaving his ideology of freedom for his land. Mother of Zakir Majeed is symbol of resistance across Balochistan. She has been struggling for fifteen years for her son and she often used to say that “ I will raise my voice for my zakir till my last breath”. There are thousands of mothers like her who are continuously protesting on daily basis for safe recovery of their sons. Same as DR. DEEN MUHAMMAD who was a doctor and baloch poltical activist, went on missing on 28 june 2009.
Pakistan state agencies disappeared him, so he might not propagate his ideology, but the bad of the state today, her daughter Sammi Deen Baloch, is the symbol of resistance. She is resisting and struggling since fifteen years after her father’s abduction. A political leader like Zahid Baloch, who was the former chairman of BSO Azad, became a victim of enforced disappearance on the 18th of March 2014 in front of colleagues. Later on, his family members, his wife, and his two baby boys participated in many protests for Zahid’s recovery. Chairman Zahid was one of those great leaders who served their life and gave an ideology of freedom to each Baloch. Shabir Baloch, the information secretary of BSO AZAD, went missing in October 2016.
Since then to now, his whereabouts are unknown. Same as there are thousands of political and human rights activists who went missing on a daily basis. This pattern has continued on the land of Balochistan for decades. Now if we critically see things, then each citizen of Balochistan is in threat of being a victim of enforced disappearance. Now anywhere in Pakistan, Baloch students are forcibly disappeared from their universities. They are not safe in their colleges, universities and even in their homes.
Enforced disappearance is such a pitiless crime and its pain is incurable until the recovery of the missing one. Every home in Balochistan is deprived of its light; every mother in Balochistan sleeps in front of the door, hoping maybe her beloved son will return anytime and then she will hug him with all those hopes and longings which she has been growing in her heart since her son’s abduction. Now enforced disappearance is the story of every home, so regarding these atrocities and to reveal the sufferings of these barbaric crimes, on the 8th of June, Baloch people remember their missing loved ones and demonstrate their hate towards state policies. Baloch people are committed; they are unstopably protesting over roads, but despite all those ruthless behaviours they face from the state, they are standstill and make themselves stronger. Pakistani states most prominently think that by disappearing people, it will threaten people and make them silent over the Baloch genocide and enforced disappearance. The state thinks that it will not let people raise their voice for justice and it tries to suppress them against the exploitation of Baloch resources and to continue its occupation over Baloch land, but it is all in vain.
On the 8th of June, named BALOCH MISSING PERSONS DAY, people raise their voices against aggression of enforced disappearance and the distresses of every home which are deprived of their light.
