| Human rights abuses in Balochistan | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Insurgency in Balochistan | |
.svg) Balochistan shown within Pakistan (hatched regions indicate claimed but not controlled territories) | |
| Location | Balochistan, Pakistan |
| Date | 1948–present |
| Target | Civilians and combatants |
| Perpetrators | Combatants on either side of the conflict |
Human rights abuses in the province of Balochistan refers to the human rights violations that are occurring in the ongoing insurgency in Balochistan. The situation has drawn concern from the international community.[1][2] The human rights situation in Balochistan is credited to the long-running conflict between Baloch nationalists (as well as Baloch terrorist groups such as the Balochistan Liberation Army) and Pakistani security forces.
Brad Adams, director of the HRW Asia Branch, said that the Pakistani government has not done enough to stop the widespread human rights abuses in the region,[3] which include torture, forced disappearances of those suspected of either terrorism or opposition to the Pakistani military, ill treatment of captured combatants or criminals, and extrajudicial killings.[4] Separatist militants have also committed widespread abuse. According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), the Baloch Separatists militants are responsible for several attacks on schools, teachers, and students in the province with the aim of ethnically cleansing the province.[5][6]
As of 2018[update], per The New York Times, the Pakistani deep-state was using Islamist militants to attack Baloch separatists.[7] Academics and journalists in the United States have been approached by Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) spies, who warned them not to speak about the insurgency in Balochistan or human rights abuses committed by the Pakistan Army, while also threatening to harm them or their families should they continue to investigate the conflict.[8]
- ^ Akbar, Malik Siraj (12 December 2011). "Balochistan – a human rights free zone". Dawn News.
- ^ "Pakistan: Upsurge in Killings in Balochistan". Human Rights Watch. 13 July 2011.
- ^ Walsh, Declan (28 July 2011). "Pakistan's military accused of escalating draconian campaign in Balochistan". The Guardian.
- ^ World Report 2012. Human Rights Watch. 2012. p. 362. ISBN 978-1-60980-389-6.
- ^ ""Their Future is at Stake": Attacks on Teachers and Schools in Pakistan's Balochistan Province". Human Rights Watch. 13 December 2010. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
- ^ "Balochistan Liberation Army - Mapping Militant Organization". Stanford University. Retrieved 2 July 2019.
- ^ Akbar, Malik Siraj (19 July 2018). "In Balochistan, Dying Hopes for Peace". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
Increasing attacks by the Islamic State in Balochistan are connected to Pakistan's failed strategy of encouraging and using Islamist militants to crush Baloch rebels and separatists.
- ^ Mazzetti, Mark; Schmitt, Eric; Savage, Charlie (23 July 2011). "Pakistan Spies on Its Diaspora, Spreading Fear". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
Several Pakistani journalists and scholars in the United States interviewed over the past week said that they were approached regularly by Pakistani officials, some of whom openly identified themselves as ISI officials. The journalists and scholars said the officials caution them against speaking out on politically delicate subjects like the indigenous insurgency in Baluchistan or accusations of human rights abuses by Pakistani soldiers. The verbal pressure is often accompanied by veiled warnings about the welfare of family members in Pakistan, they said.