KARACHI: Mama Qadeer Baloch, a sexagenarian activist known for highlighting the alleged cases of enforced disappearance of Baloch activists, called upon international watchdogs on Saturday to look into actions of the authorities in Pakistan “bent upon throttling all the voices being raised against violation of human rights”.

Speaking at a press conference at the Karachi Press Club, Mr Baloch said: “It is ridiculous and unacceptable to stop someone from going abroad to raise his voice against injustices in our country.”

Read: Stopped from going to US, Mama Qadeer thinks of going to SC

He was accompanied by Farzana Majeed Baloch, the general secretary of the Voice of Baloch Missing Persons.

Mr Baloch said he, Farzana Baloch and a relative had been invited to a conference in New York on enforced disappearance of Baloch and Sindhi people.

“We duly got visa from the US consulate, arranged the required funds and booked our tickets for a flight to New York on March 4,” he said.

On the day of the flight, he said, initially everything was going smoothly at the airport.

They got their boarding cards and their belongings went to the cargo facility, but then they were stopped at the counter of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).

“A lady at the FIA counter became annoyed as she saw me and told me that my name was on the exit control list, which was a big surprise for me as it was not there when I visited UAE the last time, hardly a month ago,” said Ms Farzana Baloch.

Later, she said, the lady officer dropped another “bombshell” when she informed her that the first information report of a case had been registered against her just an hour ago.

According to Mr Baloch, what hurt them most was the mistreatment they received at the hands of the FIA officials. “We complained about the misbehaviour to a senior official and asked whether they had seen smugglers or Taliban in us. But he simply said he was helpless.”

He said that once the aircraft they were supposed to board had departed, the officials returned their belongings to them and asked them to leave the airport. He accused the FIA officials of “staging a drama” only to stop them from going to the US.

“We appeal to the United Nations human rights bodies, Amnesty International, and other organisations to raise their voice against the authorities’ actions that stop us from highlighting human rights violations here,” he said.

Published in Dawn, March 8th, 2015

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