‘Weakness, not strength’: Karachi activists furious over state crackdown on Baloch protesters

‘Gwadar ka mahasara band karo’ (stop the siege of Gwadar) echoed outside the Karachi Press Club (KPC) on Saturday afternoon as civil society activists took to the streets against the state crackdown on Baloch protesters in Sindh and Balochistan.

Under the dull sky, they chanted slogans against the government’s “cowardice” and “hypocrisy”. Their voices, the loudest among the three demonstrations underway in the area, were undeterred even as the city’s humidity levels peaked.

“We won’t back down until and unless the oppression stops,” said Virsa Pirzado, one of the protesters and a member of the Sindh Commission on the Status of Women. “The state clamp down is unacceptable, the way they arrested them is unacceptable, the way they beat up Baloch women and children is unacceptable.”

“The issue of missing persons is genuine,” she added.

On Friday night, several workers of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) were arrested when they gathered near the Arts Council roundabout to stage a rally in protest over incidents of alleged torture and detention in Gwadar.

According to the BYC, the police allegedly manhandled participants of the rally and detained around 50 workers, including women, when they tried to march on the KPC. On the other hand, the police claimed organisers violated the ban on holding any unlawful assembly in the Red Zone, adding that 14 male activists were booked under the relevant sections of the Pakistan Penal Code while women protesters were released immediately.

But activists who gathered for the release of these detainees today claimed that the number of those arrested was largely underreported.

“Last night, around 150 Baloch protesters, including students, were subjected to baton-charge and arrested for nothing. They were just lodging a peaceful protest,” Dr Riaz Ahmed, a Karachi University professor, told Dawn.com.

“Several of those arrested have not yet returned home; their names are not in the first information reports and we fear they will be declared missing persons,” he said.

Ahmed highlighted that peaceful Baloch protesters were being pushed into a corner. “Where is the civilian government? All these political parties only speak up when they are being benefitted. But what about the public? Who will listen to them?” he questioned.

The professor, who has spearheaded several protests in the city, added that he was prepared to be arrested today. Ahmed’s sentiment was shared by other protesters as well. One by one, they took turns to deliver fiery speeches, unsparing in their critique of the authorities.

Among them was also senior journalist Mujahid Barelvi, who lambasted the authorities for imposing a four-day ban on holding public gatherings and rallies within the city’s Red Zone.

“I have written an application to the KPC’s governing body and I have demanded that as long as their ban remains, the Press Club be declared a Red Zone for any government official,” he stated as his fellow demonstrators cheered him on.

What started as a small protest soon expanded into a crowd. Soon, the demonstrators decided to march towards the Artillery Maidan police station — which is located a short distance from the Press Club — and check on the status of the detainees.

They were, however, stopped by a large contingent of police, both men and women officers. In contrast to the unarmed protesters, the police had batons in their hands. Thankfully, they weren’t used.

Artillery Maidan Station House Officer (SHO) Imtiaz was also on-site and tried to placate the protesters. After a 10-minute round of back and forth, the two parties reached a settlement: the protesters won’t move forward if the police provided them with a list of Baloch men and women in custody since last night.

SHO Imtiaz subsequently made some calls. “FIRs have been registered against 22 people for violating Section 144 and they will be presented before the judicial magistrate tomorrow,” he later said, adding that minors had been released.

However, the protesters were not convinced. Speaking to Dawn.com, Dr Iqra Baloch said: “How is it possible that the police are never present anywhere but at a protest, especially when it concerns the Baloch people?” she asked.

On the other hand, activist Anum Khan emphasised that the protest in Gwadar was being held to speak up against the chronic problem of enforced disappearances. “But the response by the state in the form of intimidation and force … this shows their weakness, not their strength,” she added.