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London, December 3 (IANS): UK Member of Parliament (MP) John McDonnell has voiced concerns about the recent human rights violations in Pakistan's Balochistan, including the abductions of Baloch women like Nasreena Baloch and Mahjabeen Baloch besides the reported use of drones in internal security operations.
Raising the matter recently in the UK House of Commons, McDonnell submitted parliamentary questions and tabled an Early Day Motion for the UK government to respond, The Balochistan Post reported. In the Early Day Motion, McDonnell has voiced concerns over the recent developments in Balochistan.
The motion draws attention to the drone strike in Khuzdar's Zehri on October 5, which claimed the lives of six people, including four children. It also highlighted the enforced disappearance of Mahjabeen Baloch, a specially-abled student who has been missing since May 29 and the abduction of the teenage girl Nasreena Baloch on November 22.
Furthermore, concerns have been raised over punishment practices, particularly the arrest of five Baloch women by the Pakistani security forces on November 17. The motion requested the British government to take further measures, recalling earlier assurances from ministers that human rights concerns in Balochistan have been raised with Pakistani officials, The Balochistan Post reported.
Apart from the motion, McDonnell submitted three questions - whether the Foreign Secretary has raised the human rights violations in Balochistan with Pakistani officials; whether the Department for Business and Trade has made assessment regarding the risk that UK-supplied equipment could contribute to the abuses in the region; and, whether any export licences have been issued for military or dual-use items that can be used in drone operations or internal security actions in Balochistan.
Earlier in November, a leading human rights organisation drew attention to a serious humanitarian crisis in Balochistan, warning of a surge in systematic oppression and violence perpetrated by the Pakistani authorities.
In its report titled 'Human Rights Situation in Balochistan', Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) documented 168 victims of enforced disappearances during September and October, of whom 12 victims were released, 17 were killed in custody, and 140 remain missing. Among the affected districts in Balochistan, Kech recorded the highest number of cases, with 54, followed by Panjgur with 26, Dera Bugti with 21, and Quetta with 20.
As per the findings, the most victims of enforced disappearance are between 19 and 25 years old, and they belong to various professions. The disappeared include 53 students, 21 minors and one woman, with Pakistan’s Frontier Corps (FC) identified as the largest perpetrator, involved in 45 per cent of cases, followed by Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) and Military Intelligence (MI).
According to the report, 25 cases of extrajudicial killings were recorded during this period, with one minor and one woman victim. The mode of killings included target killings by Pakistan-backed death squads, custodial killings, and the kill-and-dump of mutilated bodies.
"The majority of the victims were previously disappeared persons who were killed either in custody or tortured to death. District Kech recorded the largest number of cases as 10, followed by Panjgur (7). While Frontier Corps came out to be the prime perpetrator with involvement in 52 per cent of cases, followed by State-backed Death Squads and the Army,” the report detailed.
