Pakistan peddling false narrative on Kashmir at UN: Sindh, Balochistan activists

Image courtesy: Reuters

Geneva: Political activists of Sindh and Balochistan on Tuesday called it ironic on part of Pakistan to peddle its false narrative on the Kashmir issue at the UNHRC session in Geneva when minorities in the country have been facing worsening human rights situation.

"It is really shameful that a representative of 'Pakistan' has come to Geneva to talk about human rights. These are people who have literally curbed every voice that did not align with them, they have abducted every person who wanted to raise his voice and created a hell for the religious minorities," Lakhu Ludana, the General Secretary of World Sindhi Congress (WCS), told ANI.

The activists called on Qureshi to rather address the issues of enforced disappearances and killings of minorities in Sindh, Balochistan, and other parts of Pakistan by the state agencies than internationalising the "internal matters" of the neighbouring country.

"Qureshi should talk about the atrocities happening in Balochistan, Sindh and other areas than about Kashmir, which is none of his business," said Hidayat Bhutto, the United Kingdom and Europe organiser of WCS.

For long, Pakistan's establishment has been criticised over its practice of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings by international bodies and local human rights organisations that dare to speak out on the issue.

According to the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances, an entity established by the Pakistani government, about 5,000 cases of enforced disappearances have been registered since 2014. Most of them are still unresolved.

Independent local and international human rights organisations put the numbers much higher. Around 20,000 have reportedly been abducted only from Balochistan, out of which more than 2,500 have turned up dead as bullet-riddled dead bodies, bearing signs of extreme torture.

Before being elected as Prime Minister, Imran Khan had admitted in multiple interviews about the involvement of Pakistan's intelligence agencies in enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings and vowed to resign if he was unable to put an end to the practice, holding those involved responsible.