Baloch Leaders Seek European Parliament’s Help To End Violence, Daily Times
BRUSSELS: Noordin Mengal and Nasser Boladai, representatives of the Baloch in Pakistan and Iran, respectively, made a three-day visit to the European Parliament in Brussels to raise awareness of the continued human rights abuses against Baloch people in both countries, and to urge the European Union to speak out against the continued systematic suppression exerted upon them by the Pakistani and Iranian regimes.
Highlight elimination of students, teachers, intellectuals, lawyers, doctors, artists, social and political activists and human rights workers by army and agencies
BRUSSELS: Noordin Mengal and Nasser Boladai, representatives of the Baloch in Pakistan and Iran, respectively, made a three-day visit to the European Parliament in Brussels to raise awareness of the continued human rights abuses against Baloch people in both countries, and to urge the European Union to speak out against the continued systematic suppression exerted upon them by the Pakistani and Iranian regimes.
In a series of meetings, they discussed situation with members of the European Parliament, officials, political advisers and human rights organisations. Boladai and Mengal explained in detail the severity of the human-rights violations by the army that include, among others, arbitrary arrests, disappearances, torture, targeted killings, dumping of mutilated bodies, mass graves, military operations and bombardment of civilian populations and mass displacements.
The Baloch representatives explained that the lives for the Baloch continued to be of suffering and characterised by severely limited access to education and basic services such as electricity and water, restrictions on their freedom of association and expression and little space for political organisations campaigning for the rights of the Baloch. Discussions also focused on the issue of missing persons and summary executions, and the suffering faced by the families of thousands of victims.
They explained that the two states were carrying out cultural, political, social, linguistic and physical genocide of the Baloch. They highlighted the case of elimination of students, teachers, intellectuals, lawyers, doctors, artists, social and political activists and human rights workers by army and intelligence agencies. They spoke about Iran and Pakistan’s efforts to forcibly impose their culture, language and radical religious ideologies on the secular Baloch and highlighted the militarisation of Balochistan and exploitation of natural resources. They also raised the issue of problems and threats faced by women and religious minorities. The two representatives also highlighted the threat of religious extremism and the role of the army and intelligence agencies in sponsoring and promoting it in the region, deliberately jeopardising regional and global peace, stability and security.
Mengal and Boladai stressed that it was time for the international community to intervene in Balochistan. The representatives requested the European officials to hold accountable and take action against Pakistan and Iran for the endless atrocities being committed in Balochistan.
Several lawmakers agreed to cooperate in new initiatives to bring the situation in Pakistan and Iran under the attention of fellow politicians and specifically of the Subcommittee on Human Rights. pr
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