Baloch American Congress pens letter to US Senate speaker, highlights genocide in Pakistan

Washington, DC [US], February 20 (ANI): The President of the Baloch American Congress, Tara Chand on Monday penned a letter to the Speaker of the United States Congress, Mike Johnson, and all other members of the US Senate to take immediate action to stop the Baloch genocide in Pakistan.

In a letter, the leader pleaded to address the ongoing genocide of people belonging to the Baloch community and highlighted the various issues faced by the people of Balochistan regularly.

“In the ongoing conflict between the Baloch and Pakistan, enforced disappearances and illegal detentions are tools used by the state against the Baloch national resistance. Political activists, poets, students, journalists, intellectuals, and human rights activists are being abducted, illegally detained, subjected to inhuman torture, and their mutilated bodies are dumped in remote areas. This is part of the Pakistani war in Balochistan and a gross violation of human rights that requires immediate attention and intervention from the United States,” the letter read.

“The state of Pakistan is ruthlessly exploiting the natural resources of Balochistan for the benefit of ruling Punjab in a crude colonial manner. The collaboration between Pakistan and China has further exacerbated the situation, as China has become a new colonial power in the region. This alliance is depleting the land and sea resources of Balochistan, with valuable deposits such as gold and uranium being exploited. Additionally, the Baloch coast, which has been the backbone of the coastal regions’ economies for centuries, is now devoid of marine life,” it added.

He emphasized the socio-cultural traditions of the Baloch people are marginalized in school curricula and labeled as un-Islamic.

He said in a letter, “The state’s systematic efforts have also endangered the Balochi language, which is thousands of years old. Baloch children are forced to adopt Urdu, an alien language, as the national language, leading to the near extinction of the Balochi language. Furthermore, the socio-cultural traditions of the Baloch are marginalized in school curricula, being labeled as un-Islamic.”

“This strategy poses a significant threat to the existence of the Baloch people as a nation, as these traditions and the Balochi language are integral parts of their national identity,” he added.

Addressing the issue of the kill-and-dump policy of Pakistan, the letter further added that “the “kill and dump” policy is another grave human rights violation in Balochistan.

Anti-social and extremist religious elements, organized by state security agencies, kidnap and dump the bodies of political activists. These groups are commonly referred to as the army’s “death squads” and they operate in collaboration with security forces. Human rights activists, journalists, poets, doctors, teachers, political leaders, student activists, and tribal elders are forcibly disappeared and kept incommunicado for years. They are known as “the missing persons.”

While some of the missing persons’ dead bodies have been found in desolate areas, the fate of thousands of others remains uncertain. The number of extrajudicially killed and missing persons in the last 15 years is estimated to be in the thousands”.

“Balochistan is currently in turmoil, with its people living in a state of siege. The state has unleashed a reign of terror and gross human rights violations are taking place. The Baloch are facing a brutal military operation that has resulted in unimaginable loss of lives and destruction. According to resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly, many actions of Pakistani security forces and its auxiliary religious or extremist organizations can be classified as war crimes,” President Chand stated in the letter.

“Due to the declaration of Balochistan as a no-go area for international media and human rights organizations, the atrocities committed are not being reported in the international press. The Baloch, who are experiencing the worst of these atrocities and acts of genocide, are in desperate need of help from the civilized world. As Pakistan relies on political, military, and financial support from the US government, it is the moral obligation of the representatives of the people of the United States to take action. Any positive action on behalf of the Congress of the United States will save the lives of thousands of Baloch. We implore you to act before it is too late for the Baloch,” the letter concluded.