Daily Times

Lahore: Since August last year, there has been a sharp increase in enforced disappearances in Sindh, but the issue remains under-discussed. When civil society held protests against the mysterious abductions across the country, the protesters were allegedly intimidated by security personnel. A hunger strike camp set up in Islamabad as part of the same protests was uprooted by the law enforcement agencies. The families of the abducted individuals accuse intelligence agencies of having a role in disappearances – an allegation the latter denies.

After Chief Justice Saqib Nisar’s suo motu notice of enforced disappearances in Sindh, it was thought that families of the victims rallying for recovery of their loved ones would get some respite, but the aggrieved have lost all hope after the top judge gave a clean chit to the agencies. “I am sure the intelligence agencies are not behind enforced disappearances,” the chief justice had told the families of missing persons, while hearing the suo motu case in Supreme Court Karachi registry last month.

Sindhi activist Sanaullah Aman, who is actively working for release of the province’s missing persons, has little hope for justice from the top court. The body language of the authorities, he says, is not satisfactory. “If the judge makes a sweeping statement without even listening to the complete story, we cannot expect to see justice served [in cases of enforced disappearances], because it is a known fact that the perpetrators are powerful.”

Talking about the recent cases of abductions of rights activists and journalists in Sindh, he claimed the abductors are able to pick up people without facing any resistance from the police. “The police remain unmoved even after they are informed about the abductions and also refuse to register FIRs in such cases”, Aman told Daily Times.

The activist further claimed that the local police declare the abductees criminal as soon as civil society begins protests for their recovery. Family of a missing person who Aman identified as Khadim Ali, went to the police station after his disappearance and instead of filing an FIR, requested the SHO to find out if the said individual was involved in any criminal activities. The SHO issued a statement in writing declaring that he was innocent. But when activists mobilised and raised voice against his abduction, the abductee was declared fugitive by the same police station.

Aman claims this practice is common in all cases of enforced disappearance and the abductees are accused of terrorism by the police after activists build pressure and demand their release.

Aman further said that most missing persons belonged to nationalist groups. Several local journalists were also missing, he said, adding that the number of Shia missing persons in Sindh had also significantly increased in the past few months. He said nationalists would soon enter into alliance with other groups of missing persons so that the issue could be raised effectively.

There have been instances where the missing persons returned to their homes, but those released no longer continue their activism out of fear. “A number of abducted individuals who were released discontinued their activism. All they say is that they have become ‘patriotic’,” Aman told Daily Times. He added that the authorities suggest that Indian intelligence agency RAW is behind enforced disappearances in Pakistan. “Going by the narrative that RAW kidnaps people who later describe themselves as patriotic, the Indian intelligence agency is doing Pakistan a service,” he remarked.

The abduction of civil society activists critical of the state’s policies began last year when five bloggers were abducted and later released. Intimidation of activists and journalists have continued since. Lahore-based peace activist Raza Khan went missing in December, a day after he participated in a discussion about the military’s role in bringing an end to Tehreek-e-Labbaik Party’s 20-day sit-in in Islamabad.

In January, International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) urged Pakistan to immediately take measures against the increasing practice of enforced disappearances in the country. A significant number of recent victims were said to be human rights defenders and political activists.

Published in Daily Times, July 11^th 2018.