Baloch Women Now Face Enforced Disappearances as Repression Escalates in Balochistan

Baloch Women Now Face Enforced Disappearances as Repression Escalates in Balochistan

Last Updated Jun - 02 - 2025, 05:01 PM | Source : Fela News

The enforced disappearances of Baloch women mark a disturbing expansion of state repression in Balochistan, where activists like Mahjabeen and Mahrang Baloch fa

The wave of enforced disappearances in Balochistan has taken a grim new turn, with Baloch women now being targeted by Pakistani security forces. The recent abduction of 24-year-old student Mahjabeen Baloch from Quetta marks a sharp escalation in state-led repression. Her disappearance came just days after her brother, Muhammad Younus, was reportedly detained during a night raid in Basima. Rights groups have condemned this alarming trend, noting that such actions are part of a broader pattern of systematic human rights violations against the Baloch community.

Historically, enforced disappearances in Balochistan have largely affected men, including the elderly and even children. However, as women increasingly step into leadership roles in protests and movements like the Baloch Yakjehti Committee, they too are becoming victims. Prominent activist and doctor Mahrang Baloch was detained in March during a peaceful protest, a case that drew widespread international condemnation. Human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and the UN have raised concerns over the misuse of anti-terror laws to suppress dissent, particularly among women who speak out.

With over 2,700 active disappearance cases reported by Pakistan’s own inquiry commission—and estimates from advocacy groups reaching as high as 7,000—the targeting of Baloch women signals a deeply disturbing expansion of state tactics. These disappearances not only violate basic human rights but also break traditional cultural norms that once offered some protection to women. As Baloch women rise to demand justice, they now face the same violent silencing long inflicted on their fathers, brothers, and sons—highlighting a chilling evolution in Pakistan’s crackdown on dissent in its most restive province.

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