Islamabad's crackdown on Balochistan continues after Mahrang Baloch's life sentence
Following the conviction of the leader of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee, police dispersed new protests in Quetta and arrested several demonstrators. Nadia Baloch, the activist's sister, announced that she will appeal to the High Court, while observers warn that targeting nonviolent dissent risks fuelling an insurgency against the Pakistani government.
Quetta (AsiaNews) – The life sentence handed down to activist Mahrang Baloch has not quelled protests in Balochistan. On the contrary, Pakistan's southwestern province has been the scene in recent days of fresh demonstrations, arrests, and reports of a crackdown by the authorities.
Nadia Baloch, the sister of the leader of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), noted that the verdict, announced a week ago, will be appealed before the Balochistan High Court.
Protests erupted in Quetta after the anti-terrorism court convicted Mahrang Baloch (detained since March 2025) and BYC leader Sibghatullah Shah for the death of a Frontier Corps paramilitary officer during a demonstration in Gwadar in July 2024.
According to BBC Urdu, a massive police deployment prevented the demonstration yesterday in Quetta’s Sariab neighbourhood, near the Burma Hotel. Officers blocked access to the area and arrested at least eight people, including a woman. Subsequently, groups of protesters gathered in other parts of the city, set tyres on fire, demanding the release of the BYC leaders.
Nadia Baloch, who is also Mahrang's lawyer, confirmed that the defence will appeal the ruling, which she claims is marked by numerous irregularities: from the delay in filing the complaint and contradictory testimonies from the prosecution to the transfer of the trial to a prison, a decision that compromised the right to a public and fair trial.
According to the court, however, the defendants were granted all the protections afforded by the law. For its part, the Pakistani government continues to press the movement's leaders.
The BYC reported that overnight between Sunday and Monday, police and intelligence officers raided the home of Sammi Deen Baloch, one of the organisation's leading figures, when the house was empty.
In a statement published on social media, the BYC explained that the officers broke down the door, damaged the home, seized books, and stole valuables.
Sammi Deen Baloch is one of the most prominent voices campaigning against enforced disappearances in Balochistan. For 17 years, she has been seeking news of her father, Dr Deen Mohammad Baloch, who disappeared after he was allegedly arrested by security forces, never to be seen.
According to the BYC, the raid represents “yet another attempt to intimidate and silence those who speak out against human rights violations in the province."
The movement also complained that police dispersed the peaceful protest organised yesterday by the families of the arrested leaders. Several protesters were detained, and according to organisers, their whereabouts remained unclear for several hours.
Shortly before the demonstration began, Nadia Baloch wrote on social media that security forces had already surrounded the gathering site, warning of the risk of charges and arrests and claiming that "the state is afraid even of a peaceful protest."
Sabiha Baloch, another BYC leader, also accused the authorities of preventing any form of dissent. In a message posted on X, she reported that in Pakistan “a press conference is not allowed, a peaceful protest is not allowed”.
The incident comes amid growing tension in Pakistan's largest and poorest province. Rich in copper, gold, and natural gas, Balochistan has been plagued for decades by a separatist insurgency led by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), which has carried out armed attacks against the Pakistani military and China-Pakistan Economic Corridor projects.
Conversely, organisations like the Baloch Yakjehti Committee have pursued a nonviolent campaign against enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and alleged human rights violations committed by the Pakistani military.
In statements to Deutsche Welle, Sammi Deen Baloch warned that targeting activists who choose peaceful means risks convincing many young people that democratic protest no longer has any chance of achieving results.
This assessment is shared by Abdul Basit, a researcher at the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research in Singapore, who was also interviewed by the German agency.
In his view, the crackdown of nonviolent dissent could further reduce the space for political dialogue and end up strengthening the very armed organisations that Islamabad claims it wants to isolate.
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