Detained Baloch rights activist Mahrang Baloch, along with several other detainees, has begun a hunger strike to protest alleged police misconduct and the failure of the judicial system to protect prisoners, her sister Nadia Baloch told AFP on Friday.
Mahrang, 32, was arrested last month under charges of terrorism, sedition, and murder, amid an intensifying crackdown in Balochistan, where Pakistan’s security forces are battling a growing insurgency. Rights organizations claim the crackdown has indiscriminately targeted innocent civilians and peaceful activists.
The hunger strike began Thursday following what the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) described as the attempted abduction of a detainee from prison. According to BYC, the detainee was beaten by security personnel and taken to an unknown location. Authorities deny the accusation, saying the individual was only transferred to another facility.
Four other detained members of BYC have also joined the hunger strike. The organization emphasized that all detainees are peaceful political workers targeted solely for organizing non-violent protests amid an atmosphere of state intimidation.
In March, a group of 12 UN experts urged Pakistan to immediately release Baloch human rights defenders, including Mahrang Baloch, and cease the repression of peaceful dissent.
UN Special Rapporteur Mary Lawlor expressed concern over continued reports of detainee abuse, while Pakistan’s judiciary has thus far refused to rule on Mahrang’s detention, leaving her fate in the hands of the provincial government.
