The chairperson of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said that he was detained by police in Karachi on Thursday for advocating on behalf of oppressed communities and missing persons, particularly those from Balochistan.
Enforced disappearances remain an enduring issue in Pakistan, with relatives, politicians, and rights activists alleging that many people, particularly from the southwestern Balochistan province, have been abducted by Pakistani security forces under the pretext of fighting militancy.
The Pakistani state denies involvement in enforced disappearances.
Asad Iqbal Butt, the head of HRCP, reported that on Thursday at noon, police officers arrived at his residence and escorted him to meet the Station House Officer (SHO) at the Gulberg Police Station in Karachi.
Butt claimed that the deputy superintendent of police (DSP) at the Gulberg station questioned him about his frequent travels to Quetta and his coordination of the Baloch rights struggle.
“I explained that the movement organizes itself, and we support them when they face injustice, as we do for oppressed people of any ethnicity,” Butt said.
However, Butt said the police official accused him of having ties to the Baloch people. He responded by stating that he had ties to “oppressed people of every ethnicity, region, and religion.”
“I believe I was taken to the police station because HRCP issued a strong statement on the Bannu issue,” Butt said, referring to last week’s shooting at a peace rally in Bannu that triggered a stampede, resulting in at least two deaths and 20 injuries.
