Peaceful Protest in Sindh Disrupted by Pakistani Authorities: Advocacy for Justice and Human Rights

Defense News ,Sindh ,Pakistan :-  In the Pakistani region of Sindh's Hyderabad, a peaceful protest against the military's land occupation and forced disappearances of activists was violently interrupted by law enforcement agencies. The Voice for Missing Persons of Sindh (VMPS) reported that Pakistani forces invaded the protest, arresting many including women and subjecting them to torture. Surath Lohar, representing VMPS, condemned the state's use of force and violence against women during the protest in Hyderabad.

The situation in Sindh has attracted international attention due to the actions of Pakistani law enforcement agencies. Following the extrajudicial killing of human rights activist Hidayat Lohar in Nasirabad, Sindh, on February 16, the World Sindhi Congress (WSC) protested against Pakistani agencies at the UK Prime Minister's residence in London. The WSC demanded justice for Lohar and accountability for the agencies implicated in his murder.

The protest in the UK included participants from Sindhi, Baloch, and other human rights supporters who spoke out against the brutal treatment suffered by Hidayat Lohar. The speakers, including prominent Sindhi and Baloch human rights advocates, highlighted Lohar's ordeal, from his disappearance in 2017 to 2019 to his subsequent torture at the hands of Pakistani agencies.

Hidayat Lohar's daughters, Sortah and Sasuie, played a crucial role in demanding justice not only for their father but for the hundreds of Sindhis forcibly abducted by state agencies. Their activism led to the formation of VMPS, advocating for the release of all missing individuals in the region.

Despite facing threats and being abducted again in 2023, Lohar was released following widespread protests in Sindh. However, his tragic assassination on February 16 is seen as an attempt to silence his voice permanently.

Speakers at the UK protest condemned Pakistan for systematically violating human rights, engaging in enforced disappearances, and committing extrajudicial killings against Sindhi, Baloch, and Pashtoon communities. They called on the international community to intervene and put a stop to Pakistan's ongoing human rights abuses.

The WSC delegation presented a letter to the UK Prime Minister, urging support for justice for Hidayat Lohar and pressuring Pakistan to end its practices of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. The letter proposed the establishment of an All Parties Parliamentary Committee (APPG) to examine human rights violations by Pakistan and advised withholding aid until Pakistan adheres to the UN Charter on Human Rights.