From DAWN.com, December 31, 2013

Balochistan unrest: VBMP claims 161 extra-judicial killings in 2013

SYED ALI SHAH

QUETTA: Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP), a non-profit rights group on Tuesday alleged that 161 Baloch political workers were subjected to extra-judicial killings in different parts of Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest province in land mass, during the year 2013.

VBMP chairman Nasrullah Baloch claimed that the gross human rights violations were being committed throughout the year in various parts of the province and ethnic Baloch political workers were picked up in violation of law and constitution.

“Secret services picked up 510 Baloch political workers,” Baloch claimed.

However, the provincial home and tribal affairs department has contradicted the claims and said that the number of missing persons was less as compared to VBMS’s claims.

“The number of missing persons is less than 100 across the province,” an officer of the provincial home and tribal affairs department told Dawn.com on condition of anonymity.

Nasrullah Baloch further said the Balochistan Frontier Corps (FC) chief was also issued a contempt notice by the Supreme Court with regard to the issue of missing Baloch political workers. “Intelligence and military forces consider themselves above the law,” he added.

The VBMP chairman lashed out at the elected democratic government for its failure to bring back the missing persons.

“When they were in opposition, they used to raise voice, but now they have forgotten us,” he added.

He pointed out that a new law was being framed in the country to give what he called limitless powers to intelligence agencies. Baloch urged upon the political forces, human rights organisations and civil society to join hands and stop the government from passing such a law.

The VBMP chairman stated that despite tall claims of the government, mutilated bodies of Baloch political workers were still being recovered from different parts of the province.