From Classroom to Dungeons: The Story of Sohail and Fassieh Baloch

From Classroom to Dungeons: The Story of Sohail and Fassieh Baloch

By

Uzair Baloch (Central Information Secretary of BSAC)

Enforced disappearances in Balochistan can be traced back to the seventh decade of the twentieth century when Baloch politicians once again began revolting against military dictatorship and the federation of Pakistan. Some cases were reported of Baloch youths being forcibly disappeared during that time. After normalizing the national movement through various hard and soft state policies, the enforced disappearances ceased.

However, the Baloch movement experienced dark periods for two decades. As it entered the 21st century, national consciousness matured, and Baloch politics became mature and radicalised, especially among students. They began to think about their land and national identity by actively participating in the national struggle. Baloch student politics thrived, turning every city and town in Balochistan into a hub for political and literary discussions. Restaurants and cafes became reading and debate clubs for Baloch youth, leading to a rising awareness among them. Politically matured and ideologically strong minded youths emerging in Baloch politics.

The state never accepted this politicizing and initiated illegal arrests of Baloch youth. Thousands of Baloch youths were arrested and jailed, but rather than slowing down, the national uprising continued to escalate. In response, the state introduced a new strategy: forced disappearances. In the first decade of the 21st century, a horrific wave of forced disappearances of Baloch students began. Students from every corner of Balochistan were targeted on a daily basis, and within months, their mutilated bodies were dumped in jungles, mountains, and on roads. Thousands among them are still missing.

These enforced disappearances of Baloch students have persisted to this day, never stopping for even a day. Recent incidents have created a traumatic situation in Balochistan, where every Baloch student lives in fear of being targeted. A Baloch student from every corner of country or abroad fears of one thing that he may be targeted, thrown to dungeons and become a poster.

Among the victims, there’s a story of two young Baloch students, Sohail Baloch and Fassieh Baloch. They were studying Pakistan Studies at the University of Balochistan and were active in political and literary circles. They were keen to read and critically debate ideas for societal improvement. They were innocent souls with dreams of reshaping society by educating the youth and encouraging them to play a positive role for the nation.

On a day that will always be remembered, November 2, 2021, Sohail left for the university hostel, leaving me behind at the University of Balochistan, where I was with friends, engaging in our usual routine of political debate and discussion. An hour later, a friend called and said, “Sohail and Fassieh have been abducted, and their phones are switched off.” I was shocked to hear about this as Sohail had left just an hour earlier. We rushed to the University police to report the incident. We reported FIR and asked the university security to provide us with CCTV footage of the university premises, but something unusual happened. At the time Sohail and Fassieh were abducted, the university’s electricity was off, which was not normal. The electricity had never been off at that time before. When we checked their rooms in the hostel, they had been searched by unknown individuals, and empty wallets were found on the ground, but nothing else.

We understood that this was a case of enforced disappearance. Within a week, we began protesting at the university to demand the safe return of our fellow students. However, we received nothing but vague statements like “Unknown men picked them up and took them away.” Our protest grew, and we closed the university, boycotting classes. We demanded a thorough investigation of the incident and the return of Sohail and Fassieh Baloch. The classes were suspended, and the students were holding a sit-in protest. No government representatives came to listen to us. The protest continued for days and weeks, but there was no sign of Sohail and Fassieh returning. Our two fellow students had become posters hanging in every chowk and corner of the university. On one side, the students were spending their days and nights in the cold winter of Quetta without any shelter under the open sky, while on the other side, they were being threatened to back off and end the protest.

After a month of protesting, we postponed our sit-in protest based on the assurance from Balochistan Government officials that they would bring them back within fifteen days. This clearly indicated that the government of Balochistan and the University Vice Chancellor were aware of their abduction and whereabouts. However, they never brought them back, strongly suggesting their involvement. Members of parliamentary political parties like BNP Mengal and Sardar Abdul Rehman Khetran were part of the government committee that assured us.

From the day Sohail Baloch and Fassieh Baloch were forcibly disappeared until today, their whereabouts remain unknown. Their case is one of thousands of enforced disappearances. The two students went missing on university premises, and the unusual timing of their disappearance, coinciding with a power outage, raised suspicions. The government’s promise of their safe recovery within fifteen days further indicated their knowledge of the situation. This was clearly a case of abduction by state actors. Although Sohail and Fassieh were students at the University of Balochistan, the university’s first responsibility is to take action. It seems that the university is directly or indirectly involved in this.

Cases of enforced disappearance of Baloch students in educational institutions have also emerged in Turbat University, various universities in Punjab and Islamabad, and the University of Balochistan. Students are profiled by university administrations and then harassed, threatened, and, ultimately, forcibly disappeared. Balochistan faces a severe humanitarian crisis, and enforced disappearances of Baloch people, especially students, are a significant part of it. There are thousands of students like Sohail and Fassieh who are languishing in detention, solely for their political maturity. Being intelligent and critically minded, students like Sohail are unacceptable in a morally corrupt state. Enforced disappearances continue at an alarming rate, and one undeniable fact remains: Baloch people never abandon their struggle for national identity. The more Baloch students are harassed and abducted, the more they will be politicized.