NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • All Blacks
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • Deloitte Fast 50
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / World

Pakistanis stage long march to protest missing

AP
21 Nov, 2013 07:27 AM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article

GADANI, Pakistan (AP) Fifteen year-old Sammi Baluch has been walking for nearly a month through southern Pakistan's parched, mountainous landscape in the hope of finding her father, who disappeared four years ago after being taken by security forces.

She is part of a group of around two dozen activists making the 700-kilometer (400-mile) journey on foot from Quetta, the capital of their home province of Baluchistan, to the southern port city of Karachi in a march to protest the government's failure to determine the fate of thousands of people who have gone missing over the years as Pakistani authorities battle a separatist insurgency in Baluchistan, heartland of the country's ethnic Baluch minority.

Pakistani human rights organizations and Baluchistan residents have long accused law enforcement and intelligence agencies of snatching citizens suspected of Baluch nationalist activity and holding them without charges or killing them. Officials deny the allegations, and while Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has promised to resolve the issue of the missing as part of a still nascent peace effort in the province, so far commissions set up by the government and Supreme Court have made little progress.

The marchers, who are all missing loved ones, left Quetta on Oct. 27 and are about 20 kilometers (12 miles) outside Karachi. Along the way, they say they have experienced the generosity of strangers who fed and housed them, but also faced threats from Pakistani security forces warning them to stop their march.

"I have travelled 600 kilometers (370 miles) by foot without caring about my blistered feet," said Baluch. Her father, a doctor, was a member of a Baluch nationalist party. He has vanished since he was picked up security forces at the government hospital where he works one night in June 2009.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Please have mercy and help me recover my missing father," Baluch said.

Earlier this week, the band of marchers most of them women and young girls made their way down a road snaking between arid mountains outside Karachi. Many carried photos of their missing loved ones with their names and the dates they disappeared. They shouted slogans, such as "Stop killing political workers." At the head of the group, a young boy pushed a wheelbarrow decorated with flowers and hung with a sign explaining the march. The march has a police escort, and two ambulances trail them in case of emergencies.

"We chose a very difficult way to protest to awaken the international community. We appeal to them to pressure Pakistani authorities," said Farzana Majeed, whose brother has been missing for over four years. Her brother was a member of the Baluch Students Organization (Azad), which is reportedly linked to separatists.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Baluch nationalists have been waging a low-level insurgency for decades, demanding greater autonomy and a larger share of Baluchistan's natural resources. Even though the province has vast amounts of coal, minerals and natural gas, it is one of the poorest areas of Pakistan.

The protest march was organized by Mama Qadeer Baluch, chairman of the Voice for Baluch Missing Persons. The 70-year-old has walked the entire way with the group. He said the group had received threats from security forces along the way, and he and a colleague were almost run down by a small car an incident he said was an attack, though he wouldn't elaborate on who he believed was behind it.

"We barely managed to escape," he said.

The group expects to reach Karachi late Thursday and plans to hold a press conference to announce the next step in its campaign.

The disappearances began swelling in the mid-2000s, when then-President Pervez Musharraf's government was cracking down hard on the Baluchistan insurgency. Two years ago, the Voice for Baluch Missing Persons handed the U.N. a list of 12,000 missing people, and the group's leader, Baluch a common name in the province said the number had grown to 18,000 since then. He said the bodies of some 1,500 missing have been found dumped around the province in recent years.

Provincial government authorities insist the number of missing who are potentially in the hands of security forces is much smaller. Some government officials have downplayed the issue, saying many of the missing were criminals in hiding, had joined militant groups or had been abducted by non-state actors.

The government and the Supreme Court have set up commissions to investigate missing persons, but relatives of victims complain that many of the cases remain unsolved and alleged perpetrators are rarely convicted. A U.N. working group that visited Pakistan last year to investigate the issue said it had received no information related to convictions of state agents in relation to disappearances, despite repeated requests.

As the activists have made their way to Karachi, residents of towns on their path have at times walked with them for a few hours, even for a full day, as a show of solidarity.

"I am marching with these women and girls because they are victimized," said Muhammad Nawaz, a young student who joined the group as it marched past his town, Gadani. "I am giving them my moral support, at least in the limits of my town."

___

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Associated Press writer Sebastian Abbot contributed to this report from Islamabad.

Save
    Share this article

Latest from World

World

Aussie police launch new search for severed head in alleged Beauty and the Geek murder

World

'Profound pain': 27 killed, mostly children, after fighter jet crashes into Bangladesh school

World

Families reject report blaming pilot error for South Korea plane tragedy


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.


Latest from World

Aussie police launch new search for severed head in alleged Beauty and the Geek murder
World

Aussie police launch new search for severed head in alleged Beauty and the Geek murder

Tamika Chesser, a former reality TV star, is charged murdering her partner Julian Story.

22 Jul 05:48 AM
'Profound pain': 27 killed, mostly children, after fighter jet crashes into Bangladesh school
World

'Profound pain': 27 killed, mostly children, after fighter jet crashes into Bangladesh school

22 Jul 05:39 AM
Families reject report blaming pilot error for South Korea plane tragedy
World

Families reject report blaming pilot error for South Korea plane tragedy

22 Jul 04:39 AM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search