Pakistan: Hundreds protest against 'targeted killings' in Balochistan

People took to the streets to protest against "targeted killings" in Balochistan's Panjgur district in Pakistan. The protesters marched on the streets shouting slogans against the local administration and police. They alleged that the local administration and police have not arrested a single person involved in the killing of innocent civilians in the Panjgur district. 

Hundreds of angry protesters, including women and children, gathered to demonstrate against alleged nonchalance and lack of action from authorities on killings in the region. The protesters alleged that about a dozen innocent people have been killed in Panjgur in a month, news agency ANI reported quoting Dawn. The protesters further stated that despite the killings of innocent people, police and local administration have failed to take action against the alleged killers and not a single arrest has been made in the matter. 

The protesters were quoted by news agency ANI as saying that "Panjgur police and administration have surrendered before criminals". The protesters added, "There is no government writ. Killers are roaming freely". The people who participated in the protest mentioned that the people in every house were living in a state of fear and mourning. The protesters further alleged that due to the inaction of the local administration and police department, the people from Punjab have been forced to live at the mercy of thieves, robbers and killers. The people who were participating in the protest claimed that the killers of about a dozen have not been traced and the administration has failed to make a single arrest in the matter.

It is not the first time, that a matter of targeted killings has come to light in Balochistan. The people of Balochistan living in Pakistan and across the world have previously too, raised the issue. Last week, the Free Balochistan Movement (FBM) held a protest rally in Hanover, Germany. The people protested against killing the victims of enforced disappearances in "fake encounters" in Balochistan, ANI reported. The Free Balochistan Movement has alleged that the "fake encounters" have been carried out by the "Counter-Terrorism Department" (CTD) of Pakistani forces in Balochistan. 

(With inputs from ANI, Image: ANI/AP/Representative)