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“We faced harassment & abuse even after leaving the airport”: Mahrang Baloch

6 Min Read

October 8, 2024

By Shaukat Korai & Aitzaz Ibrahim

KARACHI

Baloch rights activist Mahrang Baloch says that she and her female companions were harassed on their way back from the Karachi airport, where she had been stopped on October 7, from boarding a flight to New York, to attend a Time Magazine event.

“As soon as we left the airport, our car, where along with me, Sammi Deen, and another female companion were also travelling, was surrounded by the police and intelligence officials,” said Mahrang, an organiser of Baloch Yakjheti Committee (BYC). She was speaking at a press conference at the Karachi Press Club on October 8, flanked by the other noted Baloch rights activist Sammi Deen.

“They (security personnel) searched our car, hurled abuses at us, and also physically assaulted our driver by punching and kicking him,” she said.

Baloch said the security personnel had confiscated her passport, mobile phone, and the car keys. “We felt unsafe and abandoned the car on an open road, taking a taxi to return home,” the activist narrated the ordeal she faced after being barred from boarding a flight to the United States.

Barred from Flying

On October 7, Mahrang was stopped at the airport by immigration officials from traveling to New York. The activist said she was stopped without any legal reason, despite having a valid US visa and an invitation from Time Magazine for the event where she was invited as one of the emerging leaders of the year for 2024.

She was unjustly held for five hours and was not allowed to board her flight, which she highlighted was a violation of her basic right to freedom of movement. According to her, there was no legitimate reason for them to stop her, other than to prevent Baloch voices from being heard on an international platform and to hide the decades-long human rights violations in Balochistan.

Will move court over ‘travel ban’

Mahrang said she would approach the courts to challenge the government’s decision to bar her from travelling abroad, adding that no government official or minister has yet to inform her about the reasons for the travel ban.

“I also intend to file a first information report (FIR) with police against the personnel who took away my passport and car keys,” she said.

Activists slam government

Human rights activists, lawyers and journalists fiercely condemned the government’s measure to bar Mahrang Baloch from travelling abroad without assigning any reason.

In a statement, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) slammed the authorities’ attempt to prevent her from flying for the event where she was being recognized as an emerging leader.

‘She was given no reason for this, nor has she been placed on the ECL’, HRCP said. ‘We are also concerned to learn that her passport and mobile phone were reportedly confiscated by law enforcement authorities.’

Dr Mahrang Baloch has advocated against enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings, and been recognized internationally for her efforts, said the human rights watchdog.

‘To prevent her from traveling overseas is a flagrant violation of her right to freedom of movement and expression. She must be allowed to travel freely and safely within and outside the country,’ HRCP added.

Journalist and HRCP co-chairperson, Munizae Jahangir, condemned the travel ban on Baloch.

“The state’s unannounced unofficial ban on Mahrang Baloch must be strongly condemned & the state must not violate its citizen’s fundamental right to movement,” she said. “Dr Mahrang Baloch was on her way to attend the Time magazine event where she was to be recognized for her struggle for Baloch people & against enforced disappearances,” she posted on X.

 

Lawyer and human rights activist Imaan Mazari condemned the incident, writing on X that, “Baloch women were deliberately and repeatedly targeted last night but there is complete silence from the Sindh Govt. When those who choose peaceful activism are targeted in this way, State itself is encouraging people to take another path.”

Karachi-based lawyer and activist Jibran Nasir also tweeted that, “The State in order to cover up its lapses, failures and inability to provide effective security against terror attacks chooses to target and harass peaceful activists. Not only was Mahrang Baloch not allowed to board her flight last night but later as per reports her and Sammi Baloch while leaving airport were stopped and manhandled, their driver beaten up and car keys taken away. Mahrang was travelling to New York for Time Magazine’s gala where she along with other ‘Most Influential Emerging Leaders of the Year’ were invited.”

Senior politician Afrasiab Khattak called Baloch’s travel ban a reflection of the government’s authoritarianism.

“Stopping Dr. Mahrang Baloch from travelling abroad epitomises the authoritarian nature of the selected regime. Mahrang Baloch and her comrade have acquired recognition among their own people and the world their brave and determined struggle. Wish her many more successes,” the former senator posted on X.

 

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