Baloch Yakjehti Committee
{{Short description|Pakistani advocacy group in Balochistan Province}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = Baloch Yakjehti Committee
| native_name = بلۏچ یکجهتی کمیٹی
Baloch Unity Committee
| image =
| image_size =
| caption = Baloch Yakjehti Committee Icon
| abbreviation = BYC
| formation = {{Start date and age|2018|07}}
| founder =
| type = Human rights advocacy group
| status = Active
| purpose = Advocacy of human rights in Balochistan
| headquarters =
| region_served = Balochistan, Pakistan
| leader_title = Central Organizer
| leader_name = Dr. Mahrang Baloch{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnbctv18.com/world/meet-mahrang-baloch-young-activist-heading-a-revolution-against-pakistani-army-18922541.htm|title=Meet Mahrang Baloch, young activist heading a 'revolution' against Pakistani Army - CNBC TV18|date=January 30, 2024|website=CNBCTV18}}
| formerly = Bramsh Solidarity Committee
}}
The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC; {{langx|bal|بلۏچ یکجهتی کمیٹی}}; {{literal translation|Baloch Unity Committee}}) or Balochistan Yakjehti Committee ('Balochistan Unity Committee'),{{cite web | url=https://www.voanews.com/amp/protesters-and-military-in-standoff-in-pakistani-city-home-to-china-built-port/7718214.html |title=Protesters and military in standoff in Pakistani city home to China-built port|date=July 30, 2024|website=Voice of America}} is a human rights movement established in response to alleged state human rights abuses in Balochistan, Pakistan. The BYC's roots can be traced back to July 2018, when Mahrang Baloch conceived the idea for its formation following the abduction of her brother by Pakistani intelligence agencies. The BYC was officially founded in 2020 as the Bramsh Solidarity Committee ({{lang|bal|برمش یکجهتی کمیٹی}}), named after Bramsh Baloch, a young girl injured during a violent incident in Turbat that resulted in her mother's death.{{cite web | url=https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/baloch-activist-appeals-rights-organisations-crackdown-pakistan-military-2572964-2024-07-28 | title=Baloch activist appeals rights organisations after crackdown by Pak military | date=28 July 2024 }}
Background
The BYC was founded following the attack in Turbat on the night of May 26, 2020, which resulted in the death of a Baloch woman, Malik Naz, and injuries to her four-year-old daughter, Bramsh. During the home invasion, three armed men jumped into their house while the family was sleeping under the open sky to escape the heat. The intruders demanded money and valuables, and when Malik Naz resisted, she was shot on the spot. Bramsh, who was also shot during the attack, was rushed to the hospital where she underwent surgery for her injuries.
Protests in response occurred initially in Turbat and later across Balochistan under the banner of "Bramsh Yakjehti Committee" or "Bramsh Solidarity Committee.".{{Cite web|url=https://thediplomat.com/2020/06/balochistan-erupts-in-protests-over-a-murdered-mother-and-her-injured-4-year-old/|title=Balochistan Erupts in Protests Over a Murdered Mother and Her Injured 4-Year-Old|website=thediplomat.com}}
Activities
Following the shooting and killing of Hayat Baloch, a student from the University of Karachi, by Frontier Corps personnel in August 2020, the BYC organized protests.{{Cite web|url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/2280715/court-awards-death-sentence-to-fc-soldier|title=Court awards death sentence to FC soldier|first=Mohammad|last=Zafar|date=January 20, 2021|website=The Express Tribune}} In December 2020, it campaigned against the alleged murder of Karima Baloch in Canada, who was believed by the activists to have been assassinated by the Pakistani state.{{Cite web|url=https://m.thewire.in/article/south-asia/a-baloch-national-gathering-against-enforced-disappearances-and-human-rights-abuses/amp|title=A Baloch 'National Gathering' Against Enforced Disappearances and Human Rights Abuses|first=Hazaran|last=Rahim Dad|date=July 18, 2021|website=The Wire}}
In 2023, the BYC launched campaigns to protest the detention of Mahal Baloch by the Counter Terrorism Department of the police in Quetta,{{Cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org.uk/urgent-actions/end-arbitrary-detention-mahal-baloch|title=Pakistan: End Arbitrary Detention Of Mahal Baloch|website=www.amnesty.org.uk}} the assassination of Rauf Baloch by religious extremists in Turbat, and the state's alleged use of religious extremism.{{Cite web|url=https://theprint.in/world/pakistan-locals-rally-in-protest-against-killing-of-teacher-in-balochistans-turbat/1708139/|title=Pakistan: Locals rally in protest against killing of teacher in Balochistan's Turbat|date=August 10, 2023|website=The Print}}
=2023 Baloch Long March=
{{main|Baloch Long March}}
In December 2023, the BYC organized the Baloch Long March, a 1,600-kilometer peaceful protest journeying from Turbat to Islamabad, to demand justice for the extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances of Baloch people. Despite facing near-freezing temperatures, nearly 400 Baloch protesters, half of them women and children, staged a month-long sit-in outside the National Press Club of Islamabad to demand justice for their missing and murdered family members.{{citation needed|date=August 2024}}
The protest was sparked by the extrajudicial killing of Balach Mola Baksh, a 20-year-old from Turbat. Balach was abducted from his home on the night of October 29 by men in civilian clothes, suspected to be security officials, and was later killed in custody after a staged encounter by the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Pakistan. Najma Mola Baksh, Balach's sister, also participated in the protest to seek justice for her brother and others. Najma said, "Even though I know I am not going to get justice here, but I will not leave till we get justice for all the other families who lost their loved ones, those who were killed or abducted by the state."{{cite web|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/9/kill-and-dump-policy-baloch-protest-mans-custodial-murder-in-pakistan|title='Kill and dump policy': Baloch protest man's custodial murder in Pakistan|date=January 9, 2024|website=Al Jazeera}}
The protest was met with repeated harassment, arbitrary arrests, and disinformation campaigns by Pakistani authorities, including shelling and filing sedition cases against BYC leaders like Mahrang Baloch. Amnesty International condemned the severe crackdown on peaceful protesters. Despite the state's attempts to suppress the movement, the BYC presented a five-point charter of demands, including the formation of a United Nations fact-finding mission to investigate rights violations by security forces in Balochistan and the dismantling of CTD and other "death squads supported by the state agencies."{{cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/01/pakistan-amnesty-international-condemns-harassment-faced-by-baloch-protestors-in-islamabad/|title=Pakistan: Amnesty International condemns harassment faced by Baloch protestors in Islamabad|date=January 24, 2024|website=Amnesty International}}
=2024 Baloch Raji Muchi=
The Baloch Raji Muchi ("Baloch National Gathering"), organized by the BYC, began on July 28, 2024, in Gwadar. {{citation needed|date=August 2024}}
On July 27, 2024, the Frontier Corps, a Pakistani paramilitary force, fired on participants traveling to the Gwadar gathering, injuring 14. Authorities imposed blockades and a public assembly ban in Quetta to restrict movement. The next day, security forces killed at least three protesters and injured dozens more in Gwadar and Talar. On July 29, police used tear gas to disperse crowds and detained organizers, including Sammi Baloch, Sibghatullah Shah, and Dr. Sabiha Baloch.
Balochistan's Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti criticized the protests, claiming they aimed to disrupt development in the province. Human rights groups including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan condemned the violent crackdowns and called for the release of detained protesters.{{cite web|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/7/31/why-protest-by-ethnic-baloch-has-put-pakistans-key-port-of-gwadar-on-edge|title=Why protest by ethnic Baloch has put Pakistan's key port of Gwadar on edge|date=July 31, 2024|website=Al Jazeera}}{{cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/07/pakistan-repeated-punitive-crackdowns-on-baloch-protests-must-end/|title=Pakistan: Repeated punitive crackdowns on Baloch protests must end|date=July 30, 2024|website=Amnesty International}}{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/07/31/pakistan-respect-rights-response-balochistan-march|title=Pakistan: Respect rights in response to Balochistan march|date=July 31, 2024|website=Human Rights Watch}}