A recent incident in Balochistan has put a temporary halt to the year-long targeted killings of non-ethnic Baloch teachers in the province. It has also clearly exposed the hand of state agencies in the deaths, and the resulting province-wide unrest.
On 22 August two men were captured by residents of Mastung (near Quetta) as they were trying to kill Mr. Haji Saleh Mohammad, a teacher from the area — they shot at him from a torbike and were promptly pulled off, and apprehended by the crowd. Employment cards found on the men identified them as Mr. Asghar Ali and Mr. Amir Hamza, officers of the Intelligence Bureau (IB). Their capture confirmed what many until now had suspected.
The Mastung city police fueled this conclusion further, with an open reluctance to file reports against the officers. However they finally arrested them following protests by the local people. Outrageously, officials of the Frontier Constabulary (FC) and the Pakistani Army even tried to rescue them from the station in official vehicles, but the local people physically prevented it. Immediately after the incident the ongoing waves of attacks against teachers in Balochistan saw a temporary lull.
The provincial government and state agencies tried to prevent the news of the IB officers’ arrest from going public — the story so far has not made it out of the province — however local media reported on the incident. Some newspapers have since reported pressure from the military and paramilitary forces to remain silent.
The targeted killing of non-ethnic Baloch teachers began in summer 2008 and is believed by many to be part of a government ploy to divert attention away from the continuous military operations that have tallied numerous civilian casualties and disappearances there; and to fuel ethnic tension. Law enforcement agencies blamed Baloch nationalists and separatist groups for the killings. Since they began at least six college principals and three school teachers have been murdered. There are around 4000 non-Balochi speaking teachers working in the province (most ethnic Punjabis) and many are now leaving in fear for their lives.
The Asian Human Rights Commission has repeatedly raised its concerns about the involvement of the Pakistani military and state intelligence agencies in the cases of torture, enforced disappearances and extra-judicial killings crippling Balochistan, and about how these actions directly contribute to the continued failure of the rule of law and the destabilisation of the wider region.
The government of Pakistan must immediately transfer the two arrested IB officers to the custody of the federal government to stop further interference from the FC or the military. Judicial action must be taken against FC officials and the provincial police officers who attempted to release the would-be assassins. It is also imperative that the IB officials be tried in an open court so that the truth behind these target killings is revealed to the public.
