PAKISTAN: The bodies of two more missing persons from Sindh province have been found 

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that the bullet riddled bodies of two missing young men from Sindh province were found on the road side. Both young men had been missing for the last six months when they were arrested by the law enforcement agencies while traveling on the Karachi highway. Since January 2012, more than a dozen bullet riddled bodies have been found in Sindh province. The policy of the intelligence agencies to kill and dump been seen in Sindh province and most of the victims have been young students from the nationalist groups. It is evident that the activists are being arrested by Intelligence personnel in the presence of police officers and taken to the torture cells run by military and its intelligence agencies. More than a hundred persons, including members of sectarian religious groups, have been missing since the military regime of General Musharraf but their whereabouts remain unknown.

CASE NARRATIVE:

The unlawful practice of enforced disappearances and extra judicial killings in custody has increased drastically in the Sindh province. Sindh now closely follows the Balochistan province where people are arrested and killed in secret detention centers. This has been happening since Pakistan joined the US-led war on terror in 2001. Disappearances occur across the country but most cases are reported, especially in Balochistan and Sindh. These two provinces face violence from ethnic and religious armed groups and state security forces. Political activists and young students have been especially targeted and hundreds of them have been found dead, their bodies showing signs of torture.

Mr. Abbas Kassar, a senior journalist from Sindh, reported that the bodies of two young Sindhi men, Khadim Lolahi and Qurban Jatoi were found in Goth Sohna Gahej near the Achhi Maseet bus stop in Madeji town of Larkana district, Sindh province on the morning of 12 February. They were the activists of the Jeay Sindh Mutehda Movement (JSSM) that is working for the separation of Sindh from Pakistan.

They had been missing for the last six months as they were kidnapped by the plain clothes officials while they were on their way to Karachi, the capital of the province, 350 kilometers from their district. When the villagers found the dead bodies lying on the roadside they were shocked at the signs of torture and bullet wounds. They immediately informed the Madeji police who later made announcements over the mosques loud speakers calling for the identification of the bodies. A woman, Mahtab Khatoon Lolai identified one of them as her brother Khadim Lolai and his friend Qurban Jatoi. The Madeji police without conducting an investigation then announced that both the killed men were notorious criminals.

The residents of Sohna Gahej village refuted the claim of the police and told the media that these two persons, along with others, were picked by a double cabin vehicle in the night six months before the incident when they were going to Karachi. On the morning of February 12, the people of the village saw two bloody bodies lying on the road side spot when they were going to the Mosque to offer their morning prayers. The relatives said that both Qurban Jatoi of Ratodero and Khadim Lolai of village Shah Ali of Dakhan town were picked up by security men.

The deceased Khadim Lolai is the third member of his family to be picked up by the security agencies and killed in custody. Earlier his two brothers, as told by the villagers, were also picked up by men from a security agency, they say from ISI, and their bodies dumped near their village in similar way. It is no secret that when the involvement of the security agencies is involved the police generally avoid filing cases of abduction and disappearances.

Besides this, in the month of January 2012, five young men were picked up by plainclothes personnel from various parts of the province. They included Imtiaz Shah from Matli district Badin. His brother Mukhtiar said Imtiaz has no connection with any political or nationalist party. He said he was picked up when he was on his way from Matli to home at Rajo Khanani. Two persons, Noor Muhammad Khaskheli and his nephew Ghulam Muhammad khaskheli were picked up by plain clothes officials from Gulistan Sajjad, Qasimabad Hyderabad, while two more persons Siddique and Faisal were picked up by agencies personnel from Mirpurkhas. These are both said to belong to a religious party.

It is reported that many students and activist workers of the Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz (JSMM) have disappeared but their family members are not filing any complaint against the intelligence agencies because they fear that if the news of their disappearance is leaked their loved ones will be brutally killed in the same manner in which it is happening in Balochistan. Now even the Sindhi people are facing the same situation as the young workers of the activist parties are being arrested and disappeared. Then, after few days their bodies are found on the road side.

Please see the previous urgent appeals for the cases of disappearances in Sindh province: Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-078-2011, AHRC-UAC-203-2011, Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-040-2010, UA-132-2006; UG-003-2006; UA-49-2004

Jaey Sindh Mutehda Mahaz (JSMM) and Jeay Sindh Qaumi mahaz (JSQM) had conducted rallies in different areas of Sindh for the release of their political workers. They have been demanding that if there are cases against the disappeared person they should be brought to a court of law rather than going through such criminal practices.

The Government authorities have failed to resolve such cases of disappearances and are unable to hold the security forces and intelligence agencies to account in any of the cases in which they are implicated.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: 

There are several cases of disappearances reported till now. According to the past record two Sindhi activists were reportedly abducted in October 2009 and since then their families have not heard from them. Aakash Mallah, Vice Chairman of the Sindh nationalist party Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM), and JSQM activist Noor Mohammad Khaskheli, were also abducted on 30 October 2009, in Sindh province, south-eastern Pakistan Local sources allege the two men were subjected to enforced disappearances by government security officials. There have been a series of court hearings on the case since then and two officers of the Pakistan’s powerful intelligence agency, Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), have faced allegations by the police for carrying out the abduction. But still the whereabouts of the two men remain unknown and intelligence agencies have rejected the allegations that the two men are held in their custody.

Around a dozen of activists from Jeay Sindh Mutehda Mahaz (JSMM), a Sindhi speaking nationalist group struggling for greater autonomy of the people of Sindh province.

A list of missing persons from Sindh during the year 2011 are given below for reference whose whereabouts are yet not known:

1.Muzafar Bhutto: Muzafar Bhutto is general secretary of Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz (JSMM) he was kidnapped from new Saeedabad toll plaza on 24-02-2011 when he was travelling from sukkar to Hyderabad with his wife Saima Bhutto and his younger brother Shah Nawaz Bhutto. Some officers of the agencies stopped their car and kidnapped Muzafar Bhutto. Since then his whereabouts are unknown.
2. Riaz Kakepoto: Riaz Kakepoto is district president of Nawab Shah city JSMM, he was kidnapped from Rainbow Center Karachi on 11-04-2011 after finishing the 6 day hunger strike for the release of Muzafar Bhutto.
3. Ali Nawab Mahar: Ali Nawab Mahar is member of distract committee Nawab Shah city JSMM, he was also kidnapped from Rainbow Center Karachi on 11-04-2011 after finishing the 6 day hunger strike for the release of Muzafar Bhutto.
4.Shah Nawaz Bhutto: Shah Nawaz Bhutto is tulka president of Dulatpur city JSMM, he was also kidnapped from Rainbow Center Karachi 11-04-2011 after finishing the 6 day hunger strike for the release of Muzafar Bhutto..
5. Jam Bhutto: Jam Bhutto is member of Nawab Shah city JSMM, he was also kidnapped from rainbow center Karachi after finishing the 6 day hunger strike for the release of Muzafar Bhutto.
6. Agha Yasir: Agha Yasir ws kidnapped from Karachi. He was the divisional organizer of JSMM Karachi. Agha Yasir also the advocates at the Maleer Court of Karachi. After his kidnap Maleer Court judges & advocates boycotted the court for 24 hours.
7. Shafqat Brohi: Shafqat Brohi is the clerk of Maleer Court Karachi and kidnapped with Agha Yasir from Karachi.
8. Afzal Pahnwar: Afzal Pahnwar is a student of the University of Sindh and also president of JSMM university of Sindh, he was kidnapped from Hyderabad city on 26 June 2011
9.Sanaullah Bhatti: Sanaullah Bhatti is District president of Tando Muhammad Khan city he was also kidnapped from Hyderabad city on 2-7-2011
10.Mukhtiar Pahnwar: Mukhtiar Pahnwar is the secretary of JSMM district: Dadu sindh. He was kidnapped on 28-9-2011 from Chandni Chowk at 11 am. According to his relatives he was kidnapped by persons who came in two double cabin vehicles without any registration.
In addition to it on January 12 a senior lawyer who was pursuing cases of missing persons was shot dead by unidentified men here on Wednesday evening.
Maqbool-ur-Rahman advocate had recently gone to the Sindh High Court seeking protection after his life was threatened. His apprehensions proved correct when men sprayed his double cabin pickup with bullets.
The assailants were riding on motorcycles and were waiting for their target near Islamia College. As the vehicle slowed down due to cats eyes on the road, they started firing at it. Rahman, 49, died on the spot while his driver Yousuf was injured.

SUGGESTED ACTION: 
Please write the letters to the following authorities for the recovery of enforced disappeared persons and stop the illegal and unconstitutional way of abducting the opponents and nationalist working for their rights. Please urge the authorities to initiate a judicial inquiry in the cases of disappearances in the Sindh by intelligence agencies of military and prosecute those who are responsible for this menace. Added to it all individuals subjected to enforced disappearance are released or brought promptly before regular civilian courts and charge with a recognizable criminal offence.

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