Quetta, Sep 16 (IANS) Detained Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) leader Mahrang Baloch has criticised Balochistan Assembly for amending the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) of 1997, calling it a “dangerous step” which legitimises state repression and silences opposition voices.

Mahrang Baloch stated that this amendment along with June’s Anti-Terrorism (Amendment) Bill 2025 will be used against peaceful activists, political workers, and opposition voices and not the violent actors.

In a statement shared on X, Baloch stated, “I am appalled and outraged by the Balochistan Assembly’s decision to pass yet another set of amendments to the Anti-Terrorism Act of 1997 this week. Under this so-called amendment, the puppet, unelected, and very unpopular government of Balochistan claims it is protecting judges, witnesses, lawyers, and prosecutors. They say it will “provide a flexible and secure legal framework for the state to respond to evolving security challenges.” In reality, this is nothing but a dangerous step. It legitimises repression. It silences opposition voices.”

“Our greatest fear is now coming true. This amendment, together with this June’s Anti-Terrorism (Amendment) Bill 2025, will not be used against violent actors but weaponised against peaceful activists, political workers, and opposition voices. This law rips away the fundamental right to a fair trial guaranteed under Article 10A of Pakistan’s constitution, and paves the way for secret, faceless courts where justice becomes a mockery,” she added.

Her statement comes after the amendment, titled the Anti-Terrorism Balochistan (Amendment) Act 2026, was presented by Parliamentary Secretary Mir Zareen Khan Magsi on behalf of the provincial home department, The Balochistan Post reported.

According to officials, changes were being made to bolster the counter-terrorism framework “in line with international standards” by providing a more secure legal framework for judges, prosecutors, defence lawyers and witnesses. As per the bill, new measures would enable hidden identities, coded references, virtual hearings and trials outside courtrooms if required for security, the report said. The government has said that these measures were necessary to protect those involved in sensitive cases linked to terrorism.

Mahrang Baloch stated that over 50 targetted crackdowns have been conducted on members of the Baloch Yekjehti Committee (BYC) since March and hundreds of activists have faced arrests, abductions or forcibly disappeared. According to her, incidents of 814 enforced disappearances have taken place between January-June.

“Balochistan’s security situation has already been marked by an intensifying crackdown on peaceful rights activists. Since March, there have been over 50 targeted crackdowns on members of the Baloch Yekjehti Committee (BYC). Hundreds of activists have been detained, abducted, or forcibly disappeared. Only in March, 147 people were disappeared. In April, 166 more. Between January and June alone, there were 814 enforced disappearances. That number is nearly equal to the total of the entire previous year. Students, workers, activists, and ordinary civilians are systematically targeted by the state and its agencies. At least 131 people have been killed without trial in the first six months of this year. These killings happpend through custodial torture, staged encounters, and indiscriminate military operations,” Baloch activist posted on X.

“In just one week of September, six people from the Kech district were killed in targeted attacks by members of death squads. This is not a security policy. This is slow-motion genocide. Every single day, an average of four to five Baloch are abducted. One to three are executed or killed by security forces and their allies. At the same time, state-backed private militias, locally known as death squads, have been reactivated. These groups work hand in glove with security agencies to terrorize the civilian population. The state is waging a bloody war against the Baloch, using both legal means, such as draconian laws, and illegal means, such as death squads. Both serve the same goal: the ethnic cleansing and subjugation of the Baloch people,” she added.

She urged Baloch people to remain “steadfast, committed, and courageous” in the face of tyranny. “I call upon my nation to remain steadfast, committed, and courageous in the face of this tyranny. Do not let fear occupy you. Our struggle is for justice. Our cause is righteous. Despite the state’s brutality, we will continue our peaceful resistance against state oppression. History will judge those who use private militias to terrorise people and those who use law as a weapon of tyranny. It will vindicate those who fight for justice and dignity,” Baloch stated on X.

–IANS

akl/as