Balochistan’s interior minister confirmed on Friday that the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) has decided to cease its protest in Gwadar following the signing of a seven-point agreement by both parties. For nearly a week, the BYC has been staging protests at Gwadar’s Marine Drive and other locations to voice their opposition to the purported violations of human rights committed against the people of Balochistan, as well as the enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings of Baloch people.
Conflicts between the demonstrators and the security forces broke out, as Dawn.com previously reported, leaving three protesters dead and at least 24 injured. More than 200 people were detained by security forces, according to BYC leader Dr. Mahrang Baloch. The BYC and the government started negotiating on Wednesday night after many days of protest. Officials declared the talks to be “successful,” and the BYC agreed to end the sit-in after reaching an agreement.
In a statement, the interior minister of Balochistan, Mir Zia Ullah Langov, stated that the Baloch Yakjehti Committee’s organizers had agreed to halt their sit-ins throughout the province following successful negotiations with the district administration. In addition to saying that the government would “not allow anyone to take the law into their hands under the guise of protest,” he made the call for people to protest, but not to harm the protest site, attack the police, or harm regular people.
The seven-point accord
The seven-point agreement was signed by Dr. Mahrang and Gwadar Deputy Commissioner Hamoodur Rehman; a copy is accessible on Dawn.com. According to the statement, the BYC will call off its demonstrations after all of the demonstrators who had been detained by the police in Karachi and Balochistan have been released. According to the deal, protestors who were detained on judicial remand would be freed by August 5 after court hearings.
The agreement said that the government of Balochistan will communicate with the Sindhi authorities to secure the release of those detained there and that all cases against the protestors of the Raji Muchi (Baloch National Gathering) will be dropped. However, it stated that instances involving fatalities sustained during demonstrations will not be dismissed.
“The document stated that mobile network service will be restored two hours after the sit-in ends and all highways will be reopened.” All the objects that the government took from the demonstrators would be restored to them in a week, it said, and a committee made up of representatives from BYC and the district administration will also be formed. Following the end of the sit-in, “no one will face harassment or retaliation for taking part in the protest,” the agreement said.
The statement went on to state that a complaint from the relatives of those slain or injured during the protests will be filed. All subsequent sit-ins around the province will likewise be called off, the agreement stated, after the current sit-in at Gwadar’s Marine Drive concludes.
“We will not take compensation from the government.”
In the meantime, the BYC has declined to take any payment from the government to make up for the deaths and injuries sustained during the demonstrations.
Dr. Mahrang Baloch said on the X platform, “We will not insult our Baloch national martyrs by accepting compensation. We have categorically told them [the government officials] that the blood of our martyrs is not so cheap.” She went on, “The national goal, national unity, ongoing struggle, and resistance are the rewards for the blood of our national martyrs, not five or ten million rupees.”
She continued by saying that the BYC was not prepared to pursue damages for those hurt during the demonstrations, either, and that the organization would still solicit donations from the public even if it meant going door to door. “But we will demonstrate that the Baloch are a brave and living nation and refuse to accept any compensation from this state under any circumstances.”
