PRESS CONFERENCERespected journalists:As you are aware that my brother Zakir Majeed, the vice chairman of BSO(AZAD),was abducted from Pringabad, Mastung on June 8, 2009 by the Pakistani security forces. He was forcefully disappeared and has been kept in illegal custody and detention at an unidentified location. There are many eye witnesses of his illegal abduction, and our family has been protesting his enforced disappearance for more than a year now. Initially we held a hunger strike protest camp for two months in Karachi on May 13, 2010 and continued protesting for another three months in Quetta, Balochistan. The criminal silence on the part of the human rights organizations, judiciary, and world bodies such as UNHRC has been a very dejecting and disappointing response to our calls for justice. During the protest, the state has further raised our anxieties regarding the safety of our brother.In January 2010 the crisis cell issued news about the release of Zakir Majeed that turned out to be misleading and was immediately denied in press conference by the family members within days, which is on record. Following our press conference, Mr. Noora Baloch, a BSO (Azad) member and a student of Lahore zone was abducted and tortured to give a baseless statement about the release of Zakir Majeed. Our lengthy hunger strikes and persistent street protests has produced no results and Pakistan’s judiciary, media, legislative assembly, and legal authorities have turned a blind eye to our pleas.Respected media personnel:The sole purpose of our protest has been to raise our voice through print and electronic media to the reach the U.N., European Union, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and organizations working for peace and justice. We appealed to them to take immediate notice of the forced abduction of Zakir Majeed and other Baloch missing persons and have been partially successful in bringing their attention to the injustices and crimes against humanity being conducted by the state security forces in Balochistan. Unfortunately, the Pakistani electronic media has not been helpful in delivering our message to the world by ignoring proper coverage to our protest camps. In this letter, we would like to appeal to the world media to take notice of our pleas and honour their most noble profession by covering our news and events.Today we are closing down our protest camp at Quetta, Balochistan and shall continue our protest through various means for our beloved brother Zakir Majeed and the forcefully abducted youth of Balochistan. Our protest against enforced disappearances, illegal detention, torture, and extra judicial killing shall continue until our voice is heard. We strongly appeal to the U.N.H.R.C., Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, European Union, and international community,to utilize their power and assert pressure on Pakistan for the immediate release of my brother Zakir Majeed and all others held in illegal custody for their political beliefs. Thanking you,
