Balochistan is home to enforced disappearances. This fresher wave of illegal detentions has wrapped in Baloch from all walks of life, irrespective of their age, gender and region. Among them, several succeed to come on record, while many others get lost in the dust of time, getting not reported for various reasons including pressures from the abductors, no campaign-running awareness and so forth. One among such names is of Shahmeer – Shahmeer of Balochistan’s Mashkay.
Shahmeer, son of Allah Dad, was a resident of Jaligi, a small village in the Mashkay area of Awaran district, Balochistan. His life changed forever on February 25, 2016, when he was forcibly disappeared by the security forces from the Mashkay camp where he, along with three others, had gone in the hope of securing the release of his cousin, Gwar Khan, who had been abducted by the military from Hoogar, Mashkay. But instead of bringing his cousin home, Shahmeer himself was taken away. From that day, his family never saw him again.
A Trap at the Military Camp:
After Gwar Khan’s abduction, the forces called Shahmeer to the military camp, telling him to come if he wanted his cousin to be released. He did not go alone. His elder brother, Aziz, and his cousin, Ahmed, accompanied him. When they reached the camp, they asked Aziz and Ahmed to leave, saying they only needed to ask Shahmeer a few questions. They never let him go.
Days later, Gwar Khan’s body was found in Mashkay. He had been tortured and brutally killed. His body was thrown away like it meant nothing. Shahmeer, however, remained missing. His family waited, hoping he would return, but days turned into months, and there was no news of him.
A Brother’s Desperate Search:
After Shahmeer’s disappearance, his brother Aziz kept going back to the military camp, pleading for his release. Every time, the forces lied, telling him they would let Shahmeer go soon. But nothing happened. Shahmeer was nowhere to be found.
Seeing no other option, Aziz took their elderly mother to the camp, hoping her tears and pain would make the soldiers have some mercy. She begged them to return her son, but they denied of even arresting him. They refused to answer her questions. She was left heartbroken.
A Mother’s Endless Pain:
From that day on, Shahmeer’s mother was never the same. She lost her mind. She stopped caring about food and sleep. She sat outside their small hut every day, calling out her son’s name, waiting for him to return.
For five years, she lived in pain, never knowing whether her son was alive or dead. She spent her days in complete isolation, staring at the road, hoping to see him again. But he never came home.
In 2020, she passed away, still waiting for Shahmeer. She died without knowing the truth about her son. No one told her what happened to him. The grief and pain were too much for her to bear.
Shahmeer: A Name Among Thousands of the Missing:
Shahmeer’s story is not just his own. It is the story of thousands of Baloch families. It is the story of mothers who die crying for their sons. It is the story of fathers who search for justice but find none. It is the story of brothers who fight to bring back their loved ones but fail.
To this day, Shahmeer remains missing. His family does not know if he is alive or if he has been killed inside a secret torture cell. The world does not know his name, but his sufferings continue.
Will he ever return? Or will his name be added to the long list of Baloch missing persons who are never seen again?
