Berlin Conference Declaration:
This document summarizes the conclusion of the conference on the Humanitarian challenges in Balochistan held on 11 December 2019 in Berlin by the Human rights organizations working for the protection and promotion of the rights of the people of Balochistan. The organizers of the conference were the Baloch Human Rights Council – BHRC, Baloch Human Rights Organization – BHRO and the Human Rights Council of Balochistan – HRCB
In the face of grave violation of the human rights in Balochistan and the vulnerable situation facing the Baloch as a national entity, the conference discussed various aspects of human rights and humanitarian challenges in Balochistan. The conference speakers highlighted the plight of the people of Balochistan in the face of unchecked and concentrated brutalities being perpetrated against them by the state security forces of Pakistan for the last many decades. The conference affirms and asserts the following:
- Expresses extreme concern on the continuing state-supervised human rights violations in Balochistan and noted that the kill and dump policy adopted by the state security agencies in Balochistan for the last two decades, has costs hundreds of precious lives.
- Draws the attention of the international community towards the extra-judicial killings and enforced disappearances of the Baloch political and social activists by the army and its proxy death squads. Expresses deep concern at the silent complicity of the international community at the grave violations of human rights in Balochistan and demands that international human rights organizations should step up their efforts against the brutalities of the Pakistani military establishment in Balochistan.
- Emphasizes further that the Baloch people are facing a situation where not only their personal security is at stakes but also their socio-cultural values, languages, traditional knowledge system, and way of life are suppressed violently and religious extremism is being promoted in Baloch society in order to dilute their demand for the right of self-determination.
- Expresses concern over the fact that being one of the richest lands in the world, the people of Balochistan are among the poorest of the poor. This is because of the systematic disenfranchisement of Baloch and ruthless exploitation of their resources by the Pakistani state in the benefit of Punjab under the pretext of various controversial mega-projects including the most recent and much-hyped China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
- The Baloch as a nation has the inherent and universal right of self-determination as enshrined in international law, including in the Charter of the United Nations, the International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The implementation of the right of self-determination is fundamental for the survival of the Baloch, including their cultural values, languages, religions, economy, and ways of life, land and resources.
- The international community must come forward and urge the government of Pakistan to refrain from the use of oppressive measures which are in constant disregard of laws, customs and rules, with no regards to vulnerable women and children are leading to human rights violations against the Baloch. It must take immediate measures to ensure that the perpetrators of human rights violations within the Military, paramilitary and proxy organizations of the States to face justice.
Baloch Human Rights Council 