News release: Anti nuclear demonstrators arrested, one activist remains missing

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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission has received information that two peace
activists who were a holding demonstration on May 28, 2008, against the tenth
anniversary of Pakistan's nuclear experimental detonations were arrested and
one of them remains missing.

CASE DETAILS:

According to the details received, the Baloch Nationalist Front (BNF) held a
demonstration in front of the Karachi Press Club, on the occasion of the tenth
anniversary of the nuclear detonations by Pakistan during May 1998. The nuclear
tests were conducted in Chaghai, Balochistan, and a southern province of the
country. Mr. Ghulam Mohammad, chief organizer of BNF and Mr. Abdul Wahab Baloch,
chief organizer of Baloch Rights Council, were arrested after the peaceful
demonstration when they were going to the office of Human Rights Commission,
situated at Abdullah Haroon Road near the Karachi Press club, to discuss the
issue of missing people in Balochistan. The demonstration was held to show anger
against the tremendous usage of national resources on nuclear warheads instead
of investing them on education, provision of drinking water and the elimination
of poverty.

The area where the nuclear explosions conducted was Chaghai in Balochistan where
government denies every basic facility for the people of area including,
drinking water, health care, schools, roads, employment and protection from
nature. After the six nuclear explosions in the area of Chaghai the people are
complaining of new diseases affecting the local residents, particularly skin
damage and digestive problems.

The demonstrators were chanting slogans against the nuclear bomb and demanding
bread instead of nuclear weapons. The speakers, including both arrested persons,
demanded the winding up of the nuclear programme. They accused the military and
politicians of destroying their province by conducting nuclear experiments in
Balochistan because of poor status of the province, instead of conducting
nuclear explosions in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan.

The victim, Mr. Abdul Wahab Baloch, a known Baloch nationalist and peace
activist, after his arrest was shifted to a lock up of the Central Crime
Investigation (CIA) and after keeping him overnight he was shifted in the early
hours of May 29, 2008, to some unknown place by a notorious red coloured double
cabin jeep which was previously used in several cases of missing persons which
bears no registration numbers.

The other victim, Ghulam Mohammad Baloch, the president of the Balochistan
National Movement (BNM), was also arrested and first taken to the CIA lock up
and then shifted to another police station, the Frere police station. He was
later released on the same day on bail. He was booked for allegedly delivering
a provocative speech against the nuclear explosions. Mr. Ghulam Mohammad was
earlier, on August 2006, picked by state intelligence agency, the military
intelligence, and kept incommunicado at different army camps where he was
severely tortured.

Please see the link of Urgent Appeal (awaiting link)