Dr Mahrang Baloch is not protesting in Islamabad on the basis that her brother is missing

The iVerify Pakistan team has checked this content and has established that the claim made by a Pakistani journalist regarding Mahrang Baloch’s stance on her brother and her reasons for the current protest in Islamabad protest is false.

To arrive at this verdict, the iVerify Pakistan team has contacted Dr Mahrang Baloch to corroborate the assertions made about the activist’s stance regarding her brother.

HOW IT STARTED

On January 5, 2024, prominent journalist and anchorperson, Gharidah Farooqi took to social media platform X to address what she described as a “major lie” propagated by Dr Mahrang.

The journalist alleged that Mahrang was “spreading propaganda and lies” about her brother Nasir Baloch that he is a missing person even though he is “currently residing in Quetta and holds a government job”.

Sharing a video and picture of a person she claimed to be Nasir, the journalist claimed the video was from the morning of Jan 5 near the Quetta Board Office.

Farooqi said Dr Mahrang was protesting in Islamabad “wearing a false cloak of a missing person” in her brother’s name, while he was present in Quetta.

“Wrap up your false propaganda and sit-in, and stop misleading the nation in the name of your brother in Quetta,” the anchor said.

The post gained 1.1 million views and was shared more than 2,000 times.

METHODOLOGY

Since Dr Mahrang is a central figure in the current rights protest in Islamabad and due to the high virality of the journalist’s post, the iVerify Pakistan team began its investigation to verify the claims regarding the activist’s reasons for participating in the protest.

The team contacted Dr Mahrang Baloch who denied the allegation, saying: “Since I’ve become part of this movement, I have never raised my brother’s picture anywhere or said he is missing.”

She said the journalist had “violated my brother’s privacy” by sharing the video and image, which meant that “there is a threat to his life.”

Dr Mahrang reiterated that she neither claimed her brother was still missing nor could any instance be seen of her saying he was still missing.

“I say that my brother was disappeared and then he was released. I have stated this everywhere.”

Dr Mahrang also said that her brother was currently in Quetta and had a government job, adding that she had never said otherwise.

Although, she did say she did not know about the video or when it was made, adding that she had been trying to contact her brother since the morning to no avail.

Questioned about the reasons for the current protest in Islamabad, Dr Mahrang said they were to bring an end to enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings and death squads as well as the release of all missing persons.

“Never has the claim been forwarded from me or the movement that my brother is missing,” she repeated.

The Baloch activist mentioned to the iVerify Pakistan team that her brother Nasir was abducted in December 2017 and subsequently released after three months in March 2018, adding that she had shared a picture with him on his release.

A search of Dr Mahrang’s Facebook profile showed a post dated March 29, 2018, saying: “After the dark days of my life, a light comes in … Nasir Baloch our lifeline, only brother is recovered safely.”

A perusal of the demands by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee, the organiser of the rights protest in Islamabad, also lined up with the reasons stated by Dr. Mahrang.

Furthermore, a keyword search for “Nasir Baloch” and “brother” among recent news reports on the Baloch rights protest did not yield any result saying he was one of the reasons behind the movement.

The iVerify Pakistan team also analysed Dr Mahrang’s recent interviews and press conferences from Islamabad and found no mention of her saying her brother continues to be missing or that he is one of the reasons for the protest.

The interviews and press conferences were shared here, here, and here.

BACKGROUND OF BALOCH MARCH

The current protest by the Baloch community began in Turbat on December 6 after the alleged “extra-judicial killing” of a Baloch youth by officials of the Counter-Terrorism Department officials.

The protest converted into a march and reached Islamabad on Dec 20. The demonstrators were subjected to brutal treatment by the Islamabad police to detain and disperse the crowd.

Among the key demands of the protesters are an end to enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in the province.

CONCLUSION

The iVerify Pakistan team has found no evidence to suggest that Dr Mahrang Baloch is protesting in Islamabad for her brother and neither has she claimed that he continues to be missing after his recovery.

Dr Mahrang’s reasons for the Islamabad protest are those outlined by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee.