Quetta – The human rights community is grieving after the demise of Abdul Qadeer Baloch, popularly referred to as Mama Qadeer, who died on Saturday, aged 85. The veteran activist passed away after a lengthy struggle with illness, leaving a legacy of uncompromising Peace Movement activism.
His death is the end of an era to those who have been looking on him as a beacon of non-violent protest in Balochistan, where he had dedicated decades seeking truth and justice in the fate of the missing.
The path of Mama Qadeer into activism came as a result of a great personal tragedy. His son was abducted in 2009, and his body was later discovered with signs of torture several years later.
This tragic death made a former bank officer a leader of a grassroots Peace Movement. He then joined the Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) as a vice-chairman, where he dedicated his life to recording enforced disappearances and giving a voice to bereaved families who felt themselves unheard.
A Historic March for Justice
Among the most memorable events in his life was the historic long march, which he organized at the end of 2013 between Quetta and Islamabad. Mama Qadeer and a group of families walked over 2,000 kilometers across Sindh and Punjab to generate awareness of their situation.
This was a record-setting milestone in the history of the Peace Movement, as it was the greatest distance ever walked on foot to support a humanitarian cause. It attracted the attention of the whole world to the crisis in Balochistan despite being heavily harassed and threatened in the process.
He coordinated countless sit-ins and hunger strike camps outside press clubs in Quetta, Karachi, and Islamabad.
He remained a steadfast figure even when he was denied entry to foreign countries or had his university speeches cancelled under duress. He was a moral compass to rights activists who hold the view that political matters should be decided by dialogue and laws.
An Enduring Legacy of Resistance
Mama Qadeer managed to turn personal sorrow into a communal call to action that lasted more than ten years. His silent yet uncompromising fight to seek justice will remain a motivational figure to the next generations of activists.
Mama Qadeer Baloch was born on June 6, 1940, in Sorab and not only served his people as a professional but also as an unstoppable advocate.
His legacy would always remain ingrained in the hearts of those fighting on to get human rights even after his burial.
