Harassment of American Friends of Balochistan's founder by Pakistani I.S.I. Agents in Washington DC

To, Dated: January 26, 2010
Your Excellency Mr. David Jacobson
United States Ambassador to Canada
PO Box 866 Station B,
Ottawa. Ontario,
K1P5T1

Subject: Harassment of American Friends of Balochistan's founder by

Pakistani I.S.I. Agents in Washington DC

Dear Mr. Ambassador:

The Baloch Human Rights Council of Canada would like to bring your attention to an incident that occurred on January 22, 2010 in front of Pakistan Embassy in Washington DC. On that day activists of the American Friends of Baluchistan had taken a permit to protest in front of Pakistan Embassy against the slow-motion genocide of Baloch people at the hands of Pakistani State Security forces and Muttahida Qaumi Movement (M.Q.M.) in Pakistan.


During the protest a person, who looked and sounded like a Punjabi, the dominant group in Pakistan that is responsible for the woes of the Baloch people, came from the side of the Pakistani embassy, and posing as a journalist, approached and interviewed Mr. Mustikhan, took pictures of the protest. The man vouched that he works with Sami Abraham, reporter for the Pakistani television news channel, GeoTV . Mr. Mustikhan believes that the person who took the interview was an official of the infamous Inter-Services Intelligence.

It is not the first time that human rights activists are being intimidated on U.S. soil. On November 22, 2009 the A.F.B held an international Baluch conference at the National Press Club in Washington DC; this conference was also attended by U.S. State Department officials. One official from Pakistan embassy again disguised himself as an attendee and stole signed petition cards for U.S. congressmen and senators which also had the senders' personal information.


Baloch activists in Canada have also faced similar issues with suspected Pakistani agents.


The world today knows the brutal role of Pakistan army in destroying the peace process in Afghanistan through the I.S.I., harboring, arming and training the Taliban in Northern Waziristan and elsewhere in Pakistan, while asking the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan not to cross the Durand Line. The motto and philosophy of I.S.I . is to protect the "Islamic ideological borders" of Pakistan, which apparently lies beyond the physical borders of Pakistan.

The Pakistan army, and its extension the I.S.I . have forcefully disappeared more than 8,000 Baloch political activists in Pakistan, which include women and children under the age of 12. Baloch in Pakistan are facing the fifth and the fiercest military operation in Baluchistan. The New York-based world Human Rights Watch just reported widespread abuses against Baloch civilians by Pakistan army and I.S.I.

The A.F.B. has requested the U.S. authorities to intervene and investigate the matter to stop Pakistani agents from violating the First Amendment rights of the Baloch and Sindhis now living in the U.S.A.

The A.F.B. has also lodged a formal complaint with U.S. authorities against suspected agents of the infamous Inter-Services Intelligence who are working as diplomats at the Pakistan embassy.


The B.H.R.C. seriously condemns the harassment of Mr. Mustikhan by the Pakistani agents and demands a complete investigation into this matter. B.H.R.C. also demands from the Honorable Ambassador to lodge a formal complaint to the officials in Pakistan Embassy in Ottawa about these acts of intimidation against Baloch in U.S. and Canada.

The B.H.R.C., with its headquarters in London, is an international organization aimed at stopping the genocide of Baloch people in Pakistan and Iran.

Thanking you in advance.

Sincerely,

Dr. Zaffar Baloch
President
Baloch Human Rights Council of Canada.