Equating
activism to terrorism is a bigoted notion among the neo-fascist and
authoritarian regimes in different points of the world to justify the use state
powers especially the military and police force against the protesters just
like what happened to Baba Jan and his 11 companions who have been imprisoned by
the authority for being a political activist in Pakistan.
Baba Jan is a
central leader of the left-wing Awami Workers Party - Gilgit Baltistan. After the landslide incident in Attabad, Hunza
that displaced more than 1, 000 villagers, Baba Jan organized the displaced
people to lobby to the Pakistan Government for compensation and resettlement.
He joined a mobilization to demand for the rights of the affected communities however
some of the protesters were shoot to death. As they call for justice for the
victims, Baba Jan was arrested, repeatedly tortured and accused as terrorist.
Recently, he was sentenced by the Anti-terrorism Court to 40 years of
imprisonment.
The petition of Awami
Workers Party in Pakistan and the some human rights organization in the
Pakistan and other international organizations and personalities for his
release has been signed by Noam Chomsky, Tariq Ali, David Graeber and several
others. Among the organizations who demand Justice for Baba Jan are
International Socialist, Progressive Youth Front Lahore, National Trade Union
Federation and others.
The case of Baba Jan
and his fellow activists in Pakistan was similarly what happened during the
Martial Law period in the Philippines where massive number of political
activists were detained, harassed, sexually abused, tortured, and killed by the
state. This state violence has continued
in the Philippines even after Martial Law. Doctor Gery Ortiga and Gloria
Capitan, Juvy Capion and her sons were among the environmental activists who
were killed in the past few years in the Philippines. In the campaign against
drugs syndicate under the administration of President Duterte, the spate of
extra judicial killings have gone up victimizing small time alleged drug
addicts and pushers. What even more striking are the absence of due process in
all these cases but also most of the victims are the young people.
Liga ng Makabagong
Kabataan (LMK) [League of Alternative
Youth]- a progressive youth organization based in Mindanao, Philippines- believes that in a civilized world, Human Rights must be valued and
upheld by the all States at all times and that Baba Jan is just among the
numbers of leaders of the oppressed and marginalized sectors in the society
whose voices are suppressed. Instead, they are criminalized and
persecuted.
In unison with
comrades in Pakistan and around the world, the Liga ng Makabagong Kabataan demands
for justice to all victims of human rights violation and for the release of
Baba Jan and his 11 fellow activists.
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