Families' anguish over Pakistan missing

By Divya Talwar
BBC Asian Network

Zaheen Khaja wants the UK government to help find her brother

Thousands of people, including relatives of UK citizens, have gone missing in Pakistan after becoming victims of "enforced disappearances", campaigners have claimed.

Zaheen Khaja's brother, Dr Abid Sharif, has been missing in Pakistan for four years.

"My brother looked like a practising Muslim - he had a long beard and was often openly supportive of the Taliban. I have no idea where he is," she said.

Before he disappeared, he told his pregnant wife that he was going to Peshawar for the weekend to meet a friend.

He left on Thursday and was expected to come back to Rawalpindi on Sunday, but he never returned.

Dr Sharif's family were told by the police in Peshawar that he had been picked up by Frontier Constabulary - a government agency - but Pakistan-born Zaheen, who is from Solihull in the West Midlands, England, has heard nothing about her brother since.

''He's been mistaken for someone else. I believe my brother had no terrorist involvement.

"Yes, he was sympathetic of the Taliban - that doesn't make him a criminal,'' said Zaheen while clutching a photograph of her brother.

Just 'vanished'

According to estimates by campaigners in the UK and Pakistan, hundreds of British families have relatives who have just "vanished".

They are believed to be "enforced disappearances" - people are being picked up and detained by the state because they are thought to be associated with terrorist activity.

Official figures that are held by the Pakistani Supreme Court list almost 1,000 cases of missing persons, which are being investigated as "enforced disappearances".

We want the veil of secrecy lifted and the names of everyone who is being held Anjum Tahirkheli, British Human Rights

The campaign group, Defence for Human Rights Pakistan (DHRP), confirmed that Dr Abid Sharif was on such a list but it estimated that the number of enforced disappearances is anywhere between 8,000 and 10,000 people.

British Human Rights (BHR) is an organisation in the UK that is campaigning for the British families who have relatives missing in Pakistan.

Anjum Tahirkheli, head of BHR, said: ''These disappearances are barbaric. We want the veil of secrecy to be lifted and want the names of everyone who is being held.

''If these people are suspected of breaching the law, then bring them before an internationally recognised court. But the families need to know who you're holding and why."

Deep concerns

Zaheen claims her brother is an honest family man who, as a doctor, did a lot of community work.

But she says that if he's been linked to terror activity, then the law should decide if he is innocent or if he is guilty.

As she feels the Pakistani government has failed to give answers, Zaheen is hoping for help from the UK government.

The Pakistani Supreme Court lists almost 1,000 cases of missing persons

"I am a British national and I have always worked hard. I would like the British government to help its citizens find answers and make sure human rights are not violated in Pakistan,'' she said.

Zaheen has turned to her local MP in Solihull, Lib Dem Lorely Burt, for help.

Mrs Burt said: ''We are deeply concerned with this matter. I will continue to raise this issue and offer support to Zaheen and her family until we work towards a resolution."

Silent suffering

Unlike this case, many other families in a similar situation are scared to speak out publicly.

Amina Janjua, the head of DHRP, said: "So many people who've had family disappear from the rural areas of Pakistan haven't come forward to the government because they simply do not have the resources to do so. They are suffering in silence."

Masood's uncle disappeared in Pakistan two years ago. The 25-year-old Londoner told Asian Network he did not want to reveal his true identity for fear of reprisals.

"We are scared to protest openly about it in case he is never released or other family members go missing,'' he said.

Masood also fears that other people will brand him and his family as terrorists if they talk to others about his uncle's disappearance.

They are being secretly detained so they could be absolutely anywhere Amina Janjua

As a young, practising Muslim, Masood also feels he "fits a profile" and since his uncle went missing he has been afraid to travel to Pakistan.

"I haven't seen my grandparents in years. I want to go home but what if I go missing too? I don't know if I'll ever feel safe to go to Pakistan again,'' he said.

The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office said in a statement: "We are concerned at reports that thousands of people have been detained without access to a judicial process.

"Through our EU partners, we are encouraging the Pakistani authorities to release the names of those who have been detained secretly and to sign, ratify and implement the International Convention for the Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearances.''

The Pakistani High Commission has not yet commented.

The locations of the people on the missing persons' list remain a mystery.

Living nightmare

Amina Janjua, whose own husband disappeared in 2005, said: ''They are being secretly detained, so they could be absolutely anywhere.

"It is likely they are being held in Pakistani jails as prisoners or it is even possible that they are not in Pakistan. All we can do is guess."

Four years after Dr Abid Sharif disappeared, his sister Zaheen fears for the worst.

"I have no idea what state Abid is in. Is he alive? What's his mental condition? I'm living a nightmare every day. I just need some closure.''

Hear the full story on Asian Network Reports at 1230 BST and 1800 BST on Wednesday 7 October or hear more on BBC iplayer.