Why silent on Karima Baloch: Trudeau cornered over Nijjar quagmire
Amid the diplomatic row between India and Canada over the killing of Khalistani extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the Baloch Human Rights Council of Canada (BHRC) has accused Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of double standards. Highlighting "perceived inconsistencies" in the Canadian government's response to the death of exiled Baloch human rights activist Karima Baloch in December 2020 and Nijjar's killing in June 2023, the BHRC questioned the "lack of action."
Why does this story matter?
Balochistan is a province in Pakistan. There have been calls for an independent Balochistan for decades for ethnic Baloch people, who reportedly have a distinct cultural identity within the country. Similarly, Khalistanis seek a separate nation for Sikhs split from India. Canada has defended Khalistani extremists, designated as terrorists by India, calling them Sikh activists. However, Baloch activists accuse the Canadian government of not extending the same approach to them, allegedly hinting at links to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
Karima Baloch: Voice for Balochistan
Karima was a Balochistan rights activist and the first chair of the Baloch Students Organization (BSO-Azad). She fought for the rights of the Balochistan people against the Pakistan government, widely blamed for the forced disappearances of Baloch activists. A vocal critic of the Pakistani military and the ISI, Canada granted Baloch asylum after she was booked in Pakistan on terrorism charges. In December 2020, however, she went missing and was later found dead, reportedly under mysterious circumstances.
Mysterious deaths of exiled activists
Karima was the second Baloch activist in exile to have died in 2020. The ISI was allegedly accused of orchestrating her death. But the Canadian authorities ruled her death as "non-criminal." Now, pointing to the Canadian government's over-the-top reaction to Nijjar's death, the BHRC questioned its consistency and fairness in handling Balochistan's alleged ongoing human rights violations by the Pakistan Army. Following Nijjar's death, Trudeau accused the Indian government of the killing, saying the probe is yet to be finished.
Canada's human rights commitment questioned
Michael Rubin, a former Pentagon official and senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, also criticized Trudeau over Karima's death. The BHRC's accusations against Trudeau raise questions about the Canadian government's commitment to human rights and fairness, particularly in cases involving alleged violations by foreign governments. Notably, the ISI is accused of stifling Balochistan nationalism and simultaneously fuelling the Khalistan movement since it allegedly backs only the secession of the Indian state of Punjab and not its counterpart in Pakistan.
