The federal government on Friday announced it will provide Rs. 5 million each for families of missing persons in the form of legal and financial assistance advised by several committees probing the issue.
In a video statement issued after a meeting of the federal cabinet, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said the matter of missing persons was discussed and a support package for the heirs of the missing approved. He said the package was approved in light of recommendations of previous committees that probed the issue of missing persons.
According to Tarar, the cabinet reviewed two reports on missing persons during its meeting and approved the constitution of a special committee to examine genuine cases of families in need of support. This new committee, he said, would address the problems facing families of missing persons.
Stressing that the support package did not constitute remuneration, he clarified that it was an attempt by the government to share in the grief of missing persons’ families and resolve their problems.
The minister claimed the issue of missing persons was “complicated,” regretting it had persisted despite multiple efforts to resolve it. Positively, he maintained, the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances (COIED) had resolved most of the cases pertaining to missing persons. Nonetheless, he stressed, the government was committed to resolving all issues of missing persons.
Tarar claimed that as of July 2024, “only 23% of missing persons’ cases” were still pending, noting that of the 10,200 total cases of missing persons registered with the commission, roughly 8,000 had been addressed.
The government’s announcement comes amid ongoing protests against enforced disappearances by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC). The state is also facing significant criticism from courts, which are demanding speedy resolution of the missing persons issue through various orders and observations.