Islamabad: Nadia Baloch, 25, is an advocate and the sister of Mahrang Baloch, a human rights activist from Balochistan, Pakistan, who was arrested during a peaceful protest on March 22, 2025, and remains in custody, facing terrorism and sedition charges.“We Baloch have dignity. We never wanted to sit on the roads of Islamabad,” Nadia said. “But from mid-July to September last year, I decided to go to Islamabad and stage a sit-in to tell people how their government has treated us – how it detained my sister and silenced the voices of Baloch victims.”Speaking to The Wire over the phone, her voice heavy with grief, she shared that passersby watched the protest from behind their car windows.“At that moment, I told myself: enough. Why am I trying to convince people who show no humanity?” she said.Nadia ended the sit-in, unwilling to remain powerless in the face of what she described as a callous government and a public indifferent to Baloch suffering. Nearly 20 Baloch families, whose loved ones had been abducted by the Pakistani security agencies, joined her in the protest, expressing solidarity for Mahrang.Nadia recalled the words of Amma Hoor: “I will never return to Balochistan unless Mahrang is released.” Amma Hoor passed away on February 16, 2026. Her son had been missing for 14 years.“We went to Islamabad for justice, or at the very least to be heard by the government,” Nadia added. “But look, Amma Hoor, the other victims, and I, all returned empty-handed.”On March 22, 2025, authorities arrested Mahrang Baloch, the head of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), along with activist Beebow Baloch. Other BYC members – Gulzadi Baloch, Bebarg Baloch and Sibagatullah Shah, known as Shah Jee – were later detained.‘Critical condition’On February 18, Mahrang’s condition deteriorated sharply, prompting jail authorities to transfer her to Shaikh Zayed Hospital for evaluation. An MRI of her lumbar spine revealed diffuse disc bulges at the L4-L5 and L5-S1 levels, indentation of the thecal sac, bilateral neural foraminal narrowing with nerve root impingement, and an annular tear at the L4-L5 level – findings pointing towards spinal distress and muscular spasm.Nadia explained that her sister’s health had been worsening for months and repeated requests to the jail superintendent for medical care were ignored. It was only after their protests invoking the constitutional right to medical care that the authorities agreed to act, by when Mahrang’s condition had become critical.She added that when Mahrang was taken to Shaikh Zayed Hospital, the facility appeared empty. Mahrang asked why the patients had been removed, to which no one responded. Nadia said that the authorities appeared intent on keeping her condition out of the public view.Police initially refused to release the MRI report. When they finally provided one after persistent requests, the copy lacked a doctor’s signature. The officials were quick to dismiss these concerns when questioned, insisting that the information given was sufficient.Nadia spoke with concern, stating that despite a government doctor’s recommendation, Mahrang has still not received adequate treatment.Hope in judiciaryNadia said that her legal fight for justice has been marked by setbacks and hard lessons. She added that many Baloch people now believe that justice does not exist for them in Pakistan.Although the others arrested on March 22, 2025, during a peaceful protest against enforced disappearances, have been released, Mahrang remains incarcerated. Nadia argued that as per the law’s provisions, when co-accused in the same case are released, those remaining behind should also be granted freedom.“The court was expected to announce its decision in Mahrang’s case, but withheld it for three months,” Nadia told The Wire. “It seems that even the courts are unable to follow their own rules.”While Mahrang has received relief in some cases, she remains implicated in four others. Nadia informed that the family is now considering approaching the Supreme Court Pakistan.“We look to the Supreme Court. It must keep alive the hope that even after exhausting all legal avenues, justice for the Baloch is still possible,” she said.Rallies for Iran allowed, those for Mahrang silencedOn March 2, 2026, the Quetta Press Club initially agreed to let Nadia hold a press conference addressing enforced disappearances and Mahrang’s detainment. However, the permission was later withdrawn, claiming that issues related to missing persons and Mahrang could not be discussed.She began the press conference nonetheless. The police soon intervened to stop her.A reporter encouraged her by saying, “Aap conference jaari rakhain, hum saare journalists aap ki conference record kar rahain hain (Please continue your press conference, all of us journalists are recording.)”Nadia remarked that she felt as if she were not even standing on her own land, that she was not allowed to speak. Protests supporting the Iranian government were allowed, but a press conference calling attention to the Baloch people’s plight and disappearances was not.She shared feeling helpless – having once stood in solidarity with other Baloch victims, Nadia now finds herself as one.“It breaks you,” she said. “Now Amaa [my mother] doesn’t even ask what happened. She already knows – I have returned empty-handed.”