Ihsan Ali Khosa Baloch
Ihsan Ali Khosa Baloche is the President of the Petarian Human Rights Organisation (PHRO), an NGO that works to: prevent and fight against gender-based violence, and in particular against honour killings; provide legal support to survivors of rape; advocate for policy changes in relation to domestic violence, child marriages and forced marriages; document cases of forced conversions and forced marriages in the rural area of Sindh, where hindu girls are often abducted and forced to convert to Islam and marry Muslim boys. PHRO also works on the issue of enforced disappearances in Sindh and has organised many demonstrations and vigils in solidarity with the victims of enforced disappearances.
The province of Sindh, in south-east Pakistan, is particularly challenging for human rights defenders. There is no rule of law and in rural areas the power is in the hands of the so-called “waderas” (influential community leaders) who control everything. Because of their work, PHRO members have received threats from both local politicians and waderas.
Pakistan is one of the most challenging countries in the region for human rights defenders, who face high risks including killing, arbitrary arrest and detention, abduction and kidnapping, surveillance, threats and judicial harassment. Many HRDs have had their offices attacked or burnt down and their colleagues killed.
