On August 8, 2016, terrorists targeted lawyers and civilians at the Quetta Civil Hospital, killing more than 70 people and injuring another 120.

They first gunned down Advocate Bilal Anwar Kasi, the president of the Balochistan Bar Council, in the morning and later bombed a massive crowd of the lawyers who had gathered at the hospital where Kasi’s body was taken. First, the attack was claimed by Jamaat-ur-Ahrar, a faction of the Pakistani Taliban. Then ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack, although officials said they doubted whether the outfit was behind the blast. “A martyr from the Islamic State detonated his explosive belt at a gathering of justice ministry employees and Pakistani policemen in the city of Quetta,” Islamic State’s news agency claimed.

The Balochistan government announced compensation worth Rs 10 million for each deceased person’s family and Rs 5 million for seriously injured persons. Medical expenses and associated charges of those admitted in Combined Military Hospital (CMH), Quetta and Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi were also borne by the government. The Punjab government also announced Rs 0.5 Million for the deceased and Rs 250,000 for the injured.

The attack was condemned among others by the then United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and French President François Hollande. The Pakistan and England cricket teams observed a minute of silence before the start of their fourth test match. Players also wore black arm-bands in solidarity with the victims.

Each year on the fateful day, ceremonies are held in Quetta as well as throughout the country to remember the martyrs of the carnage. Lawyer leaders and judges pay tribute to the victims and vow to continue the mission to eliminate terrorism from the country.

Advocate Baz Mohammad Kakar was among the victims. Kakar was the eldest of three brothers, born in Kargus village of (Muslimbagh) in Killa-Saifullah on December 2, 1969. He did his matriculation and FSc from his native area and later went to Balochistan University in 1986 for a BSc. In the BSc examination, he secured the second position. After a couple of years, he topped the MA exam from the same university. He also passed the examination for the post of lecturer under Balochistan Public Service Commission, but didn’t join the service. In 1996, he did his master’s in law, also from University of Balochistan.

Advocate Baz Mohammad Kakar believed in the supremacy of law. As president of Balochistan Bar Council, Kakar courageously led the lawyers of Balochistan chapter in their struggle for the independence of judiciary.

Kakar believed in the supremacy of law and justice and dedicated his whole life to this mission. He led processions and rallies to secure the prestige of the judiciary when it was threatened by former president Gen Pervez Musharaf (retired) after he dismissed the then chief justice of Pakistan and imposed an emergency in 2007. As president of Balochistan Bar Council, Kakar courageously led the lawyers of Balochistan chapter for the independence of judiciary.

Journalist Hamid Mir recalls: “When I was attacked by some workers of a political party on the premises of Quetta registry of the Supreme Court in 2012, Baz Mohammad Kakar, Zahoor Shahawani and several others lawyers shielded me. Later, I once again got in touch with Kakar and his brave companions during the Lawyers’ Movement in Quetta in 2017.”

Kakar’s campaign against forced disappearances is considered another milestone in his career. He is admired by all those people who believed in justice and humanity. Kakar became a symbol of the civil liberties.

In the memory of his slain brother, Dr Lal Khan Kakar established a Baaz Muhammad Khan Kakar Foundation on October 20, 2016. The foundation aims to boost his (Baz Mohammad Kakar’s) mission of bringing durable, pragmatic and constructive change in the society by promoting educational research, providing health relief to the poor in the society and mobilising the youth.

On the fourth anniversary of the August 8 martyrs, Dr Lal Khan Kakar also established a digital library in Quetta in his personal capacity under the supervision of Shaheed Baz Muhammad Kakar Foundation. The library was inaugurated by Justice Abdullah Baloch of the Balochistan High Court (BHC) in the presence of a large number of BHC judges and lawyers on October 18, 2020.

The writer teachesliterature at Degree College Zhob and is a columnist. He can be reached at hussainhunarmal @gmail.com