Dr. Hidayat Bhutto, UK & Europe Organiser, World Sindhi Congress, Addresses the Council
Geneva, March 17, 2025 (Special Report)
Dr. Hidayat Bhutto, representing the World Sindhi Congress, raised serious concerns about the forced land grabs by the Pakistani military in Sindh during the 58th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
Addressing the session, Dr. Bhutto urged the Council’s urgent attention to the alarming trend of forcible acquisition of agricultural land under the pretext of corporate farming by the military in Sindh.
He revealed that in 2024, a staggering 52,700 acres of agricultural land were allotted to the army for corporate farming. Furthermore, in 2025, the military is seeking an additional 10,000 acres, including a lake in Umerkot district. The military has set its sights on a total of 1.3 million acres of Sindh’s land for its corporate farming ambitions.
Dr. Bhutto emphasised that, as in the past, the state is using force, intimidation, and coercion to displace local communities from their lands. This aggressive land occupation is not only uprooting thousands of families but is also leading to the destruction of local villages, worsening poverty, erasing historical sites, and violating the fundamental human rights of the Sindhi people.
He urged the United Nations to pressure Pakistan into halting the allocation of agricultural and residential land to the military and its affiliates. Dr. Bhutto also demanded that lands seized under corporate farming schemes be redistributed to thousands of landless farmers suffering under extreme poverty.
“We demand justice and call upon the United Nations to stand for the oppressed people of Sindh and ensure the protection of their fundamental rights.”
Protests Across Sindh Against Land Grabs:
Amid growing discontent, protests are erupting across Sindh against the military’s land acquisitions. Political and social organizations are calling on the international community to take immediate action to protect Sindh’s agricultural lands from military occupation.
