Balochistan faced four bloody conflicts, and the Baloch and Pakistan’s relations can easily be termed as hostile since 1948 with Prince Karim’s initiated insurgency against Pakistan as a result when army was sent by the central government, which allegedly forced Mir Ahmad Yar Khan (Khan of Kalat) to give up his state signing an accession agreement ending kalat’s de facto independence. The Balochs have been politically, economically and culturally subjugated and forcefully crushed whenever they spoke for their rights by the civil and military establishment.
Mr Naseer Dashti, a renowned Baloch nationalist scholar, writes in an article that Pakistani military establishment “perceives the Baloch nationalism as a grave threat to the state”. Major military offensives were launched in Balochistan during 1948, 1958, 1962, and 1973, Baloch were indiscriminately killed and displaced by the intelligence operatives, army and paramilitary and the political activists and intellectuals were harassed, kidnapped and tortured during and later on.
The recent ongoing Baloch resistance movement meant to avenge the wrong and injustice done to them takes its roots in mid 2004 and during which the death of Nawab Bugti (who was a staunch pro-Pakistan leader) and Mir Balaach Mari in 2006, and 2007, respectively, brought a significant change in the history of Baloch Resistance Movement, and now they openly demand independence before it was for utmost autonomy.
Pakistani military and so-called political establishment never heeded upon a political settlement of the Baloch issue but rather believed in using brute force as a continuation of the policy to silent those voices raised for their just rights, seemingly failed, in other words it further energized the Baloch to fight back and due to their faithful and courageous resistance Baloch cause is promoted and recognized and now the Baloch moderate forces greatly favour armed resistance.
The story continues, the addition of the callous murder of three towering Baloch leaders waja Ghulam Mohd, BNP president, Lala Munir, vice president of BNP and Sher Mohd Baloch, central deputy secretary general of BRP further severely intensified the situation as they were using political grounds to fight for their national rights which strengthen the existing perception of the common Baloch that Pakistani rulers don’t consider them equal partners and think them as a subject race and themselves the race of conquerors, the same precisely was the attitude of Pakistan toward the Bengalis.
A “kill and dump” process is adopted now of those kidnapped and disappeared as a counter insurgency tactic by the repressive military establishment to frighten those voices particularly opposing the exploitation of resources. The situation in Balochistan is extremely precarious and gross human rights abuses are reported. “Pakistani security services are brazenly disappearing, torturing, and often killing people because of suspected ties to the Baloch nationalist movement,” said Brad Adams, executive director of Human Rights Watch’s Asia division and a general expert on Asia, “this is not counterinsurgency – it is barbarism and it needs to end now.”
Historically, resistance was always present in Balochistan against unjust policies and exploitation of their natural resources which was totally ignored by national media and intellectuals and common masses still know not the real issue, and Baloch lacked means but with the passage of time they accessed the modern resources of communication like twitter, facebook, mobile phones and youtube and skillfully exploited them by uploading videos and photos of mutilated corpses of Baloch activists and explained Baloch genocide in Pakistan which attracted attention of the international community.
The recent congressional hearing and subsequent proposed resolution moved in US congress by Republican congressman Dana Rohrabacher (who recently co-authored an article with Congressman Louie Gohmert uttering support for an independent Balochistan wrote: “Perhaps we should even consider support for a Balochistan carved out of Pakistan to diminish radical power there (in Pakistan).”) has tremendously encouraged the Baloch as their plight is highlighted. The Baloch leader Hairbiyar Mari in an interview on geo TV said answering a question “we are happy at least they paid attention to Baloch issue”, and added that “this became possible only by the youths sacrifice.”
The main reason behind the troubled relations is a consistent blunder made by Pakistanis that even today they don’t know the exact nature of the Baloch and deliberately reluctant to pay attention to this ignored reality. They don’t know or try not to that the role assigned for a Baloch in society is one of honour and freedom not of subjugation and dependence and a mother’s wish in her lullaby to her babyson is that he should grow in the true tradition of freedom and that he should be called for war by the tribal chief.
Traditionally, they have never accepted hegemony and domination and the spirit of revenge can be extinguished in a Baloch heart if stone could melt away in waters. They never consent to be treated subordinately. Yet the establishment did not change its attitude and treated them against their genuine wishes. A sense of deprivation is realistically genuine and valid as Balochistan being the largest natural resource rich province is yet the least developed.
As the Baloch resistance is entered in its third phase being a revised resistance in nature is potentially impossible to be curbed at least by suppressive militaristic approach if it could be then it was years before. They lost trust in political leaders and term them as more interested in resource rich land rather than Baloch. Now it is time to seriously ponder over what can be done peacefully ending all type of violence, and psychological warfare as already it is too late.
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