THE PRE-PLANED GENOCIDE OF BALOCH AN ALLIED WISH OF PAKISTAN AND IRAN

BY HAFEEZ HASANABADI

The debate of Baloch national genocide has been taking place since long but after forced occupation of Pakistan in this region the possibilities of Baloch becoming minorities like Red Indians increased. 250 years ago Baloch had a coastal area of 1500km I.e. from Karachi to Harmoz but today its divided in 5 parts in Iran so that it doesn’t unites as a political power there. Being in Pakistan with 3 different provinces, Balochistan where Balochs are in majority, Pakhtoons are forcibly involved against their will according to a plan to avoid Baloch becoming a great power. The same conspiracy was played on Pakhtoons where they were divided in Balochistan, Punjab and then free tribes etc. to deprive them from unity. Similarly Sindhis had to face weakness in their political power because of bearing hundreds of thousands of refugees from India who were later on localized. That particular refugee who traveled from Delhi and Hyderabad wearing a patched shirt and loin cloth is the master of Sind and the poor sindhi is its servant.

Punjabi is the only nation in this country who absorbed other nations and is united whereas all other nations are victims of indigenous division. This is the reason whenever nations speak about the injustice they faced, blame Punjab because Punjab is the only nation strengthening with Pakistan whereas other nations are suffering division under the governmental and semi-governmental conspiracies.

Baloch’s issue is much critical than other of these nations because not even it is able to read or write its own language in its school, neither it has any opportunity of saving its tradition nor it can defend its culture. Similarly its land can be taken from it and its facing the threat of losing its national identity forever.

From prominent American intellectual Sleigh Harrison to ordinary writers have repeated several times expressing the threat of Baloch facing slow motion genocide. We too have repeated using the term of ‘slow motion genocide’ in tens of our articles, but concentrating more on this subject reveals that using the term of ‘slow genocide’ does not reflects the current disaster Baloch nation is facing.

In fact it is an ugly truth, due to rapid development of science, nations are developing too. So in case of suppression of any nation it can swiftly lose its national identity where killing everyone is not necessary .

Only 1 or 2 per cent of Balochs who migrated to Sind and Punjab in the 15th and 16th century, write their identities as Baloch but are disconnected from Baloch, Balochi and Balochistan in such a way that 5 military operations in Balochistan and genocide of Baloch could not succeed in convulsing them. 90% of them speak Sindhi, Punjabi and Saraiki. Similarly Baloch in Iran bearing 80 years of slavery do not have the stamina to rescue its language, history and culture. Baloch history and Baloch culture is being attacked by Persian history and Persian language like an uprising storm. More than that Baloch can not even practice its Sunni religious prayers in a peaceful environment.


In these past 80 years, Baloch nation was kept backward so much that it feels embarrassed to wear its own traditional clothes. Persians have intentionally attacked Baloch’s culture and tradition to intellectively make them slaves. Baloch living there is convinced that the memento of being educated and civilized person is to wear paint coat whereas its own traditional dress is the bookmark of ignorance and backwardness.

We think any nation dies at the moment when it becomes a victim of inferiority complex. The nations who think they are superior and above all, are called Fascist and aren’t acceptable by the world. Similarly the States who try to involve other weak and minor nations into inferiority complex are hated by the world. These states with the help of their enormous political machinery drive the particular nation in so much inferiority complex that they lose the stamina of rescuing their national identity and they move forward to their end unknowingly.

It took around 4 to 5 centuries for the Balochs living in Sind and Punjab to become one of them but developed Iran in a small period of 80 years turned a large number of Balochs into Shiites. It convinced many people that they being Baloch are less civilized, less educated and in fact less intelligent than Persians. Similarly many were convinced to speak Persian to their children so that the gates of success open to them as if speaking Balochi or being close to Balochistan would close the gates.

In these 80 years a large number of Baloch were perverse to believe that Baloch did not had any such history which can be taught in colleges and universities and neither Balochi was a language to be proud on.

Tehran and Pakistan are killing Balochs in different ways using different weapons. In Iran Balochs are hanged or shoot in the name being Sunni, in the name of drugs, in the name of being US, Britain or Western agent, or in the name of provoking Balochs for freedom. Along with these killings, They are assassin with the weapons like keeping them in ignorance, unemployment, backwardness and corruption murdering their Balochism. These people are seemingly living human but are empty inside. They think alike their masters to keep them slaves forever.

In Eastern Balochistan the situation is no different. In Pakistan, Balochistan is the less developed and most back warded province and Pakhtoon areas are much developed than Balochs. (Here it should not be taken that Pakhtoons are in heaven in Balochistan.)

As here Baloch being slave since a less period of 62 years, so it is less under pressure than in Iran. Newspapers and Magazines are published under help yourself theory here. Music centers are present and literature is in inventory mode being published by helping their own selves. Government TV and radio channels teach the lesson of being Pakistani rather than being Baloch so that Balochi and Brahvi language are near to the stage of elimination. I, being drama and TV person from 1993-97, am a witness that while I used to write scripts, producers always used to tell me to write the dialogues of the characters using most of Urdu words so that ordinary people could understand. Whereas my Balochi was never tough but was indeed pure because I used to implement Rakshani, Makrani and Suleimani accent equally in my dialogues. Being familiar with 3 of these accents, I never had the necessity of using Urdu words that’s what my producers never liked. I was usually present in recordings where actors on the advice of producers used to place Urdu or English words in the dialogues and I used to immediately correct them but in my absence they used to neglect the script using such an ordinary Balochi mixture which used to embarrass me listening to it later.

The main reason of giving this ordinary example is to let the world know the Balochi and Brahvi programs published in the TV and Radios are just to pollute these languages and not for their development.

The situation of Pakistani politics is in front of all, some Balochs have been bought and some have been misguided. Those who want to apprise the threats Baloch and Balochistan are facing, end up like more than 8000 missing people which can be seen by the world. The terrible result of democratic politics in Balochistan resulting the assassination of Martyr Ghulam Mohd, Martyr Lala Munir, Martyr Sher Mohd, Martyr Rasool Baksh and tens of other leaders is a question mark to the world. The state terrorism has reached a point that in the month of September this year, a peaceful public conference in Tump was opened fire in which nearly 20 innocent victims were injured including women and children and one youngster Mukhtar Baloch was martyred.

Here too Balochs are being targeted directly along using the weapons like terror, greediness, corruption, backwardness, division and illiteracy at the same time.

As we have mentioned before, we would like to reinforce the point that in this computerized era it is not so hard to eliminate any nation as all new weapons such as carpet bombardment, media, seminars, internet etc. are used at the same time.

Iran and Pakistan have not only planed to snatch Baloch homeland, the fact of Baloch being a secular nation pins like a needle in their eyes. If the civilized world helps the broad minded Baloch in this region against Pakistani and Iranian religious trend of extremism, the civilized world gains the profit itself. Baloch arising as a moderate power in this region can help the world to fight against 2 challenges in this 21st century I.e. prohibiting drugs because many of Pakistani and Iranian high officials are backing the smuggling of drugs from Afghanistan to Europe and America through Balochistan.The second biggest challenge is the religious extremism which is promoted both in Pakistan and Iran and is a challenge to the entire world. Baloch nation with its secular thoughts can be actively helpful to the civilized world in the fight against this negative trend. Balochistan Zindabaad!

Source: Daily Tawar
Translated by zrombesht

Police constables gun down Baloch youth in Karachi

KARACHI: Police on Friday shot dead a youth, who had no criminal background, in a Ranchhore Line locality apparently in an attempt to enforce a ban on pillion-riding.

Police said that the deceased, Arif Baloch, was riding a motorcycle along with his pillion passenger, Kashif, in the Ranchhore Line area.

Two policemen of the Garden police station, also on a motorcycle, found them violating the pillion-riding ban and signalled them to stop, but Arif Baloch tried to speed away, they added.

According to the police, the chasing policemen got the youths near the congested Eidgah Chowk. ‘The policemen shouted several times asking them to stop, but they didn’t pay any heed and all of a sudden a single shot was fired by one of the policemen.’

A bullet from the official AK-47 Kalashnikov rifle of Constable Akhtar Nawaz hit 27-year-old Arif, a resident of Lyari, in the abdomen. He died on the spot. His body was taken to the Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK).

However, sources in the medico-legal section of the CHK told Dawn that the victim was shot from pointblank range.

The police version was also at odd variance with the account related by the victim’s pillion passenger, Kashif, who told Dawn that his friend was shot dead by police at pointblank range.

‘Arif Baloch had been suffering from a kidney-related disease and I used to take him to the Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation,’ he said after the victim was laid to rest in the Mewashah graveyard.

As a matter of course, Kashif said, they were returning from the health facility and Arif was driving the bike when the two policemen intercepted them near Eidgah.

‘We were confident that we enjoyed exemption from the pillion-riding ban because of Arif’s health condition, but the policemen initiated an argument and, all of a sudden, one of them asked us to put up our hands and fired a shot.’

A cloth trader in the Eidgah market, Kashif said he saw red and grabbed Constables Shahzad Ahmed and Akhtar Nawaz.

The scuffle drew the attention of the passers-by who overpowered the law-enforcers and gave them a hiding before putting them in an auto-rickshaw so that they could be taken to their high-ups at the Eidgah police station. They also set fire to the policemen’s motorcycle.

‘Arif Baloch died on the spot,’ he said. ‘When the two policemen were being taken in the rickshaw, they tried to escape but a large number of people following them did not allow this to happen,’ he added.

A police patrol team rescued their two colleagues by firing into the air to disperse the charged crowd.

However, the protesters blocked the main road connecting the Eidgah Chowk with other city thoroughfares including M.A. Jinnah Road. Vehicular traffic remained suspended on the road as the protesters lit bonfires.

A heavy contingent of police arrived at the scene to maintain law and order. However, the protesters demanded the arrest of the policemen upon which senior police officials decided to arrest Constable Akhtar Nawaz, who actually fired at the victim.

The torched bike was owned by Constable Shahzad Ahmed. The police did not find any weapon from the possession of the deceased who had no criminal record.

Although the police authorities ordered registration of a murder case under Section 302 of the Pakistan Penal Code against Constable Akhtar Nawaz at the Eidgah police station, they maintained that the facts of the incidents needed to be examined before reaching any conclusion.

‘No criminal record of deceased Arif was found…the police did not recover any arm or illegal thing from his possession,’ said Saddar Town SP Abdullah Sheikh. ‘However, there are a few things, as claimed by the two policemen, which are needed to be investigated.’

Citing the initial statement of the two policemen, he said that the two youths violated the pillion-riding ban, did not stop on police orders, ran into a commercial area and finally when they were almost caught, the motorcyclist tried to hit the policemen’s bike due to which both bikes fell down.

‘In the process Akhtar Nawaz’s rifle went off accidentally and the bullet hit Arif,’ said SSP Sheikh.

‘But we are not depending on any statement to arrive at any decision as senior investigators will probe into the case with all honesty following all legal formalities.’

A resident of Singo Lane in Lyari and the eldest among three brothers and seven sisters, Arif was the only breadwinner of the family and was an auto-rickshaw driver by profession.

Balochwarna

Announcement of package is to pave way for military operation: Dr Allah Nazar Baloch

Balochistan: Dr Allah Nazar Baloch like other pro-independent Baloch leaders has strongly rejected the so called “Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Balochistan” Package and said that government wants to intensify the military operation in Balochistan. The Pakistani rulers are trying to deceive the international community by the announcing this so called package. Whilst answering different questions of Radio Gwank teamDr Baloch said that those Baloch who support this package, they are actually signing their own “death warrants”. He appealed to the Baloch Nation to understand the cunning intentions of the government of Pakistan, and support the Baloch struggle for Independence instead of supporting the Pakistani government.

Talking about the missing Baloch persons Allah Nazar Baloch that all missing person were innocent and none of them committed any “heinous crime”. He said that Zakir Majid, Jalil Reki, Dr Deen Mohammed, Iqbal Baloch and thousands of other missing Baloch are political activists and they were struggling in peaceful ways.

He said that the Pakistani government’s announcement for replacing military with FC was a joke, Pakistani Para-military and elite forces were carrying out offensive operations in Balochistan. Fighter jets, helicopters gunships and lethal weapons have been used and are still being used against innocent Baloch villagers and civilians. “No matter whether the FC, military or whoever pulls the trigger, the fact is that their intentions and approach toward Baloch have never changed and there is no reason to believe that they are going to change in future” he said.

“Whenever the Pakistani government had carried out major military operations in Balochistan, they apologised before starting it. As usual this time they have announced the so called Package before starting yet another grand operation in Balochistan”, explained Dr Allah Nazar Baloch.

Musharraf apologised and then started the military operation. During his period of dictatorship thousands of innocent Baloch men, women and children were killed, thousands have been forcefully displaced and many hundred disappeared. Like Musharraf, Zardari too apologised but that didn’t work either and the military and intelligence agencies carried on killing and abducting Baloch people ‘this time in cold blood’. Shaheed Ghulam Mohammed Baloch and his friends were murdered during Zardari’s regime; we also should not forget the mutilated body of Rasool Bux Baloch and hundreds of other who have been killed while a so called democratically elected government was is place.

Dr Baloch said that past experiences tell us that we should never trust the Pakistani governments and we should carry on our struggle for National Liberation. He said Baloch struggle was gaining momentum and recognition on National and International level.

He urged the UN, EU and other secular and democratic states to come to the rescue of the people of Balochistan. He also appealed to the International Human Right Organisations to take notice of the atrocities that Pakistan is committing against the Baloch people. He asked the International Human Right bodies to send their fact finding team to Balochistan, in order to assess the situation and human right violation there, and expose the lies that Pakistan tells on international forums.

Eid Mubarak!!! Pictures of Baloch prisoners of war and Martyrs

UK: Tributes paid to Shaheed Balaach Marri

London: Baloch Human Rights Council UK, Balochistan Rights Movement and World Sindhi Congress held a remembrance seminar on the occasion of the second martyrdom anniversary of great Baloch hero Mir Balaach Marri. The seminar was held on 22nd Nov 2009 in London University Union Building. The seminar was organised to remember and pay tribute to Mir Balaach Marri who was killed by Pakistani establishment on 20 Nov 2007. The meeting was presided by Mir Hyrbyair Marri.

One minute silence was observed to pay respect to Nawabzada Mir Balaach Marri. The meeting was widely attended by scores of Balochs and Sindhis and other human rights activists from the UK and other European countries came together to pay tribute to a brave son of the Baloch land. A number of Balochs and Sindhis spoke about the life, work, commitment and sacrifice of Mir Balaach Marri. The speakers included Mir Hyrbyair Marri, Dr. lakhu Luhana,Dr Naseer Dashti, Samad Baloch, Mehnaz Baloch, Abdullah Baloch, Mir Ghulam Hussain Baloch, Suraiya Makhdoom, Rahim Bandvoi,Professor Mustafa, Ms Stella, Jamshed Ameri, Dr. Hussain Ahmad Makhdoom, Naser Buledai, Mir Khaled Langou, Shahab Baloch, walid Garboni and Mehrab Surjoi.

Speakers said that Balaach would be remembered and loved forever as one of the greatest hero of Baloch nation and a great source of inspiration for Sindhis and other oppressed nations. The speakers shed light on various aspects of Balaach’s life and struggle for the emancipation of Baloch nation. They said that Balaach had a great passion and mountainous determination to get liberation for his motherland and people. He left the high life of London and adopted one of the most difficult lives so that his nation can see liberty, dignity and peace. With his ultimate sacrifice Balaach was successful in uniting Baloch youth and tribal personalities in the struggle of National salvation.

Speakers observed that the Balochs are facing an enemy who considers Balochistan only as a strategically placed piece of land or a void territory over which he has every right to bring his own people to colonise. Speakers observed that the brutal military oppression goes unabated and still thousands of Baloch men and women are missing. It is only interested in taking the wealth of Balochistan. It has long been planning to wipe out Baloch leaders. The speakers reiterated that in the given circumstances there is no other viable solution except the freedom from the yoke of Pakistan. Speakers said that it is due to the struggle and sacrifice of Balaach and the thousands of men & women that today every Baloch has risen for the achievement of the sacred goal of National Liberation.

Speakers urged upon the Baloch to unite in order to defeat the oppressors and exploiters of the Baloch land. Speakers declared that the dream of Mir Balaach will live on and the dreams of a bright future which he cherished and for which he gave his life will become reality. Speakers also reiterated that the unity and Baloch and Sindhi people is vital for both nations to achieve their salvation.

Issued by:
Samad Baloch
Sec. General Baloch Human Rights council UK
Info_bhrc@yahoo.co.uk
24 Nov 2009 London

For pictures clik HERE

For Videos click HERE

Balochwarna

Shaheed Balaach day public gathering in London

Shaheed Balaach day public gathering in Karachi

Balochistan . del cha ghama jusha kant may watana bya bachar

What is the duty of Baloch youth living in western countries?

The population of Balochis living in western countries is not very large as compared to other ethnic groups such as Pathans or Kurds who are setteled in European countries with large numbers, although Balochis can be found in countries like United Kingdom, Norway and Sweden in significant numbers.

The Baloch youth living in those countries have the freedom to work for the independence of their motherland Balochistan and to forward the message of Sarmachaars (Baloch Freedom Fighters) to the democratic world. For example if they are student in a college/university they could inform 2-3 of their college mates in a day about where we (the Baloch people) are from, how Pakistan or Iran occupied their homeland and how they are abducting, torturing and killing the Baloch students whoever talks about the freedom of Balochistan. Trust me this is not a hard thing to do and it will only take 5-10 minutes of your time and is not harder than what our sarmachaars are doing on the mountains.

One more thing which Baloch youth is abit slow in is taking part in the protests or meetings organised by Baloch political organisations mostly in the UK, as I myself have noticed whenever there is protest or a meeting regarding Balochistan one can hardly find someone aged under 30, what is the mystery behind it I don’t know, but this is my request to the Baloch youth please do abit more than what you are doing now because you can do more for your nation and your country by living in those countries, please show your support for Free Balochistan.

Long Live Free and United Balochistan.

Sarbaaz Baloch.

A meeting with Lashkar-e-Balochistan

Story and photos by Karlos Zurutuza

November 17, 2009

The Baluch homeland is divided, straddling the borders of Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan. This is a conflict in one of the "hottest" spots of the world, yet it is a conflict in the shadows. The world may have forgotten about the Baloch people, yet predatory folk outside Balochistan have certainly not forgotten about the rich land upon which the sandal-clad Baluchs walk every day. Lashkar-e-Balochistan is one of the groups that comprises the ever growing Baloch insurgency.

The first stage of our journey is a two-hour night drive in a pick-up truck with tinted windows. The driver and his escort cover their faces with turbans. Both my fixer, Said, and I travel blindfolded. “Security reasons,” they said. But even with a blindfold, you know the moment when the vehicle leaves the main track and heads for the open desert. The car shakes to the rhythm of the ‘Paadha, Baloch’ that rings out from the truck’s speakers: ‘Wake up, Baloch, we are at war!’, sings Savzal Bugti, a man whose music is as popular in Balochistan as it is proscribed in Pakistan. It is almost like a hymn for a people whose land was annexed against their wishes in 1948, seven months after the creation of Pakistan. Besides, the Baloch homeland also includes parts of Iran and Afghanistan.

At one in the morning the car stops and we are handed to a fellow guerrilla in the middle of nowhere. Blindfolds off for the second part of this unusual journey: a challenging hike through a rugged granite landscape. Not easy in the middle of the night. "Watch your step,” warns our guide. "The Red Crescent will not be coming out here to rescue you."

It´s a five hour moonless hike, during which it is forbidden to light your torch or twist your ankle. Finally, the silhouette of a guerrilla praying on a ridge shapes against the dawn. We have arrived.

“Salaam, heriat, teek-tak”, the Baloch language greeting from two masked guerrillas as they emerge from a black granite wilderness. Next, they fill a canteen in the river and mix the water with lemon and sugar. Four water bottles later, the sun rises, a great sphere in the Baloch sky.

The guerrillas´ camp is extremely austere. There is no building, no hut, not even a single cave in which they might take refuge during from either the cold winter nights or a possible air strike. Were these men now to break camp, the only evidence that they had ever been here would be the fire-blackened stones where now lamb is slowly cooking.

"Let’s take a rest here. We can have breakfast afterwards and then you can get on with your job," says our host, pointing at a Baloch rug laid on a flat stone.

But the well deserved nap is disrupted by curiosity. Children’s voices. It is a nomad family. The shepherd walks slowly wearing a kulla (the Baloch red cap), and his two camels follow him in line. The first camel carries the family goods, just a black cloth tent and a handful of metal cooking utensils. The man’s wife travels on the second camel with a baby in her arms. Four kids yell at each other whilst they take the sheep to the banks of the river to drink. The mother and the daughters wear the colourful pashk, the Baloch traditional dress adorned with metal studs and tribal motifs. "Please do not take pictures of the nomads," says one of the guerrillas. It is not merely the obvious security issue. Taking photos of a Baloch woman still breaches a generations long taboo. Pakistan-style politics It is impossible to know where we are, but trying to guess who our hosts are is also far from easy. It turns out that the Baloch armed resistance is fragmented with a plethora of armed groups: there is the BLA (Baloch Liberation Army), but also the BRA (Baloch Republican Army), the BLF (Baluch Liberation Front) and Lashkar-e-Baluchistan (Baluchistan Army). The apparently divided Baloch insurgency is just the clear reflection of a distinctly tribal society. "We are Lashkar-e-Baluchistan,” answers the commander, who claims to be around 40, but hides both his face and name. We can call him Mir, the word for ‘leader’ in the Baloch language. "There are various armed groups in East Balochistan (under Pakistan´s control) but there is no rivalry between us. In fact, we are all perfectly coordinated", explains Mir over a generous breakfast of freshly roasted lamb. "The enemy tries to portray us as terrorists, but the Baloch have only been defending themselves from the illegal occupiers since day one. Today we all pursue the same goal: the liberation of Balochistan”, remarks the leader of this battalion of 20 guerrillas. The insurgents in East Balochistan may all share a common agenda, but there is no harmony between them and their compatriots in West Balochistan (an area under Tehran´s control). The Baloch are mostly Sunnis, not an issue at all in Pakistan, but a real bone of contention in neighbouring Iran, where power is held by the Shiite Farsi elite. Whereas the Pakistani Baloch armed movements are secular, those fighting against Tehran show a strong Wahabi infuence. Nonetheless, political resistance is equally rejected on both sides of the border. "We also make politics, but with weapons. In Pakistan there is no other way," says Mir quoting Khair Bakhsh Marri´s words, a historic leader of the resistance as well as the sardar (tribal chief) of the Marri clan, one of the biggest tribal groups in East Balochistan. "Our operations consist mainly of sabotage of communications towers and other army infrastructure. We conduct mortar attacks against military garrisons, place roadside bombs against the army or the Frontier Corps (military police) convoys, or shoot them with our RPG (Russian-made bazooka)”, explains the commander about their modus operandi, which is also common to the rest of the armed groups. Since the death in 2007 of Balach Marri, Khair Bakhsh Marri´s son, the visible head of the Baloch insurgency today is Brahamdagh Bugti, leader of the BRA. This young 28 year old man is the grandson of Akbar Bugti, the sardar of the Bugtis, who died three years ago at 79, after forces from Islamabad bombed the cave in which he was taking refuge. There is no end of rumours about Brahamdagh´s activities and whereabouts. Some say he has his headquarters in Kabul; other, in Spin Boldak, an Afghan strategic location halfway between Kandahar and Quetta (the capital of East Baluchistan). Some even suggest that he and his troopers are being trained by the Coalition forces in Afghanistan and “used” to control the Taliban traffic across the Af-Pak border. "Such rumours are spread by Islamabad to fuel the theory that India and USA are helping us, but the truth is that we are still waiting for any kind of outside help and recognition," says Mir as he hangs his Kalashnikov over his shoulder and invites us to meet the guerrillas he leads. ‘Revolution’ and ‘Revenge’ The commander and his fighters wear the shalwar kameez, that characteristic baggy shirt and trousers outfit which rules the men’s fashion scene across Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent. “Most of our comrades here have seen hard times in life but there are also those who had a comfortable livelihood and are well educated as doctors, engineers or lawyers”, explains Mir before introducing ourselves to his battalion. Every fighter hides his face under a turban and his identity under a code name. We first speak with Enqelab (‘Revolution’ in Baluchi). Both his life and that of his brother changed dramatically because of the basic human need for water. "In my village there is still no running water, no gas or electricity," starts the 25 year old fighter, carefully laying his Russian bazooka on the ground. "My elder brother and I used to go everyday to the joints of the pipes that carry the water for the gas plant in Sui region. We would loose the nuts with a wrench and collect the water in a five litre plastic drum", explains the young man, illustrating his testimony with his hands the colour of the stone around us. "One day the police came over and arrested my brother on charges of “sabotaging government installations”. Enqelab’s brother spent six years in prison and today he cannot look after himself due to the lingering effect of the terrible torture he endured. The gas plant mentioned by Enqelab is the biggest one in Pakistan, as well as one of the triggers for the Baloch armed uprising. “Whatever you may dig out from the Baloch soil, rest assured it will be contaminated with human blood”, said once Attaullah Mengal, the tribal leader of the Mengals. Well, Sui is the very epitome of dispossession with Islamabad controlling Balochistan´s huge natural resources: gas, coal, uranium, gold, even oil. This amounts to an enormous treasure from which the Baloch people secure hardly any revenue. But much more humiliating is the fact that the gas from Sui has been powering the rest of Pakistan for decades, but still has not reached the humble adobe houses in areas close to the plant. Bair (‘Revenge’) is also a Baloch but he covers his face with a traditional turban from the Sindh region. Alongside the Baloch and the Pashtun, the Sindhi also complain about being marginalized by the Punjabies, the dominant ethnic group that, according to most Baloch, rules Pakistan. Bair arrived from Quetta three years ago, where he was an active member of the BSO (Baluch Students Organization). His urban activism cost him dear. During a two month detention he was tortured on a daily basis. According to NGOs such as Asian Human Rights Commission or the International Crisis Group, over 7000 political, social and human rights activists have been kidnapped, tortured or murdered by Pakistan’s secret services since March 2005. Some are found dead a few days later in the desert, like the three political activists who were grabbed at gunpoint in their lawyer's office and then thrown out of helicopter last April. There are also those who simply rot in jail, or the lucky few who are released. Their awful stories of torture inspire the next generation of fighters. Bair is one of those who survived the torture. "My cell was a six feet by one, dark damp", explains the man. "It was like being buried alive. They only took me out to beat me, always upside down and blindfolded. I would often faint, and look for anything that could help me end my life afterwards. I never thought I would survive in there but, amazingly enough, I was eventually released. I didn’t want to risk being arrested and go through the same thing again, so that’s one of the reasons why I joined Lashkar-e-Balochistan.” Bair is the exception in a group where the majority of its members come from rural areas which lack the most basic infrastructures. Schools and hospitals are non-existent. Small wonder then that eighty per cent of the Baloch in Pakistan are illiterate. And that would apply too to this guerrilla community in the desolate granite wastes. ‘Lightning’ and ‘Hope’ But despite some of them not being able to read, these Baloch guerrillas are fluent in both Baloch and Urdu, and many of them also number Pashto and Brahui in their linguistic repertoire. One of these polyglots is Girok (‘Lightning’). Unfortunately, his command of four languages has never been of great help. After his village was destroyed by the Pakistani army, he and his family were forced to change the loneliness of the Baloch desert plain for the garbage in the outskirts of Karachi, Pakistan´s largest city with a population over 20 million people. Around 80,000 Baloch families have suffered the same fate over the past three years. "I've spent my life on the run, since I was a small kid", confesses Girok. Eventually, the young fighter moved to Lyari, the predominantly Baloch neighbourhood in Karachi. This is a district whose daily feverish activity only freezes when Brahamdagh Bugti is interviewed by a foreign TV channel, usually from neighbouring India, Pakistan's arch-enemy. Lyari was Girok´s last stop on his way to this inhospitable landscape where he serves now. “We will struggle until the liberation of Baluchistan and the destruction of the Pakistani army”, can be read on a big, flat stone. Just nearby, Umit (“Hope”) cleans his weapon thoroughly. He´s been released from guard duty to spend some time with us. The other men maintain the vigil, ever scanning the horizon from the peaks of the imposing towers of rock. Every man knows that, with 600,000 troops, the Pakistani army is one of the largest in the world as well as one of the best equipped. It has a great reserve of US weapons. In any case, Umit doubts a large-scale ground operation will ever take place in this area. "This is very rugged terrain and there are no roads to transport the troops. The only option here is from the air", says this guerrilla fighter, referring to those Cobra helicopter and F16 fighter jets. “In that case, we can only hope that this granite bastion is as hard as it seems”, he adds. "Islamabad is using against us the weapons Washington gave them to fight the Taliban but, as Nawab Akbar Bugti would say, nations do not die by mere physical death, but by losing their conscience", says Umit, holding the Kalashnikov rifle once wielded by his father. He is the last of a family whose members have participated in the five armed uprisings since Pakistan took over Balochistan in 1948. In any case, most of his predecessors did not have to face the Cobra helicopters that fly overhead. Some of the latter came from Tehran before the Islamic revolution in 1978. Apparently, Shah Reza Pahlevi handed the US-made arms to Pakistan to quell a Baloch insurgency that threatened to spread to Iranian controlled Balochistan. “Why should we sacrifice our right to freedom? We want to belong to a federation dominated by a single nation," explains Umit, in the middle of a silence broken only by the rattle of the hot desert wind. This is the cry that has echoed in the ears of the Baloch for the past 60 years. There is no easy answer to the Baloch cry for freedom in their own homeland, a demand born of the most basic desire of every living creature: survival. Karlos Zurutuza is a freelance correspondent and writes in Basque, Spanish and English. He´s been awarded with the Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti Reporting Award 2009 for highlighting the Baloch struggle in diferent newspapers and magazines. Thebaluch

Jondollah head's letter to various world leaders

To,

Mr Ban Ki-moon,
Secretary-General,
United Nations,
New York,
United States.

Subject: People Resistance Movement of Iran welcomes UN’s mediatory role

I am writing to you to let you know the situation under which the Balouch people are living in their motherland Balouchistan, Iran.

Since the first day of the Islamic revolution in Iran, the Balouch have been suffering from systematic discrimination in the hands of the Iranian theocratic regime. The regime has been exploiting their resources and destroying their sacred places besides suppressing them culturally. They are not allowed to read and write their mother language and their presence in decision making and administration apparatus is nil. Over 2,000 Balouch have been executed on baseless charges since 1979. To mention just one example, 13 Balouch youths were hanged to death on July 14, 2009.

The People Resistance Movement of Iran (PRMI) is fighting such a merciless enemy. It’s struggling for democracy and human rights in Iran. Its main political strategy is to work with other Iranian opposition groups (inside or outside) for restoring the citizenry rights of all Iranian religious and ethnic groups, including the Sunnites and the Balouch who are the main victims of Iran’s suppressive regime.

We are determined to stop the massacre of the Balouch people in the hands of the Iranian regime and we believe that self-defence is our basic right endorsed by universal human rights instruments, including the United Nations Conventions and Universal Declarations of Human Rights. Our long-term objective is to work for the establishment of a democratic Iran where all citizens, no matter to which ethnic group or religious sect they belong, enjoy justice and equal rights under a federal system and their right to self-determination is respected.

I assure you and the world community that my organization will abide by the international laws and human rights value as we ourselves are the victims of injustice.

I strongly request you as the head of United Nations -- the principal guardian of human rights values -- to raise this issue in the UNSC and suggest it to send a delegation to Balouchistan on a fact-finding mission so that acts of human rights violation by Iran are revealed to the international community. I also request you to use your personal and official weight to press the Iranian government to stop state terrorism against the Balouch. We are ready to lay down arms but only if the Iranian government provides guarantees to respect the rights of the Balouch people as mentioned in the Iranian constitution, In this regard, my organization will welcome your mediatory role.

Your efforts in this regard will help in establishing global security, peace and stability that are your organization’s primary goals.

Abdul Malik Regi
Leader of People Resistance Movement of Iran

Sunday 15 November 2009
...............................................................................................................

To,
US President,
Barak Obama,
Washington DC,
United States.

Subject: The Balouch people need your government’s support

I am writing to you to let you know the situation under which the Balouch people are living in their motherland Balouchistan, Iran.

Since the first day of the Islamic revolution in Iran, the Balouch have been suffering from systematic discrimination in the hands of the Iranian theocratic regime. The regime has been exploiting their resources and destroying their sacred places besides suppressing them culturally. They are not allowed to read and write their mother language and their presence in decision making and administration apparatus is nil. Over 2,000 Balouch have been executed on baseless charges since 1979. To mention just one example, 13 Balouch youths were hanged to death on July 14, 2009.

The Iranian regime does not follow any rules or laws. It is sponsoring international terrorism from Pakistan and Afghanistan to Iran and Palestine. The world is clearly seeing how this regime is suppressing its own people who are demanding their rights. A significant number of top Iranian officials have been involved in terrorist acts in the world and are wanted in various countries.

The People Resistance Movement of Iran (PRMI) is fighting such a merciless enemy. It’s struggling for democracy and human rights in Iran. Its main political strategy is to work with other Iranian opposition groups (inside or outside) for restoring the citizenry rights of all Iranian religious and ethnic groups, including the Sunnites and the Balouch who are the main victims of Iran’s suppressive regime.

We are determined to stop the massacre of the Balouch people in the hands of the Iranian regime and we believe that self-defence is our basic right endorsed by universal human rights instruments, including the United Nations Conventions and Universal Declarations of Human Rights. Our long-term objective is to work for the establishment of a democratic Iran where all citizens, no matter to which ethnic group or religious sect they belong, enjoy justice and equal rights under a federal system and their right to self-determination is respected.

I strongly request you as the president of the United States, which is defending democratic and human-friendly values, to consider the Balouch issue while formulating your government’s foreign policy towards Iran. Though foreign policy is always based on national interests, I hope this time human rights values will also be considered by your foreign office.

Abdul Malik Regi
Leader of People Resistance Movement of Iran

Sunday 15 November 2009

...............................................................................................................................
To,
Turkish Prime Minister,
Mr Recep Tayyeb Erdogan,
Ankara,
Turkey.


Subject: Support your fellow Balouch Muslims

I am writing to you to let you know the situation under which the Balouch people are living in their motherland Balouchistan, Iran.

Since the first day of the Islamic revolution in Iran, the Balouch have been suffering from systematic discrimination in the hands of the Iranian theocratic regime. The regime has been exploiting their resources and destroying their sacred places besides suppressing them culturally. They are not allowed to read and write their mother language and their presence in decision making and administration apparatus is nil. Over 2,000 Balouch have been executed on baseless charges since 1979. To mention just one example, 13 Balouch youths were hanged to death on July 14, 2009.

The People Resistance Movement of Iran (PRMI) is fighting such a merciless enemy. It’s struggling for democracy and human rights in Iran. Its main political strategy is to work with other Iranian opposition groups (inside or outside) for restoring the citizenry rights of all Iranian religious and ethnic groups, including the Sunnites and the Balouch who are the main victims of Iran’s suppressive regime.

We are determined to stop the massacre of the Balouch people in the hands of the Iranian regime and we believe that self-defence is our basic right endorsed by universal human rights instruments, including the United Nations Conventions and Universal Declarations of Human Rights. Our long-term objective is to work for the establishment of a democratic Iran where all citizens, no matter to which ethnic group or religious sect they belong, enjoy justice and equal rights under a federal system and their right to self-determination is respected.

I request you as the successor of Ottoman heritage to consider the Balouch issue while formulating your country’s foreign policy towards Iran because I believe this is your religious and moral obligation. The Baloch and Turkish people have enjoyed brotherly relations in the past. The Ottoman Empire was the first to recognize the independent status of Balochistan in the 17th century and it gave the title of Begler Beigi to the Balouch ruler, Noori Naseer Khan.

The Muslim world will remember your brave act at the Davos conference as well as your stand on the Chinese government’s assault on Oyghori Muslims. Your Balouch Muslim brothers expect the same stand by you on their issue. I hope that you will respond to your religious and moral call.

Abdul Malik Regi
Leader of People Resistance Movement of Iran

Sunday 15 November 2009

Taptan

Balaach is alive

The one who realised the slavery of his nation,

In the high mountains,with no facilities of life

No water,no electricity,no gas,no education,no jobs

He raised his gun for the better future of his people,

Where children afraid to play any game under the shadow & thunders of fighter jets

Gunship helicopters appear before birds in the dawn,

Farmers tears cant extinguish the fire in the fields,

The son of soil displaced like a refugee at their own homeland,

They want us to be with them in the critical time,

Martyrs and missing persons increasing day by day

We should stand unite against the occupying forces,

We wont tolerate you to plunder our resources anymore

You got no roots in Shalkot better go back to Sialkot.

Dont be in any illusion Balaach is dead,

He is alive,his ideology is adopted by every Baloch youth.

By Ali Baloch

Balochjohd

No compromise on Independence, Pakistan army must withdraw: Hyrbyair Marri

Oxford: A seminar titled “The Conflict in Balochistan – Why has it happened and what is its future?” was held at the University of Oxford, Department of Politics and International Relations.

Baloch leader Hyrbyair Marri spoke as the special guest, whereas Dr Yunas Samad ‘Director, Ethnicity and Social Policy Research Centre, University of Bradford and Dr Faisal Devji ‘Department of History, University of Oxford spoke about the different aspects of Baloch peoples’ struggle for liberation and the grievances of the Balochistan. Dr Sarmila Bose ‘Department of Politics and International Relations’ University of Oxford chaired and moderated the Seminar.

Hyrbyair Marri showed some the historical maps of Balochistan to the audience and explained that Balochistan throughout the history was a sovereign state and had treaties and friendly relations with its neighboring counties and empires. Talking about the current situation Mr Marri said that the current government is no different than its predecessors. The military operation, target killing of pro-independent Baloch leaders and abduction of Baloch political workers, students and ordinary Baloch are still continued. He also showed the pictures of missing persons, torture victims and those who have been martyred fighting for liberation of Balochistan.

After the speech he answered the queries of the audience answering to a question if there were any chances of compromise with the government of Pakistan, Hyrbyair Marri said “there will be no compromise on Independence, the military must give a time frame of withdrawal from Balochistan”.

Videos of the discussion [question & answer session] are coming soon on BalochWarna.org

Anouncements : Second martyrdom anniversary of Shaheed Balaach Marri to be held

Balochistan Human Rights Council UK, Balochistan Rights Movement and World Sindhi Congress have announced that the second martyrdom anniversary of great Baluch hero, Mir Balaach Marri, will be held on Sunday 22nd November from 1-4 pm in London. The memorial will be held at ULU (University of London Union).

The anniversary is being held to remember and pay tribute to the life, work, contribution and ultimate sacrifice of Mir Balaach Marri who was target killed by Pakistan army on 20th Nov 2007. Commemorations to pay tribute on the occasion of the second anniversary of Mir Balaach Marri are also being held in the USA, Europe, Middle East, Balochistan and Sindh.

Balochistan Human Rights Council UK, Balochistan Rights Movement and World Sindhi Congress invites all Baluch, Sindhis and human rights activists & freedom loving people of other nations to participate to remember and honour the sacrifices of Mir Balaach Marri for the liberation of his nation.

Event Information:

Room 3E, University of London Union Building

Mallet Street, London WC1E 7HY

Date: Sunday 22 November 2009

Time: 1:00 – 4:00 PM

(Nearest Tube Stations: Russell Square, Euston Square)

Organisers and Contacts:

•Baloch Human Rights Council UK

Samad Baloch - 07825087032

•Balochistan Rights MovementFaiz Baluch - 07540591477

•World Sindhi Congress

Haleem Bhatti - 07939177286

Event venue in Balochistan

Baluchistan International Conference
featuring Asia Program Director
Selig Harrison
Baluchistan International Conference (Organized By American Friends Of Baluchistan)

The secular Baluch people in southwest Asia in Pakistan and Iran find their national existence threatened by different shades of religious extremism.

The first-ever international conference in the U.S. to highlight the plight of the Baluch people in Pakistan and Iran -- to mark the second anniversary of the extra judicial killing of Nawabzad Bala'ach Marri. Mehran Baluch, a brother of the slain leader and Baluch representative at the U.N. Human Rights Council, Geneva, will preside over the conference.


When: Saturday, November 21st, 2009 10 am - 6 pm

Where: National Press Club, Washington DC

The secular Baluch people in southwest Asia in Pakistan and Iran find their national existence threatened by different shades of religious extremism.

Topics of Conference
* Security in Af-Pak Region and U.S. aid to Pakistan
* State terrorism, slow motion genocide, torture & disappearances
* National sovereignty as birth right

Confirmed Speakers: Selig S. Harrison, T. Kumar, Saghir Shaikh, Robert R. Selle, Annie Nocenti, Andrew Eiva, Prof Gul Agha, Ismail Ameeri. Ali Arjemandi, Mohammad Ali Baloch, Munir Mengal, Dr. Zafar Baloch, Dr. Karim Abdian, Aziz Baloch, Humaira Rahman, Mumtaz Khan and Malik Baloch.

Event is free but RSVP. Lunch served.

Venue: National Press Club One block from Metro Center metro station 529 14th St. NW 13th Floor, Washington DC 20045

RSVP: Rashid Baloch

Email: ahmar_scribe@yahoo.com Phone: 301-957-0008

http://baluchistan.newsvine.comwww.balochwarna.org

http://hosted.verticalresponse.com/51 ... 0af/1664501769/e4974b4c2e

Balochwarna

Pak government trying to convert university into cantonment: BSO leader

By Malik Siraj

Quetta: The Balochistan University requires funds to improve its existing security plan in the wake of mounting threats faced by the country’s educational institutions.

University officials said, “Ours is perhaps the only university in the world where trains move regularly on the campus, making it impossible for the university administration to establish a wall around the railway track to minimise the risk of terrorist attacks.”

“We need additional funds, millions of rupees to upgrade the security of the university,” said another official.

A senior official, requesting anonymity, said the university administration had prepared a new security plan in the wake of twin suicide blasts at Islamabad’s International Islamic University.

“The government is trying to convert the university into a garrison under the pretext of restoring peace. We do not face any threat from outside. Frontier Corps are our major concern as they have rounded up many students in the past. They also beat up a professor,” Hamal Baloch, a Baloch Students Organisation leader, said.

Under the new security plan, the parking lot has been shifted outside the campus and no one is allowed to park his or her car inside the university. All faculty and students are required to display their identity cards.

“We have installed several CCTV cameras and raised the boundary wall and barbed wire has been fixed on it,” a university official said. However, there is still room for improvement, for which we need funds.”

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009\11\14\story_14-11-2009_pg7_15

B.S.O. Azaad faces yet another abduction of its member

Baloch Student Organization Azaad, a platform for Baloch students to politically work for the Independence of Motherland Balochistan and to raise the human rights violations in Balochistan, has been one of the major targets of Pakistan (Punjabi) army. Dozens of its members are presently in the custody Pakistan army, out of which quite a number of members are kept in the famously brutal secret torture cells of Pakistan army, including the Senior Vice President of B.S.O. Azaad, Zakir Majeed, a student of literature, the Junior Joint Secretary Shafi Baloch, Mushtaq Baloch, Hai Baloch and Najeeb Wali Baloch. These steps clearly reveal the intentions of Pakistan to keep the Baloch students away from the educational institutions and to suppress their voice against the atrocities carried out by Pakistan in Balochistan.

This time the victim of the illegal abduction (according to International Human rights charter) is a student of Pharmacy and former Unit Secretary of Balochistan University Unit, Naseer Baloch. On Thursday, 12th of November 2009, by 2:00 p.m. when Naseer Baloch after attending his classes was returning home, was surrounded by a group of 8 army officials at the gate of Balochistan University, and after confirming his affiliation with the human rights activism he was taken away to an unknown location. Naseer Baloch, who basically belongs to Khuzdar came for advanced studies in Shall (Quetta) as no other higher institutions are available in the vast area of Pakistani occupied Balochistan.

The Junior Vice President B.S.O. Azaad, Miss Karima Baloch, responding to the recent crackdown on Baloch students by Pakistan stated that if the educational institutions in Balochistan are not meant to educate Baloch themselves and if these institutions are serving as army garrisons for Pakistan, where they torture and humiliate the Baloch students, then such institutions have no moral grounds to remain in Balochistan. She revealed that the faculty of these institutions, who mostly belong to Punjab, is helping Pakistan army to abduct Baloch students by pointing out the brighter students who have more capabilities to change the fate of the colonized people of Balochistan.

By: www.sagaar.org

The tale of two missing Baloch

* Marri’s brother says no police station willing to register case of his brother’s disappearance due to intelligence agencies’ involvement* Dr Din’s brother says court keeps on giving new dates

By Malik Siraj Akbar

SHAAL (QUETTA): Chakar Marri, a 23-year-old zoology student at Balochistan University, has “gone missing” after the Frontier Corps (FC) took him into custody on September 3.

On condition of anonymity, a friend told Daily Times some students had gathered outside the university’s arts gallery to meet the vice-chancellor to request him to reopen the institute. The VC told them to wait for some time. All of a sudden several FC officials approached them, roughed them up and took along with them. Marri’s family said the FC officials later handed over Marri and his colleagues to intelligence agencies near the railway station. Some of the students were freed, but the others are still missing, they said.

Marri’s brother, Changez Marri, said the family had never indulged in anti-state activities. He also said no family member had ever been arrested in a criminal case or sentenced by any court of law. “I am not defending my brother or any of the missing persons. If they are guilty of breaking the law of the land they should be produced before a court, held in a ‘regular jail’ and provided a fair trail.”

Involvement: Changez said no police station in Quetta was willing to register a case for his brother’s disappearance because intelligence agencies were involved. He said the restored judiciary had not taken up the issue of the missing persons, and human rights organisations had not agreed to take up the matter. “Today, the chief justice of Pakistan looks very different from the one who once who took a stance for the recovery of the missing persons. He is silent over the plight of the Baloch missing persons,” he said.

Changez said his mother kept asking him about the whereabouts of her missing son. “I feel very guilty over not having ‘good news’ for my mother every time I am inquired at home,” he added.

Professor Mohammad Siddiq Baloch, the principal of Government College Mashky in Awaran district, echoes Changiz’s sentiments. Siddiq’s younger brother, Dr Din Muhammad, 32, a medical officer at a healthcare centre in Ornach sub-tehsil of Khuzdar district, was also whisked away by the intelligence agencies on June 28. According to Mohammad Ramzan, Din’s peon, around seven plainclothesmen wearing masks beat him up, tied his hands and took him away. When Siddiq approached officials of Ornach police station, which is located a few hundred yards from the health centre, the officials expressed their “inability” to register a case that directly nominated the intelligence agencies.

Unwilling: “However, police agreed to register a case against “unknown people”. The police did nothing to recover my brother until I submitted a petition at the Balochistan High Court on July 5,” Siddiq added. “Despite several hearings, the court continues to give new dates for the proceedings as the agencies officials are not willing to appear before the court.”

Siddiq said his brother’s wife had fallen victim to depression and their mother’s eyes were always filled with tears, adding that three of Din’s sons looked forward to receive their father. “Balochistan needs a healing touch but the disappearances of our family members is increasing the hatred against the state in the hearts and minds of our schoolchildren,” he concluded.

Balochwarna