Daily Times

Balochistan is Pakistan’s treasured province-a land of enigmatic beauty, blessed with, the most talented and bulging Baloch youth that is our richest and most potential human asset.

The potential of our Baloch Youth is as varied as the resources of this rich land. Especially their political acumen that was first of all reorganized by Qauid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinah who had announced a political movement for the rights of the people of Balochistan before partition, that was strongly opposed by Nehru and other Congress leaders. People of Balochistan particularly youth had participated and strived physically and financially for the Independence of Pakistan. Otherwise the Province was kept backward by British rulers.

Scholar Ian Talbot states that the British Baluchistan was socially and economically underdeveloped compared to other parts of British India with an extremely low literacy rate and a mainly rural population. The province was also politically backward. During British rule Baluchistan Agency which excluded Princely States was under the rule of a Chief Commissioner and did not have the same status as other provinces of British India. Yet it was an important province for the All-India Muslim League which, under Muhammad Ali Jinnah, proposed in 1928 that democratic reforms be introduced to Baluchistan.

It is very encouraging to see that our Baloch Youth reposes huge trust on our security forces who protect them against all odds and threats. This trust is manifested by their increasing number in our armed forces. According to Frontier Corps’ statistics a few years ago, up to 30,000 Baloch had been serving in Pakistan Army and the armed forces in which 700 were posted on high officers’ rank. And this number is increasing with every passing day.

Since the establishment of Pakistan as an independent state, our enemies have been eying on the resource-rich province and in order to fulfill their nefarious designs Baloch youth is their soft target. For the last many decades, the so called Baloch human rights activists – vociferous in their slogans against the illegal abductions etc – are accused of turning a blind eye to the anti-state actors’ recruitment of Baloch students into militant groups such as in BLA.

This recruitment is a clear violation of their right to education and employment and a tactic to exploit young people. Through their enchanting slogans under the pretext of Baloch Nationalism or Baloch Independence, the Separatists -cum-Human Rights’ Activists/SHRAs lure the innocent Baloch youth towards their recruitment in insurgent organizations such as Baloch National Army/BNA, Baloch Liberation army/BLA, Baloch Yakjehti Committee/BYC and all other factions of such groups.

These Anti-state actors leave no stone unturned in damaging this province whenever they seize any opportunity. In this regard foreign direct investment is their foremost target. We have seen how anti-state actors such as Balochistan Liberation Army/BLA’s anti-China militant campaign hinders Islamabad’s efforts to strengthen its economy because they always target the assets and personnel belonging to the Belt and Road Initiative’s flagship regional project, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which spans from the northernmost part of Pakistan down to the Arabian Sea port city of Gwadar in Balochistan (Dawn, July 8, 2023). The BLA’s stated goal is to disrupt and undermine CPEC, which alone is estimated to comprise $65 billion in Chinese investment, through a linked anti-China media and militant activity strategy.

In order to sabotage the development and prosperity of Balochistan, these SHRAs have recently, adopted new approach to misguide our Baloch Youth so that they may be indulged in violence and extremism. A recent example of enticing our Baloch Youth and urging them to become violent protestors by such SHRAs is set by Mahrang Baloch. The SHRA Mahrang Baloch works on a nationalistic agenda through her slogan against enforced disappearances.

First of all, she led a march towards Islamabad on the basis of her politically backed and self-imposed agenda of Baloch Genocide. The protest movement led by Mahrang Baloch and other Baloch women in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, could not bear any fruit in any manner except leaving severe mental and physical hardships for our innocent Baloch women.

When Maharang Baloch had been luring these innocent women into politically backed protests on the roads of Islamabad, I had exposed the villainous intent of these protests on the floor of the House in Senate of Pakistan. Because Maharang had exploited innocent Baloch Women, brought them on roads against our Baloch culture and sanctity for women, created law and order situation in the capital for attracting international limelight, targeting our state agencies at the behest of those landlords, sardars and political big wigs of the Province who had been allegedly financing the whole anti-state campaign in order to blackmail the agencies for gaining political shelters.

Being a member of House of Federation the focus of my speech was to expose the true face of those so called local and political leaders of Balochistan, who had never resorted to listen to the grievances of their people and address them as per law. These local leaders who have been ruling Balochistan since its independence from colonial rule, have been merely eating up the resources of Balochistan, its development funds allocated for the health, education and wellbeing of its people and above all assisting the anti-state groups in the province.

These are the “black-hearted sardars” of Balochistan who are involved in all kinds of atrocities against its people by keeping them vulnerable at all levels till the time that the innocent youth is left with no option either to fall a prey to drugs and human smugglers or to get recruited by anti-state agencies such Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), Baloch Nationalist Army (BNA), Balochistan liberation front (BLF) and so on. And this time these so called sardars and political big wigs have chosen Mahrang Baloch for leading such protests, who has familial ties to the BLA.

After the failure of her violent strategy she has now adopted a softer yet severe approach against the state and its agencies through a 5th generation warfare. Her recent interview to a Norwegian human rights forum on social media is a manifestation of this new twist in her approach to defame the state agencies and misguide the Baloach Youth. She has been openly accusing our state agencies of crimes against Baloch Youth and seeking undue favors from international stakeholders besides getting into the international limelight. In fact, the very action of Maharang Baloch must be tried under the treason charges since she has defamed our state agencies at international forum without proving the allegation through irrefutable evidence.

The cynical and objectionable approach of Maharang Baloch gives rise to very crucial questions in the minds of sensible, progressive and talented youth of Balochistan in particular and for the common people of Pakistan in general. The replies to following questions would go a long way in exposing the real face of such SHRAs.

Why have Mahrang Baloch and other Baloch Nationalist/Separatist leaders (especially those sitting abroad and enjoying a lavish life style) not done any work for the education and skill development of the Baloch Youth through exploring such opportunities during their meetings with foreign stakeholders?

What efforts they have made to address the issues of Baloch Youth or victims of forced disappearances in collaboration with their local political leaders? What are those irrefutable and authentic resources or substantial proofs on the basis of which she or her alliances come to know that the security forces of Pakistan are behind such disappearances? Which domestic forums they have used to legally address the issue of Forced Disappearances?

What efforts they have made in order to fight against Insurgent groups such as BLA? Who is financing their visits abroad as part of their political campaign? What proofs they can submit in order to prove the alleged involvement of our state agencies in forced disappearances? On what grounds they raise separatist or nationalistic slogans? Do they deny or admit the Indian and foreign powers’ involvement in sabotaging the law and order and peace in Balochistan? If state agencies do not protect Balochistan and its borders, who will take the responsibility?

Has she done any little efforts to investigate that the forced disappearances of such innocent people of Balochistan are actually conducted by the local influential persons, feudal lords, sardars and their bigwigs whose private jails have already been detected since long? Does she know that a large number of poor laborers, workers and even mine workers and their family members are kept as hostages in such private jails? Has she ever raised any voice against a large number of innocent detainees kept in private jails owned by local sardars since decades?

Does not she know that young people who are forcefully disappeared have been forced to live in hundreds of these darkest dungeons of hell for years? Moving ahead, why does she raise no voice against those influential and political stakeholders of Balochistan who misappropriate the development funds allocated for the development of human capital of Balochistan? why can’t she raise her voice against the poor utilization of a colossal amount of foreign Flood Aid for the uplift of the people of Balochistan after the catastrophic floods in 2022? Last but not the least, on what Terms of condition she finally called off her so-called Dharna in Islamabad?

The answers of above questions would go a long way in order to ascertain whether these SHRAs are Friedns or Foe of the youth of Balochistan.

The writer is a Senator.