Tag: Balochistan

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Free Balochistan Movement commemorates Baloch Martyrs Day

The speakers paid rich tributes to Baloch Martyrs and strongly condemned the Iranian and Pakistani state oppression of Baloch people…reports Asian Lite News.

The Free Balochistan Movement held events in different cities of Europe, the US, Canada and the UK to commemorate the Baloch Martyrs’ Day on Saturday, November 13. The commemorative programs were organised by FBM Branches in the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Finland, Sweden, America and the Arabian Gulf.

In Britain, the event was held at Birkbeck University in London where activists from Kurdistan, Al-Ahwaz, South Azerbaijan (occupied by Iran), Tamil and others participated to pay their respects to Baloch Martyrs as well martyrs of all occupied nations that laid their lives in defence of their nations.

A large number of Baloch activists including women and children from London and other cities of UK attended the Baloch Martyrs’ Day event to pledge that they will continue to advocate and lobby for the freedom of Balochistan from the occupation of Iran and Pakistan.

The speakers emphasised cooperation between oppressed nations and expressed their support and solidarity with the Baloch struggle for independence. The Vice President of Free Balochistan Movement Dr Shahsawar Baloch and FBM member Rasheed Baloch brief the participants of the event about the Baloch struggle, historical incidents that lead to the occupation of Baloch and the battle of 13 November 3839 when the Baloch ruler Mir Mehrab Khan Baloch refused to surrender before the British forces, as a result, he along several other comrades were killed.

Other speakers included Mr Faisal Maramazi the executive director of the Ahwazi Centre for Human Rights, Sonia Karimi, Merhri Rezai representatives of KNK Kurdistan National Congress, and KJAR (The Community of Free Women of Eastern Kurdistan), Araz Yurdseven a political and human rights activist from South Azerbaijan and Tamil activist Nila.

The speakers paid rich tributes to Baloch Martyrs and strongly condemned the Iranian and Pakistani state oppression of Baloch people. They said the unity of the oppressed nations was the need of time to make the struggles of occupied nations successful and make an impact on the international level.

Sonia Karimi also talked about the importance of Baloch women’s participation in the Baloch struggle and on the international platform to highlight the sufferings, plight and hardships that Baloch women face in the contemporary world. She added, ‘A nation cannot truly succeed without the participation of half of its population i.e. the women.’ Elsewhere, members of the Free Balochistan Movement held an event in Dusseldorf city in Germany. Speakers included Rohail Marri son of Baloch leader later Balach Marri and others who paid homage to fallen heroes of Balochistan’s freedom struggle.

They said 13 November was the day to remember the sacrifices and hardship of Baloch martyrs and who laid their lives for the prosperity of Balochistan. In addition, Free Balochistan Movement Finland, America, Sweden, Canada and Gulf Branches also organised events on 13 November – the Baloch Martyrs’ Day. The FBM activist in their messages said that due to the sacrifices of the Baloch sons of soil the Baloch national struggle for gaining momentum and international recognition.

Therefore, they said, it is imperative that follow the great philosophy and mission of Baloch martyrs to make our national movement successful. “We have to lobby and convey their message of Baloch national martyrs to all four corners of the world so that the world can help us stop Pakistani and Iranian state barbarism against our people.”

ALSO READ-Violence Spreads in Balochistan

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Violence Spreads in Balochistan

The Baloch groups have also targeted Chinese personnel, and even Beijing’s ambassador to Islamabad, for what they call the exploitative China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC …writes Atul Aneja

 The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) has avenged the “oppression” unleashed by a notorious Pakistan backed death squads that especially targeted women and seized land belonging to locals in restive Balochistan, the heartland of the failing China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

BLA spokesman Jeeyand Baloch has tweeted that his organisation had killed Akram Saidi, a member of a death squad who was “directly involved in the heinous crimes such as the kidnapping and murder of relatives of the Baloch freedom fighters and attempts to force them to surrender by targeting their families”.

The death squad was apparently operating in Mashkay and Hub. The BLA statement specifically cited an incident in July 2020 when Saidi targeted women and children from Kalat, where the deceased also appropriated land and property under the “patronage of the enemy forces”.

An upbeat BLA announced that it will “never forgive traitors who have sided with the enemy against the nation and the liberation movement, all of them will meet the fate of Akram Saidi”.

The BLA’s riposte follows Pakistan’s deployment of helicopter gunships to quell a raging insurgency in Balochistan which is targeting the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the troubled flagship of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

The $62 billion CPEC seeks to link the port city of Gwadar in Balochistan to China’s north-western Xinjiang through a maze of highways and railways. The project also envisages energy and power projects to meet Pakistan’s energy needs.

The Baloch groups have also targeted Chinese personnel, and even Beijing’s ambassador to Islamabad, for what they call the exploitative China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which is sucking out the region’s riches without uplifting the local people.

Baloch nationalists had also blown up the statue of Pakistan’s founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah in the port city of Gwadar by placing explosives under it. A couple of days earlier, four Pakistani army soldiers had been killed by Baloch groups.

The Baloch say that both Pakistan and China have been exploiting Balochistan’s rich mineral deposits like gold, copper, precious stones, iron and coal without jobs or benefits coming to the local people. The building of a naval and civilian port by China in Gwadar has led to acquisition of land as well as loss of livelihoods for Baloch fishermen.

Geo-political analyst Mark Kinra earlier told India Narrative: “Attacks by various Baloch organizations and Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on Chinese nationals and their infrastructure has resulted in friction between China and Pakistan. This has led to the Pakistani Army again intensifying operations in South Waziristan, Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa and the same has been happening in Balochistan as well. Recently, Pakistani news reports stated that Shikarpur Police claimed to have killed the Sindh leader of Daesh in Sibi Balochistan and have arrested Daesh members from Karachi”.

(The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)

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Balochistan CM quits after months of tussle

PIc credit ANI

Earlier today, Khan in a tweet had said, he would rather leave respectfully and not be part of their monetary agenda and bad governance formulation….reports Asian Lite News

Jam Kamal Khan Aylani, Chief Minister of Pakistan’s Balochistan province, on Sunday evening decided to step down from his position, ending months of political drama.

This news was confirmed by Provincial Minister for Sports, Abdul Khaliq Hazara, Geo News reported.

The Pakistani news channel reported that Kamal’s resignation has been accepted by Governor of Balochistan, the Governor House Secretariat confirmed.

Earlier today, Khan in a tweet had said, he would rather leave respectfully and not be part of their monetary agenda and bad governance formulation.

“Besides many deliberate political hindrances, I have given my utmost time and energy for the overall governance and development of Balochistan. I would rather leave respectfully and not be part of their monetary agenda and bad governance formulation,” he tweeted.

Dawn newspaper had reported that the announcement of the four Members of Pakistan Assembly (MPAs) who went missing recently in Quetta increased the possibility of the resignation of the Balochistan Chief Minister.

Prior to this, MPAs had gone missing on the day the angry group of lawmakers had tabled the no-confidence motion against the chief minister with the support of the opposition parties in the Balochistan assembly.

The missing MPAs Akbar Askani, Bushra Rind, Laila Tareen, and Mahjabeen Sheran reportedly came back to Quetta in the “official plane” of the Balochistan government. The four MPAs, on returning to Quetta, headed to the Balochistan Assembly Speaker’s residence, where the announcement of their support to the angry group was made, reported Dawn.

A spate of meetings was on in Quetta with Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani and Pakistan defence minister Pervez Khattak holding separate meetings with Alyani and the angry group, where Alyani, the newspaper reported citing the sources, was asked to resign.

The rumours of Alyani’s resignations started doing the rounds on Saturday. The breaking news of the resignation of the chief minister was aired time and again which was termed baseless by Alyani. (ANI)

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Balochistan’s Chitral faces shortage of subsidised wheat

Bashir Hussain Azad, a resident of Zargarandeh village, said that the local mills had stopped releasing the flour to the market for the last two weeks, demanding a hike in the price…reports Asian Lite News

Amid rising inflation and food crisis in Pakistan, local flour mills in Balochistan’s Chitral have stopped releasing the subsidised wheat flour, demanding a hike in the price of the essential commodity.

The local residents have resented the non-availability of subsidised wheat flour in the bazaars as the local flour mills have stopped releasing the commodity over price issue, the Dawn reported.

Local customers told Dawn that they were getting the wheat flour ground by the local mills at Rs 2,200 per 40-kilogramme bag, but were now forced to purchase flour brought from other parts of the country at Rs 2,600 per 40kg bag.

Bashir Hussain Azad, a resident of Zargarandeh village, said that the local mills had stopped releasing the flour to the market for the last two weeks, demanding a hike in the price, reported Dawn.

He said the district administration had neither accepted the demand of the mill owner nor turned it down, with the result that the supply had been halted to the market.

The consumers said they were getting the wheat flour ground by the local mills at Rs 2,200 per 40-kilogramme bag, but were now forced to purchase flour brought from other parts of the country at Rs 2,600 per 40kg bag, reported Dawn.

Meanwhile, Dwan report said Arshad Hussain, District Food Controller of Lower Chitral, supported the demand of the mill owner and said that they were right in demand for raise in the flour price.

He said the local mills could not be treated like the mills in other parts of the country where only 60 per cent of fine quality flour was extracted from wheat, while in Chitral the ratio was 80 per cent, thus making the commodity costlier in the district, the Pakistani publication said.

The food controller said after rationalisation of the price based on the local conditions, he had sent his recommendations to the assistant commissioner for onward submission to the deputy commissioner for final notification.

Lower Chitral Deputy Commissioner Hasan Abid told Dawn that fixing the price of flour was beyond his authority, and he could only implement the prices fixed by the food department, reported Dawn.

He said he could cancel the licence of the mills if its owner did not accept the price fixed by the food department. (ANI)

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‘Pakistan Zindabad’ caller tune mandatory for Baloch employees

The move, meanwhile, has raised eyebrows among social media users who expressed surprise at the government’s directive. …reports Sanjeev Sharma

In one of the most bizarre acts, the Balochistan government has issued a notification asking senior officials of the province to set ‘Pakistan Zindabad as ring-back tone (also known as caller tone) on their cellphones, Samaa Tv reported.

The notification, issued by Balochistan’s Services and General Administration Department, said that the rule applis on administrative secretaries, additional secretaries and deputy secretaries as well as the head of all the government departments.

The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by the Balochistan chief secretary. The divisional and deputy commissioners have also been notified. The notification details how to set the caller tone for all the mobile cariiers.

‘Pakistan Zindabad’ is a song by singer/music director Sahir Ali Bagga. The song was produced in collaboration with the Inter Services Public Relations and was released on ISPR’s YouTube channel on March 23, 2019.

While the notification does not specify a reason for the move, it explains the procedure for changing the ringback tones for officials using different mobile networks, the Dawn reported.

The move, meanwhile, has raised eyebrows among social media users who expressed surprise at the government’s directive.

“Why aren’t we sure that Baloch brothers are more patriotic than us,” journalist Mubashir Zaidi questioned, the Dawn reported.

Another journalist, Mohammad Taqi, asked in a veiled criticism: “What else does a colony look like?”

The secretaries of all departments, additional secretaries, deputy secretaries and heads of other departments concerned are required to strictly abide by the decision. The additional secretaries have also been directed to ensure their subordinates also apply the same ringback tones on their mobile phone numbers, the report said.

The order states: “The Government of Balochistan, Science and Information Technology Department, has conveyed that in pursuance to the decision made in the meeting held under the Chairmanship of worthy Chief Secretary, for setting of mobile Ring-Back Tone ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ by Administrative Secretaries, Additional Secretaries and Deputy Secretaries and head of attached Departments on their cell/contact numbers.”

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Hundreds protest against targeted killings in Balochistan

During the protest, people said about a dozen innocent civilians had been killed in Panjgur in a month, but not a single alleged killer had been arrested….reports Asian Lite News

Hundreds of people took to the streets in protest against the targeted killings in Panjgur district in Balochistan province of Pakistan, local media reported.

A large number of people, including women and children, gathered at the main chowk of the town. They marched on the streets and roads and chanted slogans against the local administration and police for their failure to arrest alleged killers, reported Dawn.

During the protest, people said about a dozen innocent civilians had been killed in Panjgur in a month, but not a single alleged killer had been arrested.

“Panjgur police and administration have surrendered before criminals. There is no government writ. Killers are roaming freely. Every house is in mourning and fear,” Dawn quoted the people as saying.

“The people from Punjab have been left at the mercy of killers, thieves and robbers,” they claimed.

“Several people, including Maulvi Abdul Hai, Saghir, Jalil Sanjarani, Allauddin Qadeer, Safeer Musa and his father Haji Musa, have been killed in Panjgur, but their killers have not been traced and arrested,” they said. (ANI)

ALSO READ: Free Balochistan protest held against Pakistan in Hanover

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Free Balochistan protest held against Pakistan in Hanover

The rally participants held banners and placards with slogans against torture, human rights abuses and illegal occupation of Balochistan by Pakistan and Iran…reports Asian Lite News.

The Free Balochistan Movement (FBM) held a protest rally in Hanover, Germany against the “fake encounters” in Balochistan province staged by Pakistani forces.

According to release by the movement, the protest began at 2:00 pm German time in front of the Hannover Central Station in Germany after the protesters marched through various streets to George Platz.

The rally participants held banners and placards with slogans against torture, human rights abuses and illegal occupation of Balochistan by Pakistan and Iran.

Participants also carried pictures of enforced disappeared people who were killed in staged encounters by the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD). Participants chanted slogans during the demonstration and distributed hundreds of pamphlets to spread awareness among the people.

The protesters were addressed by scores of Baloch people who accused Pakistan of atrocities in occupied Balochistan. The speakers said that Pakistan was pursuing its earlier infamous “kill and dump” policy of forcibly disappearing Baloch, it continued the same process by killing the disappeared Baloch and burying them in mass graves.

The speakers explained that now the Pakistan state forces have adopted a new policy under which the victims of enforced disappearances are fake encounters. They raised the issue of over 20 fake encounters in a single month.

The FBM in its statement further said that Pakistan has changed the method of Baloch genocide to misled the world. “Pakistan is trying to give the impression to the world that it is taking action against the terrorists by killing the Baloch in its custody in the name of encounters by its terrorist force CTD.”

The statement clarified that the people killed in CTD’s encounters were previously abducted and disappeared by Pakistani forces and they were being killed in staged encounters to cover up Pakistan’s crimes against humanity in Balochistan. (ANI)

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 UN urged to protect Baloch refugees in Afghanistan

Many of the persecuted Balochs managed to reach the neighbouring country, Afghanistan, after great difficulties…reports Asian Lite News

The United Nations should take immediate steps to protect and secure the lives and future of Baloch refugees in Afghanistan as the security situation in the war-torn country deteriorates, said Baloch National Movement said.

In a statement, Baloch National Movement Chairman Khalil Baloch expressed disappointment that no practical steps are being taken to safeguard those who were persecuted in Pakistan and had to migrate to Afghanistan due to Pakistani atrocities.

Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) and other parties or host countries are bound to provide protection to any person who seeks refuge from persecution.

Under this proposed international law, no refugee should be sent to a country where his life and his freedom are in grave danger.

Many of the persecuted Balochs managed to reach the neighbouring country, Afghanistan, after great difficulties, the Baloch National Movement said.

The uncertainty in Afghanistan has created an environment of fear and the policies of international organisations of asking the Baloch refugees to risk their lives and travel to Kabul are tantamount to letting them being killed, said the movement.

“We share a common sense of sorrows and joy as neighbours, well-wisher, and long-lasting friends. History has shown that both nations have helped and stood for each other in difficult times,” the statement read.

Afghanistan and Balochistan are linked by geographical and historical ties. Whenever difficult times befell the Afghan nation, Balochistan became their second home and when the Baloch nation faced difficult situations, the Afghan nation opened its doors to us and welcomed the refugees for years, the statement noted.

The Pakistani barbarism of the last two decades has forced millions of Baloch to migrate, many of whom live in different parts of Afghanistan, where they are in a very difficult situation. They do not have access to internationally recognised legal rights and facilities.

In Afghanistan, Pakistan’s ISI has killed several Baloch refugees through its agents. At present, Baloch refugees do not have the support of any international organization, including UNHCR. Afghanistan cannot give state protection to anyone because of its internal situation and instability.

In this context, the Baloch National Movement said: “We believe that the UNHCR and other international agencies should provide protection and facilities for Baloch refugees.”

In the current state of uncertainty in Afghanistan, Baloch refugees are in a very precarious situation.

ALSO READ: SPECIAL: Travails of Balochistan

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SPECIAL: Travails of Balochistan

Baloch have a long history of rulers who make tall promises and ultimately not delivering…writes Omar Qazi

Despite recent overtures by the Pakistan government for holding dialogue with the Baloch people to resolve their problems, there remains widespread scepticism about the initiative.

Writing in the Sindh Express, Omar Qazi notes that the Baloch have a long history of rulers ranging from former Pakistan Prime Minister Asif Zardari to former President Gen Pervez Musharraf, who make tall promises and ultimately not delivering.

He further points out that gas produced in Balochistan’s Sui area was supplied to Punjab and Khyber Palchtunwa provinces but denied to households in Sui region in Balochistan.

According to Qazi, discrimination and injustice against the Baloch was further illustrated by the discrepancy between Balochistan’s contribution to the Pakistan National Exchequer and the returns given to the region in terms of development.

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He underlined that Balochistan meant much more than Gwadar Port with its borders with Iran and Afghanistan, particularly in the current scenario of withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan
Meanwhile, in another report in the Express Daily, provisional parliamentary leader of the Balochistan National Party, Malik Naseer Ahmad Shahwani, complained about the destruction of agricultural crops in Balochistan with landlords suffering a loss of over PKR 40 billion due to the current drought, restrictions on the use of electricity, curtailed water supply from Sindh and neglect by the federal government.

The Balochistan government had reportedly complained to the Indus River System Authority (IRSA) against Sindh province for stealing its water and even threatened to stop water supply to Karachi through the Hub dam.

Incidentally, according to some Pakistani media reports, the Iranian government had also cut off the (July 6) power supply to Makran province in Balochistan without prior information plunging the three districts of Ketch, Gwadar and Panjgur into darkness. (ANI)

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Free Balochistan Movement stage protest in UK

The protesters said that thousands of Baloch are abducted and illegally held in the Pakistani military’s torture cells without any crime…reports Asian Lite News.

Free Balochistan Movement (FBM) UK Branch on Saturday held a protest in front of the British Parliament against Pakistani atrocities.

The demonstration was held on June 26 to commemorate the “International Day in Support of Torture Victims”.

Baloch activists and FBM members from the UK took part in the protest and highlighted Pakistan’s ongoing human rights violations against Baloch.

They shouted slogans like, “Stop funding Pakistan”, Freedom for Balochistan”, “We want Freedom”, “Terror state Pakistan”, “Stop supporting Pakistan”, and “Baloch want Freedom.”

The protesters said that thousands of Baloch are abducted and illegally held in the Pakistani military’s torture cells without any crime.

“The abducted persons are subject to inhuman and brutal torture by state forces. They are kept in appalling conditions for years and not allowed to see the sun even. The illegally detained persons are neither provided with any legal representatives nor allowed to have contact with their families. The loved ones of disappeared Baloch suffer even more than the disappeared persons because they don’t know anything about their relatives’ condition and well-being.”

Such degrading and appalling treatment of the disappeared persons come under crimes against humanity as per United Nations conventions and international laws.

Free Balochistan Movement activists have requested the civilised world and western democracies to help stop the ongoing genocide of Baloch people by Pakistan.

They also urged the international media to play their role to report the Pakistani state brutalities against Baloch people and the illegal occupation of Balochistan. (ANI)

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