Balochistan conflict The Balochistan conflict is an ongoing conflict between Baloch nationalists and the Government of Pakistan and Government of Iran over Balochistan, a region which includes the Balochistan province in southwestern Pakistan and the Sistan and Baluchestan Province of southeastern Iran. Issues range from human rights abuses, greater autonomy, increased royalties from natural resources and provincial revenue, and in some cases full secession.[17] Recently, militants have clashed with the Islamic Republic of Iran over its respective Baloch region, which borders Pakistan. Baloch insurgent groups operate in the Pakistani part of the region, the Iranian part and in southern Afghanistan. Since the 2010s, attacks against the Shia community by sectarian groups, though unrelated to the political struggle, have also continued to rise in Balochistan. Shortly after Pakistans creation in 1947, the Pakistan Army had to subdue insurgents based in Kalat who rejected the King of Kalats decision to accede to Pakistan. A subsequent Baloch separatist movement gained momentum during the 1960s, and amid consistent political disorder and instability at the federal level, the government ordered a military operation into the region in 1973, assisted by Iran, and inflicted heavy casualties on the separatists. The insurgency, however, again gained strength in the 1990s and 2000s. Balochistan is one of Pakistan’s poorest regions although it has vast natural resources.[18] Baloch separatists allege that the central government of Pakistan is systematically suppressing development in Balochistan to keep the Balochs weak.[18] The Balochistan Liberation Army has been accused by Pakistani state agencies of engaging in several domestic violent incidents when the attacks were however claimed by another group called Lashkar-e-Balochistan.[19] It has been designated as a terrorist group by the Government of Pakistan. Internationally, it has been officially designated as a terrorist group by the Home Office of the government of the United Kingdom.[20] Meanwhile the Pakistani security forces especially Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Frontier Corps have been reported to follow a kill and dump campaign.[21] In the period from 2003 to 2012, it is estimated that 8000 people were kidnapped by Pakistani security forces in the province.[22] BLA has also been accused of numerous terrorist attacks.[22][23][24][25] Area of dispute[edit] Historical Balochistan comprised the Balochistan region. Its western region was the southern part of Sistan o Baluchestan province, Iran. In the east was Pakistani Balochistan. In the northwest the Helmand province of Afghanistan. The Gulf of Oman formed its southern border. Although historical Balochistan is the largest (44% of the countrys area) region of Pakistan, it is the least populated (only 5% of the population) and the least developed area.[26] Stuart Notholt in his Atlas of Ethnic Conflict describes it as a nationalist/self-determination conflict.[27] Class division A report published in Dawn, Pakistans leading English-language news publication, highlighted the economic dimensions to the conflict. Noting that while Balochistan was considered a neglected province where a majority of population lacks amenities, its ruling elite enjoyed glamorous lifestyles that provided a different perspective. The report observed that members of Balochistans elite society, including provincial government ministers and officials, owned pieces of land greater in size than some small towns of the country, and had luxury vehicles, properties, investments and businesses valued at millions of rupees.[28 History Background Balochs (pink), Pashtuns (green), Punjabis (brown), Sindhis (yellow) First conflict 1948 Balochistan consisted of four princely states under the British Raj. Three of these, Makran, Las Bela and Kharan willingly joined with Pakistan in 1947 after independence.[29] The Khan of Kalat, Ahmed Yaar Khan chose independence as this was one of the options given to all of the 535 princely states by Clement Attlee.[30] However, Nehru persuaded Mountbatten to force the leaders of the princely states to decide whether to join India or Pakistan,[31] and hence independence was not an option.[31] Nehru later went on to annex other princely states like Hyderabad with military force Second conflict 1958–59 Nawab Nowroz Khan took up arms in resistance to the One Unit policy, which decreased government representation for tribal leaders. He and his followers started a guerrilla war against Pakistan. Nowroz Khan and his followers were charged with treason and arrested and confined in Hyderabad jail. Five of his family members (sons and nephews) were subsequently hanged under charges of aiding murder of Pakistani troops and treason. Nawab Nowroz Khan later died in captivity.[32] Third conflict 1963–69 After the second conflict, the federal government sent the Army to build new military bases in the key conflict areas of Balochistan to resist further chaos. Sher Muhammad Bijrani Marri led like-minded militants into guerrilla warfare by creating their own insurgent bases spread out over 45,000 miles (72,000 km) of land, from the Mengal tribal area in the south to the Marri and Bugti tribal areas in the north. Their goal was to force Pakistan to share revenue generated from the Sui gas fields with the tribal leaders. The insurgents bombed railway tracks and ambushed convoys. The Army retaliated by destroying vast areas of the Marri tribes land. This insurgency ended in 1969 and the Baloch separatists agreed to a ceasefire. Yahya Khan abolished the One Unit policy.[33] This eventually led to the recognition of Balochistan as the fourth province of West Pakistan (present-day Pakistan) in 1970, containing all the Balochistan princely states, the High Commissioners Province and Gwadar, an 800 km2 coastal area purchased by the Pakistani government from Oman. Fourth conflict 1973–77 For more details on this topic, see Baloch Insurgency and Rahimuddins Stabilization. Citing treason, President Bhutto dismissed the provincial governments of Balochistan and NWFP and imposed martial law in those provinces.[34] Dismissal of the provincial governments led to armed insurgency. Khair Bakhsh Marri formed the Balochistan People’s Liberation Front (BPLF), which led large numbers of Marri and Mengal tribesmen into guerrilla warfare against the central government.[35] According to some authors, the Pakistani military lost 300 to 400 soldiers during the conflict with the Baloch separatists, while between 7,300 and 9,000 Baloch militants and civilians were killed.[14] Fifth conflict 2004–to date[edit] In 2005, the Baluch political leaders Nawab Akbar Khan Buqti and Mir Balach Marri presented a 15-point agenda to the Pakistan government. Their stated demands included greater control of the provinces resources and a moratorium on the construction of military bases.[36] On 15 December 2005 inspector general of the Frontier Corps, Major General Shujaat Zamir Dar and his deputy Brigadier Salim Nawaz (the current IGFC) were wounded after shots were fired at their helicopter in the Balochistan province. The provincial interior secretary later said that both of them were wounded in the leg but both are in stable condition. The two men had been visiting Kohlu, about 220 km (140 mi) southeast of Quetta, when their aircraft came under fire. The helicopter landed safely.[37] In August 2006, Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti, 79 years old, was killed in fighting with the Pakistan Army in which at least 60 Pakistani soldiers and 7 officers were killed. He was charged by Pakistans government of a series of bomb blasts, killings of the people he professed to protect and the rocket attack on President Pervez Musharraf.[38] In April 2009, Baloch National Movement president Ghulam Mohammed Baloch and two other nationalist leaders (Lala Munir and Sher Muhammad) were seized from a small legal office and were allegedly handcuffed, blindfolded and hustled into a waiting pickup truck which is in still [sic] use of intelligence forces in front of their lawyer and neighboring shopkeepers. The gunmen were allegedly speaking in Persian (a national language of neighbouring Afghanistan and Iran). Five days later, on 8 April, their bodies, riddled with bullets were found in a commercial area. The BLA claimed Pakistani forces were behind the killings, though international experts have deemed it odd that the Pakistani forces would be careless enough to allow the bodies to be found so easily and light Balochistan on fire (Herald) if they were truly responsible.[39] The discovery of the bodies sparked rioting and weeks of strikes, demonstrations and civil resistance in cities and towns around Balochistan.[40] (See Turbat killings). On 12 August 2009, Khan of Kalat Mir Suleiman Dawood declared himself ruler of Balochistan and formally announced a Council for Independent Balochistan. The councils claimed domain includes Baloch of Iran, as well as Pakistani Balochistan, but does not include Afghan Baloch regions, and the council contains all separatist leaders including Nawabzada Bramdagh Bugti. He claimed that the UK had a moral responsibility to raise the issue of Balochistan’s illegal occupation at international level.[41] The Economist writes: [The Baloch separatists] are supported—with money, influence or sympathy—by some members of the powerful Bugti tribe and by parts of the Baloch middle class. This makes today’s insurgency stronger than previous ones, but the separatists will nevertheless struggle to prevail over Pakistan’s huge army.[22] Balochistan conflict The Balochistan conflict is an ongoing conflict between Baloch nationalists and the Government of Pakistan and Government of Iran over Balochistan, a region which includes the Balochistan province in southwestern Pakistan and the Sistan and Baluchestan Province of southeastern Iran. Issues range from human rights abuses, greater autonomy, increased royalties from natural resources and provincial revenue, and in some cases full secession.[17] Recently, militants have clashed with the Islamic Republic of Iran over its respective Baloch region, which borders Pakistan. Baloch insurgent groups operate in the Pakistani part of the region, the Iranian part and in southern Afghanistan. Since the 2010s, attacks against the Shia community by sectarian groups, though unrelated to the political struggle, have also continued to rise in Balochistan. Shortly after Pakistans creation in 1947, the Pakistan Army had to subdue insurgents based in Kalat who rejected the King of Kalats decision to accede to Pakistan. A subsequent Baloch separatist movement gained momentum during the 1960s, and amid consistent political disorder and instability at the federal level, the government ordered a military operation into the region in 1973, assisted by Iran, and inflicted heavy casualties on the separatists. The insurgency, however, again gained strength in the 1990s and 2000s. Balochistan is one of Pakistan’s poorest regions although it has vast natural resources.[18] Baloch separatists allege that the central government of Pakistan is systematically suppressing development in Balochistan to keep the Balochs weak.[18] The Balochistan Liberation Army has been accused by Pakistani state agencies of engaging in several domestic violent incidents when the attacks were however claimed by another group called Lashkar-e-Balochistan.[19] It has been designated as a terrorist group by the Government of Pakistan. Internationally, it has been officially designated as a terrorist group by the Home Office of the government of the United Kingdom.[20] Meanwhile the Pakistani security forces especially Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Frontier Corps have been reported to follow a kill and dump campaign.[21] In the period from 2003 to 2012, it is estimated that 8000 people were kidnapped by Pakistani security forces in the province.[22] BLA has also been accused of numerous terrorist attacks.[22][23][24][25] Area of dispute[edit] Historical Balochistan comprised the Balochistan region. Its western region was the southern part of Sistan o Baluchestan province, Iran. In the east was Pakistani Balochistan. In the northwest the Helmand province of Afghanistan. The Gulf of Oman formed its southern border. Although historical Balochistan is the largest (44% of the countrys area) region of Pakistan, it is the least populated (only 5% of the population) and the least developed area.[26] Stuart Notholt in his Atlas of Ethnic Conflict describes it as a nationalist/self-determination conflict.[27] Class division A report published in Dawn, Pakistans leading English-language news publication, highlighted the economic dimensions to the conflict. Noting that while Balochistan was considered a neglected province where a majority of population lacks amenities, its ruling elite enjoyed glamorous lifestyles that provided a different perspective. The report observed that members of Balochistans elite society, including provincial government ministers and officials, owned pieces of land greater in size than some small towns of the country, and had luxury vehicles, properties, investments and businesses valued at millions of rupees.[28 History Background Balochs (pink), Pashtuns (green), Punjabis (brown), Sindhis (yellow) First conflict 1948 Balochistan consisted of four princely states under the British Raj. Three of these, Makran, Las Bela and Kharan willingly joined with Pakistan in 1947 after independence.[29] The Khan of Kalat, Ahmed Yaar Khan chose independence as this was one of the options given to all of the 535 princely states by Clement Attlee.[30] However, Nehru persuaded Mountbatten to force the leaders of the princely states to decide whether to join India or Pakistan,[31] and hence independence was not an option.[31] Nehru later went on to annex other princely states like Hyderabad with military force Second conflict 1958–59 Nawab Nowroz Khan took up arms in resistance to the One Unit policy, which decreased government representation for tribal leaders. He and his followers started a guerrilla war against Pakistan. Nowroz Khan and his followers were charged with treason and arrested and confined in Hyderabad jail. Five of his family members (sons and nephews) were subsequently hanged under charges of aiding murder of Pakistani troops and treason. Nawab Nowroz Khan later died in captivity.[32] Third conflict 1963–69 After the second conflict, the federal government sent the Army to build new military bases in the key conflict areas of Balochistan to resist further chaos. Sher Muhammad Bijrani Marri led like-minded militants into guerrilla warfare by creating their own insurgent bases spread out over 45,000 miles (72,000 km) of land, from the Mengal tribal area in the south to the Marri and Bugti tribal areas in the north. Their goal was to force Pakistan to share revenue generated from the Sui gas fields with the tribal leaders. The insurgents bombed railway tracks and ambushed convoys. The Army retaliated by destroying vast areas of the Marri tribes land. This insurgency ended in 1969 and the Baloch separatists agreed to a ceasefire. Yahya Khan abolished the One Unit policy.[33] This eventually led to the recognition of Balochistan as the fourth province of West Pakistan (present-day Pakistan) in 1970, containing all the Balochistan princely states, the High Commissioners Province and Gwadar, an 800 km2 coastal area purchased by the Pakistani government from Oman. Fourth conflict 1973–77 For more details on this topic, see Baloch Insurgency and Rahimuddins Stabilization. Citing treason, President Bhutto dismissed the provincial governments of Balochistan and NWFP and imposed martial law in those provinces.[34] Dismissal of the provincial governments led to armed insurgency. Khair Bakhsh Marri formed the Balochistan People’s Liberation Front (BPLF), which led large numbers of Marri and Mengal tribesmen into guerrilla warfare against the central government.[35] According to some authors, the Pakistani military lost 300 to 400 soldiers during the conflict with the Baloch separatists, while between 7,300 and 9,000 Baloch militants and civilians were killed.[14] Fifth conflict 2004–to date[edit] In 2005, the Baluch political leaders Nawab Akbar Khan Buqti and Mir Balach Marri presented a 15-point agenda to the Pakistan government. Their stated demands included greater control of the provinces resources and a moratorium on the construction of military bases.[36] On 15 December 2005 inspector general of the Frontier Corps, Major General Shujaat Zamir Dar and his deputy Brigadier Salim Nawaz (the current IGFC) were wounded after shots were fired at their helicopter in the Balochistan province. The provincial interior secretary later said that both of them were wounded in the leg but both are in stable condition. The two men had been visiting Kohlu, about 220 km (140 mi) southeast of Quetta, when their aircraft came under fire. The helicopter landed safely.[37] In August 2006, Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti, 79 years old, was killed in fighting with the Pakistan Army in which at least 60 Pakistani soldiers and 7 officers were killed. He was charged by Pakistans government of a series of bomb blasts, killings of the people he professed to protect and the rocket attack on President Pervez Musharraf.[38] In April 2009, Baloch National Movement president Ghulam Mohammed Baloch and two other nationalist leaders (Lala Munir and Sher Muhammad) were seized from a small legal office and were allegedly handcuffed, blindfolded and hustled into a waiting pickup truck which is in still [sic] use of intelligence forces in front of their lawyer and neighboring shopkeepers. The gunmen were allegedly speaking in Persian (a national language of neighbouring Afghanistan and Iran). Five days later, on 8 April, their bodies, riddled with bullets were found in a commercial area. The BLA claimed Pakistani forces were behind the killings, though international experts have deemed it odd that the Pakistani forces would be careless enough to allow the bodies to be found so easily and light Balochistan on fire (Herald) if they were truly responsible.[39] The discovery of the bodies sparked rioting and weeks of strikes, demonstrations and civil resistance in cities and towns around Balochistan.[40] (See Turbat killings). On 12 August 2009, Khan of Kalat Mir Suleiman Dawood declared himself ruler of Balochistan and formally announced a Council for Independent Balochistan. The councils claimed domain includes Baloch of Iran, as well as Pakistani Balochistan, but does not include Afghan Baloch regions, and the council contains all separatist leaders including Nawabzada Bramdagh Bugti. He claimed that the UK had a moral responsibility to raise the issue of Balochistan’s illegal occupation at international level. The Economist writes: [The Baloch separatists] are supported—with money, influence or sympathy—by some members of the powerful Bugti tribe and by parts of the Baloch middle class. This makes today’s insurgency stronger than previous ones, but the separatists will nevertheless struggle to prevail over Pakistan’s huge army
Posted on: Tue, 18 Mar 2014 20:50:44 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015