Once I travelled from Eastern Balochistan, Pakistan to the Western part of Balochistan, Iran to offer my condolences to a family who lost their loved one. It was a short one and half hour drive. As soon as we reached the famous Goldsmith border line which has been drawn back in the 19th century, Balochistan was divided among Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan by the British Empire’s “divide and rule” policy.
Baloch leaders have referred such border as “artificial.” In fact, these artificial borders are very unpopular among the Baloch people due to many decades of tyranny that has been pressed upon them. Indeed Iran and Pakistan have both failed to win the hearts and minds of the Baloch people.
As soon as we cross the border I could easily see the Iranian security at the top of the mountain, sheltered by their bunkers, their eyes were chasing and looking for individuals fleeing or entering its borders under the gaping sun and scorching heat. There was a tiny village near the border, as our vehicle entered, there were family compounds. As soon as we went inside the house, within five minutes two Iranians security force vehicles rushed inside the compound, they parked right next to our vehicle.
"You know how the Jews of Russia feel now. That is how I feel --- like a slave." Says Kurdish leaders Mustafa Barzani.
As a Baloch I felt the same way because. The same security force on May 16, 2007 shot and killed an 11 year old innocent Baloch girl Roya Sarani right front of her house as her powerless father and brothers stared with a complete sense of helplessness. She was coming from her school exams in city of Zahedan, Seistan-Balochistan. In Eastern Balochistan, on May 2008 city of Dera Bugti, three innocent peasant Bugti tribe members Nazar Mohammed Bugti, Rostam Bugti, and Jeo Bugti were burned alive to death. Such extreme acts of brutality from the state security forces are crime against humanity.
When 28 years old Yaqoub Mehrnehad a cultural and human rights activist from the capital city of Zahedan, Sistan-Balochistan, was arrested on May 2007 by Iranian security forces. He was taken to an unknown location, never explained what his crime and guilt? Neither gave him an opportunity in the court to present his evidence to prove his innocence, he suffered some of the worst torture in prison. Amnesty International expressed their concern of his illegal arrest and safety.
He was the head of, “Voice of justice youth associations” which is a non-governmental organization, his activities were purely about the promotion of Baloch culture and education. Trying to reaching to the young and help them in many fields of education. He was a writer and reporter for the newspaper Mardomsalri which is based in Tehran.
On August 4, 2008 he was executed in the city of Zahedan, Balochistan, Iran.
I would say in all part of Sistan-Balochistan, Iran there is complete vacuum of free media due to the fact that the media is control by a radical regime, which provides biased news reports about the ground reality in Sistan-Balochistan. Because Iranian security forces have a strong grip in Balochistan, they are indiscriminately arresting the Baloch youth and labeling them as a terrorists, smugglers, and as anti Islamic. Hundreds of Baloch youth are hanged in public. Many Baloch religious leaders (Sunni minority group) are executed and assassinated by the Iranian regime.
«The civil campaign and political activities are illegal and illegitimate in Balochistan and therefore, anybody who engage in civil campaign peaceful activities can condemn to death." Says Reza Hossein Borr a Baloch intellectual’s.
Since the forceful occupation of Western Balochistan by Reza Shah Pahlavi in 1928, the dark history of aggressive polices of all Iranian regimes towards Balochistan is not hidden. Baloch people are deprived their linguistic, cultural, social, political, and economical rights.
“According to the official figures of Iranian regimes 76 percent of the Baloch people live in poverty line such high level of the poverty line result of the deliberate policies of the Iranians regimes for eradicating the Baloch people through salvation."
Baloch people believe the United Nations can play the important role resolving the Balochistan conflict. Their involvement will help to stop the further genocide, aggressions, arrest, torch red, extrajudicial killing, displacement and assassinations of Baloch leaders. If the Balochistan crisis continues to be ignored by the world, such atrocities and aggressions will continue by both regimes of Iran and Pakistan.
According to the international court of justice “crimes against humanity” is explained in the article # 7
(a) Murder (b) Extermination (d) deportation or forcible transfer of population (e) imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty in violation of fundamental rules of international laws; (f) torture (h) persecutions against any identifiable group or collectivity of political, racial, national ethnic, cultural, religious, gender.... (i) enforced disappearance of persons;"
All of the acts have been committed by the both regimes against the native Baloch people. This is the moral duty of the United Nations to step in and perceive both ruthless regimes to resolve the legal and legitimate demands of the Baloch leaders.
Otherwise, the un-ending crisis in Balochistan will hardly come closer to being resolved. The two un-democratic regimes have proven with previous records that they will keep betraying the Baloch people and continue their evil polices towards them. They will continue their aggressive polices and keep depraving the Baloch by denying their economical, political, linguistic, cultural, and religious rights. On the other hand Baloch leaders are tired of begging for their autonomy.
You cannot treat the cancer patient with the bandage; the crisis in Balochistan is not a scratch but more a deep gash. That’s what both theocratic and dictatorial regimes Iran and Pakistan have been doing for many years. From the Baloch prospective Balochistan’s un-ending crisis is reaching to a point of no return.
