Dr. Naseer Dashti
August 26th is the day to pay tribute of respect to one of the famous names in the Baloch history. It is the day of paying tribute to the very courageous leader and the towering personality of the Baloch national struggle. It is the day of paying tribute to the martyred hero of a noble struggle for freedom and dignity of a long subjugated nation. It is the day of remembering a dignified walk to martyrdom of a hero, which has rekindled the flame of hopes and dreams for a bright future among the Baloch people.
The chief of the Bugti tribe, Nawab Shahbaz Akber Bugti became a legendary figure in a very critical period of the Baloch history. He died nobly in a classic Balochi way, somewhere in the Marri Mountains, on 26th of August 2006. This great person who played his role on the stage of the Baloch national struggle in such a way that he became the most loved one among the Baloch leaders of past and present. In his death, he became the most loved hero of our people - the person who is believed to do more than any other to ensure the upholding of the Baloch national aspirations. This respect and love is not given to many and it is not easy to achieve such things in a single lifetime. Moreover, it is given to none who is ordinary. Nawab was not ordinary.
No greater tribute can be paid to Nawab, than just to remember why he was murdered and where he was murdered and what he was doing when he died. Why he was murdered should not be a point to ponder anymore and be clear for every Baloch. He did not die in the comfortable surroundings of his ancestral palace, nor did he die discussing his family affairs with his family members. He died in the mountains of his sacred land, discussing the ways and meanings of a just struggle. In his death he was not listening to the sobbing of his grandsons, daughters, nephews and nieces but was surrounded by the deafening sounds of enemy bombardment and staccato of enemy machine guns. His death in such manner and such circumstances stands out as a beautiful, beautiful gift not only for the present generation of the Baloch but also for all of their generations to come.
The Roman statesman and philosopher Cicero once said that 'It is the character of a brave and resolute man not to be ruffled by adversity and not to desert his post'. Nawab met that definition of a brave man in full. It was his firm belief that subdued by brutal state violence, there is no other recourse than to fight for national existence. Nawab declined requests for compromise with the enemy because he made the decision to volunteer to defend his land, his people and the resources of his land. W J Bryan said that destiny is not a matter of chance but of choice. It is not something to wish for but to attain. Perhaps Nawab wishfully attained his destiny. Nawab could have lived comfortably, accepting the dictates of history and sheltering behind a veneer of respectable conformity; nevertheless, he understood his obligations to his motherland. Nawab loved his land, his people and the values that make the Baloch identity. He believed that his whole nation has been deprived of the means of moral and material happiness. He believed in the repaying of his debt to the motherland. He must have known that such debts are not only a burden, but also that their recompense earns one his happiness and the happiness of the generations to come. It is that fine lesson of patriotism that the Baloch should reaffirm in their own lives as they pay tribute to the courageous life and mourn the heroic death of this most honorable Baloch.
The struggle to regain one’s national pride and sovereignty is hard and daunting. It is intertwined with gains and losses. It is mixed with blood, sweat and tears. As Emerson once said, ‘Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail’. Death comes to every individual; however, certain deaths are not the ends. There are certain deaths, which in the long drawn struggle of national salvation may lift from the fatigue of despair to the buoyancy of hope, and transform dark and desolate valleys into sunlit paths of glory and victory. The tragic loss of this extraordinary man apparently, seems to be a heavy blow to his nation’s morale; nevertheless, the history of resistance movement has proven repeatedly that such kind of suffering is redemptive. The blood of the legendary Nawab may well serve as a redemptive force for the Baloch national resistance. The bright line of his spelled blood may bring new strength in the struggle and new light to the dark tunnel behind which lies the bright and cherished goal of the Baloch national struggle. The death of Nawab may lead his nation from the low road of subjugation, exploitation and humiliation to the high road of liberty, sovereignty and dignity.
Nawab Bugti had something to say in his death. Before he died of enemy bullets, he had something to say to every individual of the Baloch nation who has remained indifferent to the long-suffering of the nation. He had something to say to the breed of political cadres who have betrayed their nation by raising hypocritical slogans, breeding seeds of cowardliness and submission. He had something to say to every Baloch who has passively accepted the supremacy of the adversary. He had something to say to those Baloch who are standing on the sidelines in the mighty struggle for the Baloch dignity and honor. He had something to say to each of the Baloch that they must substitute submissiveness, hypocrisy and cowardliness for action. His death says to every Baloch that they must work passionately and unrelentingly for the realization of the Baloch dream of being the master of their own land and affairs.
The present and the coming generations of the Baloch must be obliged to pay their debts to those who sacrificed to secure the values of dignity, honor and liberation for them. There are blood debts they owe to pay not only to Nawab but also to the thousand known and unknown Baloch who raced into the heroic death, to men and women who took the war cries to enemies, and to those who fought in any manner, in the war of national liberation. August 26 is a day for the Baloch of rededication to the sacred cause of their motherland. On this day, they should solemnly pledge themselves to avenge the martyred heroes who gave their lives to redeem the national dignity of the Baloch. On this day, they should also pledge to take the path on which the gallant son of their land walked to his death with unsurpassed courage and selflessness. The famous poet W.B. Yeats said ‘I have spread my dreams beneath your feet. Tread softly because you tread on my dreams’. Nawab and his companions have scattered their dreams mixed with their blood all over the Baloch Land. These dreams are for a dignified life for the Baloch. Today, the Baloch must see to it while passing through the blood-ridden soil of Balochistan. The least they can do is to mix their own dreams with that of their heroes.
Received via e- mail Naseer Dashti (naseerdashti@yahoo.com)
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