Political events across Balochistan have been very alarming of late. The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) organised a Rajee Muchi (Baloch National Gathering) in Gwadar on the 28th of July. The BYC is a human rights advocacy group founded in 2020, led by Mahrang Baloch, a 31-year-old firebrand political activist, medical doctor, and surgeon. The BYC, established in response to alleged state oppression, has emerged as the most powerful voice in Balochistan.
In the past few days alone, the situation in the troubled region has escalated to a curfew-like state. The government authorities have used all means at their disposal to thwart the thousands of Baloch planning to assemble under the umbrella of Baloch Rajee Muchi in Gwadar. The authorities resorted to force, doing everything possible to prevent BYC from holding a national gathering in Gwadar.
The BYC's leadership asserts their constitutional right to hold peaceful political gatherings anywhere in Balochistan. The frontline women leadership of BYC argues that the Baloch nation owns the coastal city as their forefathers' land, where they have lived for thousands of years. They also claim it is their innate right to protect their land and coast against state exploitation.
The use of force by the authorities to stifle peaceful protests and rallies has further destabilised the already volatile situation in the war-torn region. Scores of Baloch protesters and marchers have been detained and baton-charged. Roadblocks have been placed in Gwadar, Turbat, Mastung, Quetta, and other parts of Balochistan. The venue of Rajee Muchi in Gwadar was cordoned off by security forces to prevent anyone from congregating there. Despite all the coercion and obstruction, BYC activists still managed to hold the Baloch Rajee Muchi. Dr Mahrang Baloch emerged and addressed a massive crowd at Padizir (Marine Drive) Gwadar, as promised.
Roadblocks, shutdowns of internet services, and mobile networks in Gwadar and Turbat restricted movement and the flow of timely information. There has been a serious shortage of food and water, power outages, and water supply suspensions in the port city. Due to the closure of banks and ATMs, people were also badly stripped of cash. All routes leading to Gwadar were sealed with barbed wire and containers. People outside the city did not know what was going on inside. Internet services and landline access to Gwadar, Turbat, and the surrounding areas have reportedly been blocked for the past few days.
On 27th July, at Talar check post, 80 km from the coast city, reports indicate that two people were killed and several others injured due to direct firing by security forces. BYC activists based in Turbat complain that hundreds of vehicles, motorbikes, and other items belonging to the protesters were either damaged or confiscated by the forces in Turbat.
Negotiations between Gwadar's administration and BYC have become dormant. Progress in talks was halted by the incident in Nushki, where a protester was shot dead and several others were injured by security forces' gunfire at peaceful protesters. Dozens of BYC activists were picked up in a pre-dawn action on their protest camp set up outside the Karachi Press Club. Both the government and BYC accuse each other of not honoring the agreement reached after negotiations to end sit-ins across Balochistan. BYC's leadership complains that despite ongoing negotiations with Gwadar's administration, the state is still intensifying its crackdowns on peaceful protesters. Mahrang Baloch said the sit-ins will continue until the government accedes to their genuine demands to release all detainees and stop using force against the protesters.
It is observed that from ordinary peasants to tribal chieftains, Baloch people from all walks of life have accepted an unarmed young woman as their leader
A large number of protesters are women and children, whose family members were either missing, shot dead in fake encounters, or had their mutilated bodies dumped somewhere.
This is the first time in Baloch political history that women's leadership is evolving at such a rapid pace. Through this peaceful political resistance, an urban political uprising has also begun in the province. Balochistan has never witnessed such a large-scale peaceful political resistance and struggle for human rights. The Baloch people, from Koh-e-Sulaiman (Sulaiman Mountain) to Koh-e-Batil in Gwadar, are united under the banner of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC).
Examples can be drawn from China, where Chairman Mao achieved victory through the Great Long March, with people peacefully struggling. Similarly, during the recent movement in Bangladesh, when Hasina Wajid used force, significant damage occurred, and the government was eventually forced to yield. The use of force has its consequences, primarily affecting those who employ it.
In the current political scene of Balochistan, it is observed that from ordinary peasants to tribal chieftains, Baloch people from all walks of life have accepted an unarmed young woman as their leader, believing she has no personal political gains. Such Baloch unity behind a single leader has never been seen in the past. This peaceful movement has become widespread in Baloch society.
The political upbringing of these young women emerged from the left-wing Baloch political tradition. These frontline young women leaders have read anti-colonial leftist literature. They appear politically mature and more popular than the self-claimed Baloch nationalists and the so-called parliamentarians.
Unfortunately, the Baloch people's cries for justice have fallen on deaf ears for the last seven decades. Instead of addressing their woes, the state is stifling the Baloch voice. As the state continues to suppress Baloch dissent and deny them dignity and rights, it pushes the Baloch people to embrace a powerful political voice. BYC's leaders argue that the state is using colonial methods against the Baloch people, which does not bode well for the future and instead breeds a detrimental effect on national harmony.
The Baloch people have had enough and are fed up with the establishment and its puppet political organisations. They have no trust in the manipulated political system imposed on the province. This widespread frustration has galvanised various sections of Baloch society to unite and stand firmly behind the leadership of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee.
Baloch grievances are very genuine and long-standing. Despite its natural resources, Balochistan is the most underdeveloped region in Pakistan and ranks low on social indicators. Even the much-touted development under CPEC has done nothing to rescue Balochistan from poverty.
The Baloch Yakjehti Committee merely wants the state to stop enforced disappearances and allow the Baloch people to receive their due share of development and local economic resources. If these rational voices are suppressed by force, such state tactics will only spew violence and hatred in the troubled region.
The state must begin the process of healing by rectifying past mistakes to create a fresh and peaceful political atmosphere in Balochistan.