 "Repression became the modus operandi to check dissent, peaceful protest, and equal representation. Militarism characterised the Pakistani state in Balochistan. Representational image/Reuters")
Reports are swirling that a Baloch activist has declared independence from Pakistan.
‘We’re not Pakistanis," goes the declaration by someone identified in reports as Mir Yar Baloch, who also reportedly declared the new entity as the ‘Republic of Balochistan’.
Firstpost has not been able to verify the veracity of these reports.
For decades, the Baloch people have waged a self-determination movement against the Pakistani rule over their province. They consider their province’s integration into Pakistan in 1948 forced and seek a separate nation. In addition to the political and diplomatic campaigns, the self-determination movement also comprises armed groups, such as the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), that wage an armed movement against the Pakistani regime.
In the declaration mentioned in reports, the Baloch people have urged India to allow them to have an embassy in New Delhi. They also urged the United Nations (UN) for recognition of Balochistan as an independent state.
“A possible announcement soon should be done as the collapse of the terrorist Pakistan is near. We request India to allow Balochistan’s official office, and embassy in Delhi,” the message attributed to Mir Yar Baloch said.
BLA claims coordinated attacks
The so-called declaration of independence has come at a time when the BLA has claimed 71 attacks in Pakistan.
In a message issued on May 11, the BLA claimed responsibility for 71 coordinated attacks across 51 locations in recent days as part its ‘Operation Herof’ against the Pakistani rule over their province.
The BLA said it targeted Pakistani military and intelligence facilities, police stations, mineral transport vehicles, and major highway infrastructure.
The BLA said a “new order has become inevitable” in South Asia and warned that Pakistan’s military setbacks and use of religious extremism had created lasting instability. The group rejected Islamabad’s overtures for ceasefire talks, describing them as a deceptive tactic, and urged regional powers, including India, not to place trust in Pakistan’s intentions.
Impact Shorts
View All“The BLA is neither a pawn nor a silent spectator. It will not rest until Pakistan is dismantled as a terror-exporting state,” the statement read.
The woes of Baloch people
Balochistan is Pakistan’s largest province by area. It was once part of the princely state of Kalat before being annexed by Pakistan in 1948. The move triggered the first of several insurgencies, with nationalist groups demanding greater autonomy or independence. Successive military operations by the Pakistani regime have led to repeated cycles of rebellion and suppression.
Human rights organisations have documented reports of enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and the targeting of civilians. The recent killing of prominent Baloch rally driver Tariq Baloch, allegedly under a ‘kill and dump’ policy, has further inflamed tensions and drawn criticism from international rights advocates.
Balochistan’s strategic importance stems from the presence of the deep-water Gwadar Port, a critical node in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). While CPEC has brought billions of dollars in Chinese investment to Pakistan, Baloch communities have maintained that they have been excluded from its benefits and forced off their lands without proper compensation.
For decades, Baloch people have maintained that while Pakistani regime and its foreign partners have enriched themselves from the province’s resources, the natives have been subjected to marginalisation, exploitation, and systemic violence in form of state-sponsored killings and forced disappearances.
The port and surrounding areas have been the target of repeated attacks by Baloch insurgents, some of which have directly threatened Chinese personnel working on infrastructure projects.