 "Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman. Image: Reuters")
Pakistani Member of Parliamentarian Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman has said that five to seven districts of Balochistan province could announce liberation.
He referred to the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war that led to the liberation of Bangladesh and warned that a similar situation could occur again due to the mindset of the Pakistani ruling authorities.
He made these remarks in the country’s Parliament, the Pakistan National Assembly (NA).
Rehman emphasised that the United Nations could accept the declaration of liberation from these parts of the province. “If districts in Balochistan announce liberation, the UN will accept their independence and Pakistan will fall," Fazl-ur-Rehman said.
Violence in Kurram region
His comments come amid escalating violence in Pakistan’s Kurram region. The area has seen Sunni-Shiite clashes for decades. Since November, around 150 people have been killed in renewed fighting.
Tribes have been fighting with machine guns and heavy weapons, leaving the remote, mountainous region near Afghanistan largely cut off.
Balochistan is Pakistan’s largest province by area, but comprises only 2 percent of the population in the country.
Prolonged insurgency in Balochistan
The state has been embroiled in a prolonged insurgency as ethnic Baloch separatists seek greater autonomy and control over the region’s rich natural resources. The conflict has led to significant violence and human rights concerns, with thousands of people disappearing.
Mass disappearances, extrajudicial detentions
According to Al Jazeera, there have been multiple instances of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial detentions of Baloch activists and civilians. These acts by Pakistani authorities exacerbate local grievances and fuel further unrest.
BLA attacks
In August last year, the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) launched a series of attacks across the province, resulting in over 70 fatalities, including 23 civilians.
Resource rich state fueling development of Pakistan
The introduction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor in 2015, particularly the development of the Gwadar port, has also fueled the crisis. The development from CPEC has benefitted people from other states.
Local communities have alleged that the resources of Balochistan are used for developmental works in the Pakistani parts of Punjab and Sindh.