The Cultural Genocide of Balochistan

Divided into three parts, currently occupied by Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan, Balochistan has been exposed over decades to massive violations of Human Rights that culminate in the cultural – educational sphere, as Language and Culture are the strongest points of the Baloch national identity and identification. It would take an encyclopedia to contain the atrocities done – in all three aforementioned countries – to Balochs, so we will present within the limits of the present article only selective points as an outline.

Oppression and discrimination took greater extent in Pakistan for specific reasons. We refer to a Baloch website that summarized the situation in the most laconic way:

"To the dominant Punjabis in Pakistan, who make up 58 percent of the population, it is unthinkable that the Baloch Nation should have special claims to Balochistan, which represents 48 percent of the land area of the country.

Both Islamabad and Teheran view the sparsely settled expanses of Balochistan as a safety valve for surplus population, a source of badly needed materials, and an area of vital strategic importance over which the central government should rightfully hold undisputed sway" (http://www.balochvoice.com/).

The origin of the Baloch language is thought to have evolved between 200 BCE - 700 CE from a lost language spoken on the territory of Gedrosia that was part of the Arsacid Parthian and Sassanid Iranian Empires, although for some period Gedrosia formed an independent kingdom (known to the Greek and Latin sources as Indo-Parthian kingdom). The closest relative of the Baloch language today is Modern Persian (Farsi).

Prohibition of the Baloch language

Prior to 1947, Balochistan's official languages were Persian and English. In 1948, with the incorporation of Balochistan´s largest part into the newly created Pakistan, the Baloch language was replaced by Urdu as the national language. None of the countries in which the Baloch language is spoken gave it official status or used it in their educational systems.

Even though the Baloch language is the primary language of Balochistan, it is not taught in schools due to lack of teachers, lack of parental support (most parents want their children to learn Urdu, Persian or English instead), and competing pressures from other language groups. Only the University of Peshawar in Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan, offers courses of Baloch language and literature. Although there are newspapers, magazines, and literature in the Baloch language, literacy rates in the language are extremely low. Radio has played an important role in promoting comprehension among the three dialects of the language. Today, the Baloch language remains primarily the language of the home and of the local community.

Dr. Naseer Dashti – the banned author of ´In a Baloch Perspective´ and ´The Voice of Reason´ (http://www.thebaluch.com/032608_article.php)

In an article recently published by the Pakistani Quetta-based journalist Malik Siraj Akbar, the case of the persecuted author, Dr. Naseer Dashti, is described within the socio-political context of Pakistan.

Balochistan's banned author, Dr. Naseer Dashti, could not imagine that two of his books were considered as 'a threat to the very integrity of the federation of Pakistan'. Citing the same reasons, the government of Balochistan ordered the confiscation of all copies of the two recently published books of Dr. Dashti, besides imposing a complete ban on their display at the bookstores. Holding a PhD on Baloch health-seeking behavior from the University of Greenwich, London, Dr. Dashti, 50, is a renowned Baloch nationalistic scholar and a medical doctor by profession.

In regard with the ban, Dr. Naseer Dashti said to Malik Siraj Akbar: "If a book is to disintegrate a country then there is nothing that can integrate a country". This seems to be the most accurate and epigrammatic definition of Pakistan.

Dr. Naseer Dashti composed his two books, ´In a Baloch Perspective´ and ´The Voice of Reason´, selecting newspaper and research articles written by several prominent Baloch scholars and journalists. However, the majority of the articles in these two books are penned by Dr. Dashti himself, and largely evolve around theoretical discussions on Baloch nationalism.

Malik Siraj Akbar specified that Asaap Publications of Quetta, which printed Dr. Dashti's 'controversial' books, has equally come under the eye of storm in the past due to its anti-government publications.

According to Mr. Akbar´s report, "the government of Balochistan maintains that both the books are replete with anti-state contents. They promote national disharmony and malign the Pakistan ideology. Therefore, it is essential to prevent the readers from reading these books so that, ironically, the very ideology of Pakistan is preserved".

Dr. Dashti, talking to Mr. Malik Siraj Akbar, insisted that his books contain nothing misleading or factiously wrong. The factors that compelled him to compile the two books are implicitly mentioned in one of the books, ´In a Baloch Perspective´ as follows.

Historical falsifications as Dictatorial State Dogma in Pakistan

"The official 'academics' and 'writers' had persistently been engaged in the deliberate distortion of history of Baloch people and obnoxious act of degradation of Baloch traditional values without any qualm of consciences. As access of Baloch writers and intellectuals had been denied to the media, the biased, one-sided picture of social, cultural and political scenario were unilaterally and erroneously portrayed as actually representing the Baloch point of view".

As a matter of fact, the theme of the arguments pursued in both of the books is that the Baloch are a separate nation by every definition of the word. The rulers of the countries where the Baloch are inhibited, namely Pakistan , Iran and Afghanistan, have deliberately destroyed their distinct Balochi identity by applying the repressive state machinery.

In his comprehensive article, Mr. Malik Siraj Akbar selected and published another excerpt, from the same book, written by Jan Mohammad Dashti, one of the contributors:

"The Baloch is discontented because it had not been allowed the right to use its native language. The Baloch is disenchanted because it does not possess its resources. It is disillusioned because they are exploited economically and in the process is kept away from power structure of the state. The Baloch resent the artificial partition of their land into three different countries. The Baloch are disappointed because religion is manifestly used as a means for integration of the Baloch identity into broader majority nationalities of Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan". (´The Baloch National Question´)

Mr. Malik Siraj Akbar points out that all the authors whose articles have become chapters of these two books are extremely critical of not only the government of Pakistan but also of Iran and Afghanistan who they accuse of suppressing the Baloch in the name of religion. He then quotes the author who says: "In a Baloch context, language, which is undoubtedly the main carrier of ideas, sentiments, traditions, customs and religious dogma from one generation to another, has been the prime target. In their assimilative efforts, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan have not allowed Balochi to be the language of instruction in schools even at primary level. Balochi publications and institutions for academic research are never encouraged. Print and electronic media in these countries have been manipulated by people from dominant nationalities and all state institutions run by the non-Baloch are assigned the task for media management formulating policy approaches".

Policies of Assimilation and Integration Denounced

Mr. Malik Siraj Akbar specifies that Dr. Naseer finds it as a major 'paradox' how the government of Pakistan, which is using sophisticated USA-made weapons to crush the innocent Baloch people, is unwilling to let a Baloch scholar speak up freely. As a matter of fact, the practice of banning nationalistic books is not a new phenomenon. The government of Balochistan banned in the past scores of books written about the Baloch nationalistic movement. Consequently, such restrictions have intensified the demand for such books among the readers.

According to Balochistan´s banned author, Dr. Naseer Dashti, the next five to ten years are extremely essential in the Baloch movement. His words sound as a real warning to the Pakistani dictator and the newly appointed premier:

"The more you ban a book, the greater its demand becomes. The government of Pakistan needs to realize that we live in the 21st century and it is not possible to burry the truth".

Express your support to Dr. Naseer Dashti, writing to Mr. Malik Siraj Akbar here: stunningmalik@gmail.com / Blog: www.gmcmissing.wordpress.com