Balochistan is experiencing a new wave of political unrest as the Pakistani government continues its tradition of using force to suppress peaceful protests in the region. Since July 27, the situation in this southwestern province of Pakistan has remained tense as the standoff between the government and Baloch protesters persists. Rallies, demonstrations, sit-ins, and protests are ongoing in various parts of Balochistan despite crackdowns by the government.
The protests began after the government blocked the main highways in Balochistan the day before a political gathering organized by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) was scheduled to take place in Gwadar. The government aimed to prevent people and activists from participating in the Baloch Raji Machi or Baloch National Gathering. This led to a crackdown by security forces, including arrests, baton charges, shelling, and use of firearms on the participants from all parts of Balochistan who were marching toward Gwadar. In response, the BYC announced to turn its rally in Gwadar into a sit-in.
Currently, life in Balochistan has come to a standstill due to the road blockades and communication blackouts in several areas. At least four protesters have been killed, and dozens have been injured in various parts of Balochistan as a result of firing by security forces. Additionally, hundreds of people have been arrested, with many facing charges of sedition. Although both the government and protest leaders have expressed a willingness to resolve the issues through negotiations, the talks have been hindered by deadlocks.
The BYC is a rights group advocating for the civil, political, and socioeconomic rights of the Baloch. It described the Baloch National Gathering as a “referendum against the Baloch genocide, the exploitation of Baloch resources under the guise of so-called megaprojects, and the conversion of Balochistan into a prison under the pretext of security.”
The spokesperson of Pakistan’s military, however, has denounced the BYC as a “proxy of terrorist organizations and criminal mafias” tasked to make development projects in Balochistan controversial. He has termed the Baloch National Gathering as an “unlawful violent mob” and the protests as foreign sponsored, claiming that a security personnel was also killed by “violent protesters.”
However, national and international rights groups have taken note of the situation. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said it had “received reports of violence against protesters… and alleged attempts by state authorities to intimidate leaders of the BYC into calling off the gathering, including through arrests and enforced disappearances.”
Amnesty International has called for “an end to the brutal crackdown on the Baloch protests and the immediate and unconditional release of all those arrested for exercising their right of peaceful assembly.” Human Rights Watch has asked the Pakistani authorities to “exercise restraint in responding to demonstrations in Balochistan province, release all detained for peaceful protest, and restore internet access.”
Pakistani authorities in Balochistan appear to have adopted a policy of suppressing peaceful political dissent in Balochistan with an iron hand. For years, the protesting families of the victims of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings have faced similar patterns of violence by security forces. In Gwadar, the authorities use such tactics to suppress protests for basic rights and protection of the livelihoods of local people. Even Baloch students highlighting educational issues time and again face violence and crackdowns.
The state apparatus of Pakistan views Balochistan through colonial and security lenses. It considers any political activities that raise awareness and mobilize the Baloch people to demand their national rights as detrimental to its extractive institutions and interests in this resource-rich and strategically significant region. Thus, the authorities deny space for peaceful expression of dissent and struggle for rights, which appears equivalent to deliberately pushing the Baloch people toward violent means of resistance. This might be because the authorities are accustomed to the use of violence and find it harder to deal with peaceful political movements due to a militarized mindset.
Amnesty International has also identified a pattern of violence against Baloch protests. Babu Ram Pant, deputy regional director for South Asia at Amnesty, stated, “Every time Baloch protests take place, their demands are met with violence by security forces and mass arrests…in what is clearly a punitive attempt by the Pakistani authorities to deter, vilify, and criminalize peaceful protesters.”
The government’s stance on the Baloch National Gathering has added to the apprehensions of Baloch people about their future in Gwadar, a coastal city in Balochistan. The port city is at the center of the $65 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship project of the Chinese Belt and Road initiative.
The government declared that it would not allow the BYC to hold the Baloch gathering in Gwadar, citing it as an “international city.” A Baloch activist told Voice of America that “Gwadar is being called a game-changer for Pakistan and China, so it was important to tell them and the international media that this land belongs to us… the crackdown shows Baloch are not allowed to enter Gwadar.”
The Baloch feel marginalized and excluded from the economic initiatives led by Pakistan and China in Gwadar. The indigenous population of this so-called “international city” still lacks access to clean drinking water and other necessities. Their way of life and livelihoods have been encroached upon in the name of progress and security. The Baloch fear that they will eventually be displaced from Gwadar and may turn into a minority in their homeland due to the potential demographic changes resulting from the influx of outsiders. Therefore, asserting their ownership of Gwadar and protecting Baloch rights there has become a critical issue in Baloch politics, seen as a matter of national survival.
The Chinese Consul General in Karachi Yang Yundong expressed Beijing’s view on the protests in Balochistan to reporters, stating, “We hope that all the political parties and social organizations take their overall national interest into account and to set aside that difference and focus on construction and economic development and to take the people’s interest as a top priority.” However, it is ironic that the interests and development of the Baloch people have never been incorporated into the framework of CPEC. As a result, what Pakistan and China describe as economic development, the Baloch consider it as colonization and exploitation.
The unrest and conflict in Balochistan have deep roots in the structural discrimination and colonial approach of the state toward Balochistan. The seriousness of Pakistani authorities in finding a peaceful solution to the Baloch national question remains in doubt. History shows that Islamabad’s policy of using force and military operations to resolve the Baloch problem has only made the situation worse. Unless those in charge of Balochistan affairs are beneficiaries of the conflict, there is no point in repeating the same old mistakes. There is simply no military solution to the problem.