| Profile: Baloch Nation of Iran , An Interview with Nasser Boladai |
| Sima Sahar Zerehi |
| sahar@shahrvand.com |
|
This is part four of
our series profiling the various nationalities and ethnicities in Iran. In
the past few issues we have spoken to Dr. Reza Baraheni about Iran’s
Azeri-Truks, with Abed Hamidi about Arab-Iranians, and Dr. Amir Hassanpour
concerning Iranian Kurds. In the next two issues we will learn more about
the Baloch nation in Iran. Biography Nasser Boladai Mr. Boladai was born and raised in a little village called Sarbog, in western Balochistan, Iran, where he finished high school in 1981, at the age of 15. At that time he was forced to leave the country due to his political activities. Since then he has lived in Pakistan, England and is now residing in Sweden. He has a Master's degree in Arts, a degree in Linguistics and a degree in Computer and System Science. Currently, he works as a job consultant at the Swedish employment department. Mr. Boladai is a member of the editorial board for a Balochi and Persian magazine called TRAN, which is devoted to political and cultural discourse among Baloch's, and other Iranians. He has contributed numerous articles to this magazine on national self determination, people’s sovereignty, Federalism, Balochi language and literature specifically in the area of Balochi Folklore. Politically, he is active as a spokesperson abroad for the Balochistan Peoples Party. In this capacity he has represented the party in different national and international forums. Balochistan People’s Party is a Liberal Democratic Party. It struggles to achieve the Baloch people’s sovereignty within a Federal Democratic Republic in Iran. It has formulated a federal democratic framework which envisages a system based on parity of constituent parts in which, constituent's borders within Iran will be redrawn according to the language, history and people’s wishes. The new republics will have equal rights in all spheres of power. Can you tell us a little about the history of the Baloch population in Iran? Balochistan is located in the south east of the Iranian plateau. Its geographical location between India and the Mesopotamian civilization gives it a unique position as a cross roads between earlier civilizations. Some of the earliest human civilizations emerged in Balochistan. Mehrgar the earliest civilization known to mankind is located in eastern Balochistan; the Kech civilization in central Makuron dates back to 4000 BC; The Burned city near Zahidan, the provincial capital in western Balochistan, dates back to 2000 BC. Balochsitan’s total Area is 340,000 square miles, and it commands more than 900 miles of the Arabian coast line and the Persian Gulf. We the Baloch, regard this vast land as our rightful land; Balochistan is divided between the three countries of Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan. Since its occupation by foreign powers, several uprisings to gain back independence have occurred. However, in modern times in the second half of the 20th century, most uprisings and struggles have been to achieve self-rule and shared sovereignty within existing borders, in secular federal democratic systems. Among the most significant invasions of Balochistan was the Arab incursion in the seventh century AD, which brought far-reaching social, religious, economic and political changes into the region. In 644 AD an Arab army, under the command of Hakam, defeated the combined forces of Makuran and Sindh. The period of Arab rule brought the religion of Islam to the area. The Baloch tribes gradually embraced Islam, replacing their centuries-old Zoroastrian religion. During the anarchic and chaotic last phases of Arab rule, the Baloch tribes established their own semi-independent tribal confederacies, which were frequently threatened and overwhelmed by the stronger forces and dynasties of surrounding areas. The defeat of Baloch forces at Khabis and Bumpur resulted in the complete victory of the Ghaznavis dynasty over Balochistan. During most of the 12th century, southern Balochistan was under the control of Seljuks, before the arrival of the Mughuls. Towards the beginning of the sixteenth century the Portuguese captured several places along the Makuran coast. The period from 1400 to 1948 AD can be distinguished for the declining grip of the surrounding powers on the Balochistan and the rise of Baloch influence. The predominance of Baloch socio-political and cultural institutions is the characteristic of this period. Historically, the British occupation of the Baloch State of Kalat in 1839 was perhaps the greatest event and turning point in Baloch history. From the very day the British forces occupied Kalat, the Baloch destiny changed dramatically. The painful consequences for the Baloch were the partition of their land and perpetual occupation by foreign forces. In 1849, an Iranian army defeated Baloch forces in Kerman and captured Bumpur. The Baloch political status was changed radically in later decades, when in 19th century the British and Persian Empires divided Balochistan into spheres of influences, between the British Empire in India and the Persian Kingdom. The Anglo-Afghan wars and subsequent events in Persia in respect of “the great game” played out between Tsarist Russia and the British Empire further marginalized the Baloch people. The Baloch in Western Balochistan have been in constant revolt against the domination by and chauvinistic policy of Iranian governments. The revolt of Jask (1873), of Sarhad (1888) and the general uprising in 1889 resulted in a scorched earth policy by Iranian forces in 1889, aimed at suppressing the Baloch rebellion. A major uprising under Baloch chieftain Sardar Hussein Narui in 1896 prompted a joint Anglo-Persian expeditionary force to crush the resistance. The resistance was crushed after two years and Chief Narui was arrested. With the resultant weakening of the Qajar dynasty in Iran after the death of Muzzafar-al Din Shah, and the preoccupation of British authorities dealing with the Baloch uprisings in the Eastern Balochistan, the Baloch tribal chiefs in the West began consolidating their hold on their territories. In the beginning of the twentieth century, Bahram Khan gained control of almost the entire central and southern region of Western Balochistan, ending the occupation by Iranian forces. In 1916, the British recognized him as the effective ruler of Western Balochistan. His nephew, Mir Dost Mohamed succeeded Mir Bahram Khan. Mir Dost Mohamed’s attempts to consolidate his power coincided with the rise to power in Persia of Reza Khan in 1921. In 1928 the Iranian forces began an operation against Mir Dost Mohamed. Skirmishes continued for seven months and ended in the victory of Iranian forces over the Baloch and the eventual surrender of Mir Dost Mohamed. Thus Western Balochistan was finally annexed by the Persian Empire. Until the Shah’s overthrow in January 1979, the Baloch Nationalist Movement in Iran was a relatively insignificant force compared to the movement in Pakistani Balochistan. Due to suppression, the harsh methods that were used by Iranian security forces and persecution by SAVAC (the Iranian secret police under the Shah), its leaders were forced to emigrate and operate underground from foreign countries. They had little ongoing contact with their widely scattered supporters inside Iran. The handful of Baloch activists who braved the Shah’s repression, kept alive the spirit of resistance to Persian domination and thus directly set the stage for the resurgence of nationalist activity that took place after the overthrow of the Shah. After the Shah’s overthrow a new political force emerged in Balochistan, alongside traditional leaders comprising mostly of the educated young people. Historically, what has been the attitude of the Iranian governments towards the Baloch community? Have there been any changes to this attitude? In the Iranian controlled part of Balochistan, the Baloch are rapidly losing their identity. The previously Baloch-dominated regions of Bandar Abbas, part of Kerman, Seistan and Zabol are the most affected areas of the assimilation efforts by the Persian state. Now in all these areas the Baloch are a minority, even the capital city of Zahidan does not look like a Baloch city. The Baloch in Iran are completely excluded from the structures of political, social and economic powers of the country. The dissemination of Balochi culture and language is a declared act of treason against the state and is dealt with through brutal measures. Many army garrisons are permanently stationed in Baloch areas. For most of the fifty years of Pahlavi rule, Tehran had to depend primarily on the use of overt military force to keep the Baloch areas under control, even when there was little co-ordinated insurgent activity. Mahmoud Khalatbary, who served as Director General of the Central Treaty Organization (CENTO), in a discussion with Selig S. Harrison recalled that: “In CENTO, we always assumed that the Baloch would attempt to create their own independent state some day, with Soviet support, so it was desirable to keep them as politically weak, disunited, and backward as possible.” This policy was implemented in practice so that in the last years of the Shah’s regime Balochistan was the poorest province “with an estimated annual per capita income of $975, less than half of the $2,2000 national average for rural areas and less than one-fifth of the overall national average.” Balochistan is still the poorest province in Iran, followed by Kurdistan. The demise of the Palavi dynasty and establishment of the Islamic Republic have not brought about any positive changes to the situation of the Baloch people, but rather have worsened the oppression. Baloch people in Iran are treated as third class citizens, and are deprived of their cultural, social and economic rights. Some highlights of Iranian government’s chauvinistic policies are: The use of the Balochi language is forbidden in public places and Baloch children are deprived of using their mother tongue as the medium of instruction at school. The Iranian government does not allow any kind of freedom of press in Balochistan. Successive Iranian governments have been engaged in demographic manipulations to systematically reduce the Baloch people to a minority in their own homeland. Government policy has been based on giving easy access to non-Baloch to purchase land at a cheap price. The policy of keeping the Baloch backward has resulted in the lack of job opportunities and impoverishment of the entire population. The policy of Iranian governments in dealing with different sectors of Baloch society is based on “divide and rule”. Baloch society traditionally is tribal and feudal. The Shah based its policies on using these different rival tribes or feudal families to keep its hold over Baloch society without giving any attention to the Baloch majority’s aspiration for social, economic and political justice. The Islamic regime of the ayatollahs, in addition plays the religious card, by dividing religious leaders and using them for its own purposes. Women in Iran are in general considered second class citizen and not equal to men in any aspect of life. Baloch women are in a worse situation than their Persian and Shiite sisters because of national and religious differences. The Baloch are mostly Sunni Muslims. Iranian law does not give Baloch women adequate protection. Protection that is provided by the tribal system and Baloch tradition is not enough to give women their due share and equal right to participate in the development of a modern society, so women are the poorest segment in the Baloch society, suffering from gender, national and class discrimination and oppression. The politic of the Iranian Government in Balochistan is characterised by human rights abuse. It has distorted political, economical and cultural development of Balochistan and insulted the human dignity of Baloch people. The Baloch are discontent because they have not been allowed the right to use their native language. The Baloch are disenchanted because they do not receive any benefits from the resources found in their homeland. They are disillusioned because they are exploited economically and in the process are kept away from the power structure of the state. The Baloch are disappointed because religion is manifestly used as a means to assimilate Baloch nationality into Persian national identity in Iran. These basic realities have reinforced the Baloch’s general feeling of frustration and on the other hand the Iranian government policies have led to different political and socio-economic situations, in the different parts of country. Literature and footnotes Desmond M. Clarke and Charles Jones (ed), The rights of Nations, Nation and nationalism in a changing world, 1999. Selig S. Harrison, In Afghanistan’s Shadow: Baloch Nationalism and Soviet Temptations, Carnegie Endowment for Peace, New York 1981. Shahid Fiaz, Peace Audit Report 3, The Peace Question in Balochistan, South Asia Forum for Human Rights, Katmandu 2003. Inayatullah Baloch, 1987, the Problem of ”Greater Balochistan”, Stener Verlag Wiesbaden GMBH Stuttgart. Khan, Mir Ahmad Yar Khan, Inside Balochsitan, Ma’aref Printers Karachi, 1975. Ahmad Ali Khan Waxir, Tarikh Kerman, p 65-66-, (In Persian). Farhang- e Iran Zamin, Compiled and edited by: Iraj Afshar, Tehran 1990. Dr Naseer Dashti, Baloch in Iran: What Option they have?, Balochunity.org, http://www.balochunity.org/index.php?opinion+&did=157 Source: http://www.shahrvand.com/EN/Default.asp?Content=NW&CD=IV&NID=8#BN34 |