Saba Dashtiyari, the Beacon of Baloch National Movement. By Hafeez Hassanabadi

Saba Dashtiyari, the Beacon of Baloch National Movement.

By  Hafeez Hassanabadi

Balochistan has completely been turned into a killing ground, from July last year up to now 200 mutilated dead bodies of Baloch youths has been received by Baloch nation. Eighty percent of them are among 29 to 18. Hardly there is any area in Balochistan where it did not receive its share of mutilated bead bodies of Baloch youths. Now the question is that why it is happening. Lot of other questions emerge what were their sins? Who are these people? What was their ideology they believed in? How many of them were common people? What is the number of leaders and the workers? Who were the intellectuals and the literary people, etc.

In this article it is not possible to encompass all these questions but let us directly treat the two questions which are very important keeping in view the assassination of Saba Dashtiyari. First why it is being so? And why Baloch intellectuals become victim of target killing?

The answer of first question is that Pakistan reading the written wall that Balochistan is drifting away from its control. Therefore, it thinks what its doing is very intelligent. But I think it is foolishness. But in a brief analysis, one can understand why the Baloch intellectuals are being killed? It is the proof of the fact that Pakistani state has failed in all other tactics in Balochistan, therefore, its carnage has now reached to the intellectual strata of the Baloch society, with an adamant policy of fruitless attempts, it has started to blind the eyes of Baloch society.

At the beginning, the big leaders were its targets, including Nawab Akber Khan Bugti, Shaheed Balach Marri, Shaheed Gulam Mohamad, along with several other top leaders, and then came the turn of cadres, in thousands were picked up. From April 9th 2009 onwards, up until now the dumping of mutilated bodies of Baloch youths is continuing. In a common situation, if 13000 outstanding sons of a small nation (this fact is not under discussion here how the colonial powers divided big nation like Baloch into three minorities of three countries) were made to disappear, the list of their names is provided by the Voice for Baloch Missing Persons and among them 26 bodies are beyond recognition, and their tortured dead bodies keep constantly appearing on roadsides: two things likely to happen, either they would be cowed into submission, or bravely keep their fighting against tyranny. But, they could not suppress the Baloch national movement. Not only is it vigorously forging ahead, but also attained a great momentum. The public ceremoniously bury their national martyrs shrouded with flag of free Balochistan After fulfilling the ceremonies of Islamic ritual of burial. And the Public recite the national anthem of Baloch nation, “We are the sons of Baloch nation”, on their cemetery. And the hair of the martyrs systemically issue statements and say that they are proud of what their sons did, that their sons have embraced the martyrdom for the noble cause of freedom movement that we want to tell Pakistan that we are not saddened at the martyrdom of our sons. Majeed Lango’s mother sacrificed her three beloved sons on the path of freedom movement. Rasool Baksh embraced martyrdom along with his brother. Both, Asim and Tariq were brothers. And several other martyrs, from every other home in Balochistan have taken place, and among them are children and elderly women and men. But every time they say that they never back down from offering sacrifices for the motherland. That Pakistan would not be able to dampen the well of freedom.

The thing that has troubled Pakistan the most is that it cannot destroy the national ideology of Baloch nation despite having atom bombs and other sophisticated weapons. It can kill people with guns but can’t put an end to the ideology. Now in such situation the only option remains for Pakistan is that to see towards opinion makers. In other words, the intellectuals, in the beginning they were tried for courtship, when they refused, they were intimated into silence. When both tactics failed, it started killing them just like the colonial powers did in the past, because they could not face arguments. The same thing is happening in Balochistan today. At the beginning the Balochi poet Mubarak Qazi and Dr Haneer Sharif and many more were made disappeared. Dr Alla Nazir was one amongst many who appeared before Public after inhuman tortures. They were booked in false cases. The Intention was to intimidate them into slavish submission; as at that time the freedom movement was not that progressed as it is today. Therefore, the state policy at that time was to punish them.

When it did not work, they started to suffocate those two daily newspapers which were covering the events in their true spirits and giving space to those opinion makers in an appropriate manner who were declared by state as traitors. Both newspapers were deprived of public advertisements. But despite all this they refused to be cowed.

After several threats and intimidations, on January 23, 2009 the owner of Dailyassap Jan Mohmad Dashti was fataly attacked, but it was a miracle that he defeated the dead. Even after such assaults Assap newspaper continued its publishing. But there came the day when the FC attacked its Head office in Quetta. After that it ceased to coming to its reader. So far the so called Pakistani media freedom fighters never said a single word against this aggression of Baloch Media. They seem to be fasting against the ban of Assap. This was how the DailyAssap was smashed under the boots of Pakistani military in the so called era of democracy.

Dailytawar is constantly being threatened; the reason why the impending attack on its office is delayed is that it’s located in Karachi. And it is a fact, that the forces in Karachi lack the power that they have in Balochistan. However, during this time not only the journalists are being killed but also the phenomenon of killing of them is on increase. The intellectuals and writers are the most victims of targeted killings after the active political workers. Naseer Kamalan, lala Hameed, Qamber Chaker, Rahmat Shaheen, Alyas Nazer, Hameed Shaheen and Ahmed Dad were not only political workers but also they had a contribution of literary works and they were among the serious people of Baloch society. The prominent intellectual Gous Bahar and Qazi Dad homes were several times raided. False cases have been filed against them. So far, it is their good luck that they have escaped the death.

It is unfortunate that there are some pro parliamentary elements from Balochistan government with Islamabad involved in this heinous game, been put together under the umbrella of PPCC by the ISI. They have the undeclared official consent of these pro parliamentary elements to spread terror in Baloch society. Saba Dashtary Knew this unholy formation of elements, and he openly spoke against them and said that the colonial state is engaged in terminating the genuine nationalist leadership so that the way is paved for pseudo nationalist who monger for provincial autonomy and right to self-determination. The first thing that can be deduced from the state policy with its stooges is that they have so far failed to understand the Baloch crisis. Therefore, according to their thinking the Baloch resistance is fuelled by foreign powers. These are the intellectuals who are playing the key role of nurturing the same thinking of the people who are willing to stand against the state. As a result it doesn’t continue for long, the problem would be forgotten and the Baloch and Baluchistan’s real issue would remain obscured behind media Blackout about which, Pakistani media has already maintained a criminal silence. The silence would prevail from all four sides as usual and, during this time, it doesn’t matter how much Baloch people are killed and because world would know nothing about it. Neither there remains anybody to logically present the case against the Pakistani crimes it perpetrating in Balochistan; hence the control over the situation. All those journalists and intellectuals were killed majority of them were pro freedom, except the pro internal autonomy, Waja Jan Mohmand Dashti. In the form of intellectual guidance Saba Dashtiyari was driving force behind the political maneuvers. That is way the pro freedom party BNM bestowed upon him the title of national pride ‘The Teacher of National Freedom Movement’.

And BLA decorated him with the title of ‘the Beacon of Freedom’. It shows how important Saba Dashtiari was for the freedom movement.Who is the killers of him and his colleague.

Translated by Archen Baloch