|
The exact
date of Kalat's occupation
By Hussain Bux Thebo
30-03-2007
As student of history I want to share with you
about Kalat.
The sorrowful state of affairs of Balocnistan were created because the cheat
and deceit on the part of Mr. Jinnah and weakness on the part of Mir Ahmed
Yar khan played pivotal role to put it into permanent bondage of
subjugation.
In 1946 the newly elected Labor Party
Government headed by Clement Attlee in Britain decided to send a 3-member
Cabinet Mission to India in a final bid to devise the methodology for the
transfer of power in India. The Mission comprising the Secretary of State
for India, Lord Pethic Lawrence, AV Alexander and Sir Stafford Cripps
arrived in India on March 24, 1946. The Khan of Kalat, on the advice of Mr,
Jinnah the legal advisor to the Kalat state at the time, approached the
Mission on behalf of his government to discuss the future status of his
state in the scheme of independence for India. The Mission advised the Khan
to have his case prepared by legal experts. Eminent lawyers as I I
Chundrigar, Sir Sultan Ahmed, Sardar BK Memon and Sir Walter Monkton were
hired to prepare the case for the Kalat state, which after vetting by the
Quaid himself, was submitted to the Mission in the form of a memorandum.
This memorandum, briefly, re-stressed the following major points:
That Kalat is an independent and sovereign state its status is different
from other princely states of British India , its relations with the British
government being based on various mutual agreements and treaties. That Kalat
is not an Indian state, its relations with India being of only a formal
nature by virtue of Kalat's agreements with the British and that with the
ceasing of the Agreement of 1876 with the Kalat government, Kalat would
regain its complete independence, as it existed prior to 1876. All such
regions including Quetta Municipality as were given under the control of the
British in consequence of any treaty will be returned to the sovereignty of
the Kalat state, and resume their original status as parts of the Kalat
state.
On March 22, 1947, Lord Mountbatten, the last
of the Viceroys of India, arrived in Delhi to wind up British supremacy in
this part of the British dominions. The final partition plan of June 3, 1947
stated in respect of transfer of power in India. Mr, Jinnah wrote to the
Khan of Kalat that since the position of the Kalat State was different from
the other Indian States, representation on behalf of the state should be
made directly to the Viceroy in Delhi to discuss the future position of
Kalat and the return of Baloch regions hitherto under the control of the
British Government. Accordingly, the Chief Secretary of Kalat State was sent
to Delhi with a draft of the new position of Kalat as prepared by legal
experts. This resulted in a round table conference, held on August 4, 1947,
in which Lord Mountbatten, Mr, Jinnah, Mr Liaqat Ali Khan, Chief Minister of
Kalat, Sir Sultan Ahmed, the legal Advisor of Kalat State and the Khan of
Kalat took part in the deliberations The following points were agreed upon:
"Kalat State will be independent on August 5, 1947, enjoying the same status
as it originally held in 1838, having friendly relations with its neighbors.
In case the relations of Kalat with any future government got strained,
Kalat will exercise its right of self-determination, and the British
Government should take precautionary measures to help Kalat in the matter as
per the Treaties of 1839 and 1841."
As a corollary to the round table conference at Delhi, another agreement was
signed between Kalat and Pakistan on August 4, 1947. The points agreed upon
were broadcast on August 11, 1947, as under:
"The Government of Pakistan agrees that Kalat is an independent state, being
quite different in status from other states of India; and commits to its
relations with the British Government as manifested in several agreements..
... In the meantime, a Standstill Agreement will be made between Pakistan
and Kalat by which Pakistan shall stand committed to all the
responsibilities and agreements signed by Kalat and the British Government
from 1839 to 1947 and by this,.... In order to discuss finally the relations
between Kalat and Pakistan on matters of defense, foreign relations and
deliberations will be held in the near future in Karachi." A few weeks after
the agreement, the Agent to the Governor-General informed the rulers of
Kharan and Lasbela that the control of their regions had been transferred to
the Kalat State. Hence they once again came under the direct influence of
Kalat. The Marri and Bugti tribal region was also returned into the Kalat
fold soon after.
Thus the whole of Balochistan came under the
suzerainty of the Khan of Kalat in the same confederacy of Baloch tribes
that Nasir Khan I, in 1666-67, was able to create. The Kalat government made
a formal declaration of its independence on August 15, 1947, soon after the
end of British supremacy, and a day after Pakistan's coming into being on
the map of the subcontinent. Immediately, a delegation comprising the Kalat
prime minister and foreign minister was sent to Karachi, the then capital of
Pakistan, for discussions and an honorable settlement vis-a-vis relations
with Pakistan in the light of the mutually endorsed Standstill Agreement of
August 11, 1947. To shock and grief of Khan of Kalat Mr, Jinnah coarsely
persuaded the Khan to expedite the merger. The Khan replied, "I have great
respect for your advice...... but Balochistan, being a land of numerous
tribes, the people there must be duly consulted in the matter prior to any
decision I take; for, according to the prevalent tribal convention, no
decision can be binding upon them unless they are taken into confidence
beforehand by their Khan." With this provisional agreement, the Khan
returned to Kalat and promptly summoned the Kalat State Houses of
Parliament, the Dar-ul-Awam and Dar-ul-Umra and proposed to the House to
accord him a mandate on the matter of Kalat's merger with Pakistan. Both the
Houses, however, contended unanimously that the proposal of Kalat's merger
militated against the spirit of the earlier agreement arrived at between
Kalat Government and the spokesmen of Pakistan on August 4, 1947, as also
against the Independence Act of 1947. This decision of Kalat's Parliament
was forwarded to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Pakistan,
for necessary processing. Shortly afterwords, the Mr, Jinnah visited Sibi
and during his stay there insisted upon the Khan to sign the merger
documents in his personal capacity. Finding reluctance in Khan Govt:
Pakistan Cabinet under the leadership and instruction of Mr, Jinnah working
on a scheme to breakup the 500-year old state. The nature of their scheme,
as it turned out subsequently, was tantamount to a political castration of
the Baloch people. Illegally and in violation of of 4th August 1947 round
table conference declaration and agreement made by Mr, Jinnah on the very
day with Khan, Stand Still Agreement and also Govt; of Pakistan's earlier
decion, it had decided to punish and encircle Kalat and Baloch people cut
off Kharan and Lasbela by giving them an equal status as Kalat and obtaining
their "mergers" with Pakistan directly. Makran, which had been a part of the
Kalat State for the last 300 years, was made independent of Kalat on March
17, 1948; and one of the three Sardars made its ruler. Thus Makran, too, was
made a part of Pakistan. These hasty, illogical, irrational and politically
illegal and oppressive steps naturally disillusioned the Baloch people. They
rightly felt that all their erstwhile services and sacrifices in the cause
of Pakistan were now forgotten. So deep was their despair and frustration
that several of them wanted to revolt. Meanwhile, the wave of hatred and
animosity generated by the irrational policies of the Government of Pakistan
against Kalat was fast gaining dangerous dimensions all over Balochistan.
Feelings in the tribal areas particularly were running high against Pakistan
and the Baloch people were calling the position of the Khan of Kalat himself
into question. Things were moving fast towards a show down.
The Government of Pakistan instructed the
Brigadier in Command at Quetta to go on full alert for action against Kalat
state and the Agent to the Governor General began to prepare for police
action. This was the situation as it stood in the first quarter of 1948
triggered by the illogical actions of the Pakistan. Under duress Khan of
Kalat signed the merger documents in his personal capacity on March 27,
1948, in an effort to diffuse the situation in Balochistan. In his
autobiography, he admits that he did not have the mandate to sign the merger
without the consent of the Houses of Parliament of Kalat State. A fortnight
after the merger, on April 15, 1948, the Agent to the Governor General in
Balochistan issued an order in the name of Mr, Jinnah, and the legal entity
of the Khan of Kalat was abolished and within 20 hours of the order many of
the members of the Balochistan Cabinet were arrested or exiled from
Balochistan. Prince Abdul Karim's revolt and first Baloch armed struggle
started in this back ground,
Hussain Bux Thebo
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Baloch options
in Iran
By Dr. Naseer Dashti
March 10, 2007
Modern Iran is a state that has been riddled with continuous internal
tension and deep differences amongst its
nationalities. This stems from the narrow Persian view that the militant
Shia doctrine is the only objective and authentic vessel of social identity.
For this reason, the use of various languages and the practice of different
religions were not tolerated in Iran. Despite the false beliefs of the
Iranian establishment that the Shia identity would eventually supersede the
national identities based on ethnic membership, ethnic identity remained
strong in most parts of the country throughout the history of modern Iran.
The present Iran is the continuation of Qajar Dynasty established in 1794,
replaced by Pahlavi Dynasty in 1925 and by ayatollahs in 1979.
The occupation of the Baloch territory by the
Persians was legalized through the treaty reached between Persian and
British Empires in 1873 dividing Balochistan by an arbitrary drawn line
known as Goldsmid Line. The Baloch in Iran are mainly concentrated in
southeastern and northeastern regions adjacent to other Baloch populated
areas in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Baloch under Persian rule for a long
period have been facing systematic repression and discrimination,
nevertheless, they have been resisting domination and cultural and political
hegemony. Despite occasional uprisings, many of them violent and explicitly
with nationalist overtures, the Baloch national question in Iran remain an
unresolved problem -- for the Baloch as well as for the Persian
nation-state. As the military confrontation between the west and the present
Iranian regime is eminent, many observers believe that there certainly be
political and geographical changes in the region where Baloch land is
situated. Discussions and debates among the conscious elements in Iranian
part of Balochistan and the Baloch is Diaspora is going on to adopt a viable
policy for the Baloch national resistance in Iran.
In their zeal to establish a superfluous Persian identity for the Empire,
and to achieve strict uniformity in social,
political and religious thoughts and approaches, the Baloch associations,
schools, publications, religious, cultural
or political organizations and teaching institutions are being steadily
targeted by state power, thus removing all
public vestiges of a separate Baloch identity. The Iranian authorities
believe that there was to be one nation with one language, namely the
Persian and they view Balochi language as a Persian dialect that does need
no
separate treatment. Baloch have been marginalized in all walks of state
institutions. They could not be found in
armed forces, administrative hierarchy, in foreign ministries, in judiciary
and other policy-making bodies of the
state. Other national minorities like Kurds, Azeris, Arabs and Turkmens in
Iran are also facing the same situation.
The nature of relations between Persian Empire and Baloch is marked by
sporadic armed conflicts erupted
throughout the period of occupation, the last organized battles were fought
under the leadership of Mir Dost
Mohamed in 1928 resulting in the defeat of Baloch forces and the collapse of
last Baloch principality in Western
Balochistan. The ever-present and ubiquitous will of the Baloch people for
the overthrow of Persian yoke acquired new dimension in 1970s. These were
the peak years for the waves of national liberation and right of
self-determination were considered the basic rights of suppressed
nationalities. The victories of the people in
Indochina and Africa over colonialism were the enlightening factors for
oppressed peoples all over the world. A
short-lived nationalist government in Pakistani Balochistan in 1973 gave the
necessary moral boost to the small
but flourishing nationalist movement in Western Balochistan. The other
encouraging factor was the weakening grip of Pahlavi dynasty and the eminent
collapse of the monarchy. The Baloch were optimistic that the new Persian
rulers might concede some sort of autonomy to Balochistan and rectify some
past brutalities. However, these proved to be only a dream. In all practical
terms, the oppressive integration-policies of Qajar and Pehlavi dynasties
were maintained and vigorously pursued by the ayatollahs. Many Baloch
political activist were imprisoned, tortured and killed by Islamic guards
and thousands escaped to other parts of the world as refugees. In matters of
integration and suppression of minority nationalities, the new Persian
Empire of ayatollahs had been pursuing the same policies and similar methods
of atrocities, assimilation, and integration prevalent between 1925 and
1979.
The processes of integration into nation-state
have been a strongest lever in putting high pressures on the Baloch to
assimilate into a superfluous religio-nationalist Persian identity.
In the circumstances of last many decades the ability of the Baloch national
sentiments in Pakistan and Iran to
survive extraordinary state repression are unprecedented. Although, the
oppressive forms of homogenization and integration have been painful for the
Baloch in Iran, the state efforts did not succeed in every respect. Baloch
identity and nationalism has a strong emotional appeal and an equally strong
politically mobilizing potential. The Baloch have been resisting and they
resisted because they were aware of the fact that in failing to resist the
exigencies of the Persian state, the outcome of painful integration and
acculturation would have been the loss of their sacred land, traditions and
cultural values. The Baloch in Iran have been endeavouring to formulate
strategies of the resistance to challenge the cultural, political,
economical and linguistic hegemony of the Persian Empire whether it was the
Shah or the ayatollahs. In the prevailing circumstances of increased Persian
pressures, the Baloch have only limited options. First is the option of
loyalty that is the willingness to assimilate into Persian identity and
become Farsi or Farsi-ban, or Gajar as the Baloch call them and in other
words, giving up their historical identity as a proud nation. The second
option for the Baloch is to negotiate for limited autonomy in linguistic,
religious or local political matters. The last option available for the
Baloch is the option to exit which consists in a rejection of the dominant
nationalism and the existing nation-state, and a consequent attempt to set
up their state.
The observers on the history of the region are stressing that the Baloch
should not be unmindful of the fact that Iran or countries occupying the
Baloch land, in the years to come, will further consolidate their hold on
the Baloch land and will never agree to give any kind of self-rule to the
Baloch or recognize their genuine rights. The Baloch had very bitter
experiences with the Gajar and Pahlavi dynasties. The Baloch demands for
self-rule constitute a democratic pursuit that is incompatible with the
despotism and religious-based nationalism of Shiite Iran. The saner elements
among the Baloch are in the firm opinion that for the Baloch in Iran it is
always suicidal to bank or rely on the reasonableness of the Iranian
authorities. History has sufficiently warned against such error in judgment.
By all calculations, it is out of question that the Persians could be
convinced to grant Baloch any kind of autonomy with out a serious and
sustained struggle. It is alien to Iranian sense of nationalism and
religious inflexibility to agree to any kind of political harmony that may
show any weakness. It is unthinkable on the part of the Persian religious
nationalism to give any impression even implicitly that any part of the
erstwhile great Persian Empire of the Cyrus the Great should be conceded to
the Baloch people. It is against the Shiite Psyche of religious
fundamentalism to bow before the wishes of a national minority in the empire
of the ayatollahs. On the other hand, it is also not in Baloch genetic code
to surrender its identity and its land and resources under duress, it is
unthinkable for a Baloch to be assimilated in the wider Persian identity.
Therefore, the only option left for the Baloch in Iran is to struggle for a
nation-state stressing on the UN principle of right of self-determination
which guarantees that the rulers must come from the people ruled. New
dimensions are being witnessed in international affairs since the fatal
events in September 2001 which are developing some sort of hope among the
oppressed nationalities in Islamic and fundamentalist states. If only 50%
percent policy statements from the western official circles are to be taken
seriously then it became obvious that in near future the situation in some
of the countries where Baloch are living will be drastically changed. There
will definitely be political, strategic as well geographical changes in the
region. The destruction, demilitarization or weakening of the Persian state
institutions and military apparatus is among the prime objectives of the
western alliance.
In response to the prolonged efforts based on ethnocide of the Baloch nation
in Iran, a strong ideological and
political revitalization current in recent decades has been building up in
Iranian Balochistan. Many among the
Baloch believe that the present situation is a god given opportunity for the
Baloch in Iran. The Baloch should use the important opportunity arose in the
political and strategic scenario of this region as an aftermath of the
terrorist attack in America to realize their centuries-old dream and
accomplish the task with all their strength regardless of certain subjective
inadequacies in the people and the leadership. Majority of the Baloch
political activists in Iran and Diaspora are stressing that the Baloch in
Iran should out rightly reject the idea for a struggle with the attitude as
to reduce it for a demonstration for economic demands, without laying
emphasis on the national and historical aspects of the Baloch national
question. They are in the opinion of a struggle with the clear-cut aim of
establishing a separate geographical entity for the Baloch.
The Baloch political activists in Iranian Balochistan and in Europe are
feeling an emergent need that efforts should be made on emergency footings
to form a ‘National Front’ of all nationalist forces. A few years back, the
formation of Balochistan United Front of Iran by different political groups
in exile was considered a welcome sign; however, it failed to deliver and
soon disintegrated. It is imperative to understand the ground realities of
international polity and formation of a national front of all nationalist
forces in Balochistan and Diaspora should be given priority again.
Baloch masses must be given a clear target and it should be the insistence
on the right of self-determination. The national front should be
instrumental in bringing about a sustained coordination between armed
resistance in Iran and political activities abroad. Fundamental among other
tasks of the national front should be to strive for the negation of any kind
of religious connection with the Baloch national resistance in Iran. In the
fight against repression, it is also fundamental to identify and announce
boldly the friends and foes. It should be clearly and loudly declared that
the Baloch are on the side of the international forces fighting against
religious fundamentalism and terrorism. The National Front of Baloch
patriots should be of the conviction that both political and economic powers
are inalienable rights of the people of Balochistan. Its mission therefore
should be to contribute to the task of total political and economic
liberation of Balochistan. The Baloch United Front of Iranian nationalists
should struggle against the opportunist ideas, which justify capitulation.
Perhaps it is the proper time for the present generation of Iranian Baloch
to discover its mission, to exploit the prevailing international situation
in favour of the Baloch nationalism, and to fulfill the mission of
emancipation from foreign hegemony.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shia-Sunni Violence
Spreads in Iran
MIDDLE EAST:
Kimia Sanati
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=36643
TEHRAN, Feb 20 (IPS) - A week after alleged Sunni militants blew up a
vehicle transporting members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC),
killing 11 and injuring 18, sectarian tension is reported prevailing in the
predominantly Sunni southeast that borders Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The car bomb attack in Zahedan, capital of the southeastern province of
Sistan va Baluchistan, was attributed by Iranian officials to the Sunni
militant group Jundullah (army of god) that has networks in Pakistan and is
fighting to establish a unified, independent Baluchistan. It is regarded as
a terrorist organisation by both Iran and Pakistan.
On Monday, Nasrollah Shanbezehi, one of four men captured soon after they
set off the car bomb, was hanged at the site of the blast. Nasrollah was
earlier shown on local state-run TV channels confessing to the bombing and
having crossed over from Pakistan a few days before the attack on the IRGC.
Despite efforts by the Iranian government to contain the spread of religious
sectarianism within the country, Jundullah has carried out several terrorist
attacks in the province, including the assassination of four policemen
earlier this month. It is allegedly responsible for the kidnapping and
assassination of a number of clerics and officials and a bloody road
massacre in Kerman province last year.
Jundullah, also called ‘Popular Iranian Resistance Movement’, has accepted
responsibility for the attacks. In a press release dated Feb. 14 and posted
on the Internet as well as in interviews with radios and satellite TV
channels outside Iran, the leader of the group, Abdul Malik Rigi, said the
operations were carried out in retaliation for the execution of its members
by the Iranian regime.
The self-styled 24-year-old militant from Baluchistan's Rigi tribe goes by
the title ‘Emir Abdul Malik Baluch,’ and professes peaceful methods as long
as Tehran follows the same principle. "But in the face of the regime's
violent response to peaceful protests, there has remained no other way than
to resort to taking up arms,’’ the press release said.
Following the attack, a senior security official in Zahedan said the
terrorist operation had been directed "from abroad" and that arms and a
powerful bomb had been recovered from a hideout raided by the police the
night before the car bombing, Iranian Labor News Agency (ILNA) reported.
In his short confession, Nasrollah said he had been recruited by Jundullah
only three months ago and had undergone two months of training in Pakistan
under 'English-speaking' instructors. He said he had been promised a reward
of around 1,000 US dollars by the group and that his only motivation was
money.
The name of Jundullah, said to be a splinter of Jundullah of Pakistan, first
emerged after a hostage-taking incident in the Sistan va Baluchistan
province in January 2006 when militants abducted nine members of IRGC. The
hostages were allegedly moved to Pakistan.
Footage aired by the Al-Arabiya satellite TV channel later showed the
hostages who Jundullah said would be executed unless 16 of their members in
Iranian jails were freed.
One of the hostages, an IRGC officer, was later executed by the group and
the footage was offered to Al-Arabiya but the channel declined to air it.
The others were later released through ‘negotiations’, with the government
denying that it paid any ransom.
In March 2006 members of the group dressed in police uniforms attacked the
motorcade of the governor of Zahedan, killing 22 members of his entourage on
the spot and abducting 12 more. The governor himself was badly wounded but
survived.
Hossein Ali Shahriari, who represents Zahedan in parliament, has accused
Western governments of not doing enough to get Pakistan to stop allowing
militant groups from operating from its territory. Shahriari accused the
United States, Britain and Pakistan of assisting Jundullah to foment
sectarian violence in Iran, the Aftab News Agency reported.
But Shahriari also blamed national security agencies of failing to establish
security in the lawless province even after the recent attacks and suggested
arming the local people and allowing them to participate in law enforcement
as counter measure.
Other Iranian officials have also pointed fingers at Pakistan and 'certain'
Western countries. "They entered Iran from Pakistan and have carried out
their attack with full support from Western powers. They are neither Shia
nor Sunni, they are dependents of arrogant powers and are equipped and
supported by them," Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) quoted a senior
provincial security official as saying.
Sistan va Baluchistan straddles the main drug-trafficking route from
Afghanistan and Pakistan to Europe and is among the poorest and most lawless
provinces in the country. Many locals resort to drug trafficking and
smuggling in order to survive. Malnutrition is at critical level among the
natives and the frustrated majority Sunni population is minimally involved
in government decisions.
"Frustration will naturally drive desperate locals to groups such as Rigi's
as long as poverty, the main problem in the province, remains unsolved.
Sectarian discrimination, no doubt, is also another contributing factor but
those arrested so far mostly belong to impoverished groups in Baluchistan
and have no support among Sunni intellectuals. The Iranian government bears
equal responsibility. The IRGC and its militia wing (Basij) practically rule
the area," a political analyst in Tehran told IPS, asking not to be
identified.
"There is clearly a sectarian war going on in the Islamic world. Iraq was
not the starter, but was certainly a catalyst. Scores are now being settled
in places other than the main battle field and Iranian Baluchistan is one of
them. There were bloody stand-offs between the regime and militant Sunnis as
early in the early 1990s when al-Qaeda and Sunni extremists were becoming
hugely active in Pakistan and Afghanistan,’’ the analyst said. (END/2007)
|