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The displaced
Baloch
06-04-2008
By Shehar Bano Khan
DADO had lived happily with her seven siblings in Koho, Dera Bugti, until
that fateful day which changed her life for the worse. Soon thereafter the
16-year-old found herself, along with her brothers and sisters, seeking
refuge in different parts of Balochistan to escape the conflict that
annihilated her home, her village and her school in Dera Bugti.
Two years later Dado has turned into an embittered, fiery 18-year-old whose
understanding of the Balochistan conflict goes beyond political discourse
rooted in debates on the concurrent list and provincial autonomy, or the
need to strengthen the federation, remove inter-provincial strife and
restore national cohesion. She has lost everything to the political jargon
mouthed ad nauseam by politicians since Partition. Her province, in the
meantime, has been pushed to the brink of implosion.Dado’s family members
are among the 84,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Balochistan who
lack access to health care, food, shelter and state protection. This huge
mass of people has been shunted out of Balochistan — by the government, no
less — since the military operation began in January 2005, purportedly to
suppress tribal militias.
Though the government continues to deny the mass displacement of the Baloch
people, hundreds of families can be seen living in decrepit, makeshift camps
outside Quetta, Jaffarabad and Naseerabad.
Kachkol Ali, leader of the opposition in the outgoing Balochistan Assembly,
claims that the number of displaced people has exceeded 100,000, with
children suffering the most through a perplexing aid blockade foisted by the
government. These ‘insignificant’ people have come to signify the state’s
military strength. The drive to root out ‘terrorists’ from Balochistan is in
actuality a game plan in which suppressing provincial autonomy is the
primary motive.
Innocent victims like Dado cannot, quite understandably, link their
displacement to state-sponsored definitions of terrorism. Their queries
about the unfairness of a forced itinerant existence leave a huge unanswered
gap between political necessity and humanitarian aid apathy.
Dado’s little brothers and sisters want to know why their home was
destroyed, when they will be able to eat three meals a day, instead of one,
and if they will ever live in one place for more than a month.
These people, displaced within their own country for reasons not answered
through politics, constitute one of the biggest human catastrophes of South
Asia. An official working for the UNHCR, who did not wish to be named,
disclosed that after the story of the displaced Baloch was first printed in
the western media two years ago, all roads leading to conflict zones in
Balochistan were closed.
“Aid workers were not allowed to have direct contact with the people and
were instructed to carry out aid service through local authorities.
International aid agencies like Oxfam, Care and the International Committee
of the Red Cross have been denied the right to provide relief to these
people. That was two years ago, but if you visit the people who have been
forced to move as far as Sindh you’ll see that nothing has changed and their
condition is still the same,” said the UNHCR official.
A report compiled by Unicef was released shortly after news of the IDPs hit
the media. It revealed that 28 per cent of children under the age of five
were acutely undernourished, of which six per cent suffered from acute
malnutrition. Children under the age of five account for 80 per cent of all
recorded IDP deaths.
In the same year, a five-member provincial committee was formed to deal with
the IDPs crisis. The committee members included Abdur Rehman Jamali, Abdul
Ghafoor Lehri, Saleem Khosa, Juman Khan Bugti and Kachkol Ali, but their
recommendations were not taken up by the government.
The term ‘Internally Displaced Persons’ applies to citizens of a sovereign
state, people who are forced to flee as a consequence of military operations
carried out not against foreign aggressors but citizens of a theoretically
independent country. This is the defining paradox of our ‘independence’. The
bleakness of this internecine conflict becomes ever more grim when people
living outside the physical perimeters of Balochistan are made to believe
trumped-up stories of rebels demanding secession and the omnipresence of
terrorist organisations constructing ‘havens for global destruction’. These
are lies.
Accepting the justification of the military operation, the denial of aid
relief to the IDPs is inexplicable and not helped by the government’s
persistent refutation of this man-made catastrophe. All Pakistanis need to
realise the reality of the misery inflicted on Balochistan.
http://www.dawn.com/
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Can the Arrow
thwart Iran's Shihab 3?
By YAAKOV KATZ ; 06-04-2008
In the face of Iran's continued race towards
nuclear power, as well as growing tensions with Syria, the Israel Air Force
will hold an exercise in the coming weeks to test the Arrow missile defense
system's capability in tracking an advanced Iranian Shihab 3, The Jerusalem
Post has learned.
The test will be held over the next few weeks and will test the capabilities
of the Green Pine Radar - an integral part of the Arrow missile defense
system - as it tracks a missile made by Rafael - called Black Sparrow - that
mimics an upgraded version of Iran's Shihab 3 ballistic missile.
Defense officials said that the Black Sparrow would be fired by an IAF
fighter jet off Israel's coast. The missile will mimic a Shihab 3 carrying a
split warhead and with advanced radar evading capabilities. The Green Pine
Radar will attempt to locate and identify the incoming missile and the
Citron Tree battle management center will then relate the information to the
Arrow battery. A missile will not be fired in the exercise.
News of the planned drill came Thursday as defense officials tried to
downplay reports of renewed tension with Syria amid reports that Damascus -
fearing an Israeli attack - has been beefing up its forces along the
Lebanese border and calling up reserves.
Defense officials said that the planned
simulation was part of the Arrow's annual test program and was not connected
to intelligence concerning an imminent conflict with any of Israel's
neighbors. Later in the year, the IAF plans to hold another drill, during
which it will test-fire an Arrow missile to try and intercept an incoming
missile.
Two weeks ago, the defense establishment decided to press forward with the
development and production of Arrow 3, a more advanced version - in terms of
speed, range and altitude - of the current Arrow 2 version in IDF operation.
Israel last tested its Arrow missile in February 2007.
Two weeks ago, Defense Ministry Dir.-Gen. Pinhas Buchris visited Washington
DC for meetings with Pentagon officials to discuss continued American
funding for the Arrow, which is built in cooperation with Boeing. Officials
would not reveal how much money was needed to develop the Arrow 3, but said
that the cost would reach several hundred million dollars.
http://www.jpost.com/
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Yaghub Mehrnehad is
victim of Persian nation building and Shiite expansionist
By M. Sarjov ; 06-04-2008 ;http://sarjau.blogspot.com/
Yaghub Mehrnehad’s sin is that he is Baloch
and a victim of Persian nation building and Shiite expansionist, and
international arrogance toward the Baloch nation. Why should the
international community care whether Iran adopt an assimilation model of
nation hood and citizenship?
The international community has always been
aware of the problems minority groups face in a Persian dominated Iran.
There concern is that it be managed properly. Disaffected minorities have
been a source of conflict since the nineteenth century, and the struggles of
secessionist minorities have repeatedly redrawn the map of the world states,
in violent and destabilising way. Nothing more disturbs the peace of the
world than the treatment measured out to minority groups. What has changed
over time is the way this minorities problem is imagined, and the proposed
remedies. The world need to understand the conditions that the Iranian
Baloch are in, if they want to make sense of the current activities of the
Iranian regime and the dilemma it has put Baloch into. Iran is a multi
ethnic nation and Shi’ite majority.
Balochistan has been divided in between three
states Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. However, the Baloch language,
culture and sense of nation hood is still alive. Some Baloch still pursue
aspirations for a unified Baloch homeland. Iranian occupied Baloch
populations are a Sunni sect of Islam. Iranian constitution discriminates
against non Shiite communities and limit their participation in civil
servant jobs and businesses. The Iranian Regime mistrusts Baloch and regards
them as British, American and Saudi collaborators. Iran actively encourages
Sunni Baloch to change their religion to Shiite sect of Islam. The regime
rewards those who are willing to change their religion to Shiite with a job
for life.
For decades Tehran regime pursued that to
replace indigenous languages and culture, into Persia. But for the last
three decade Tehran has pursued the religion change in Balochistan, in some
cases the regime has achieved some success in cites like Iran-shar and
Saravan.
The regime has faced some tough resistance from some corner of societies.
Groups like Malik Regi (Jondullah) has taken to armed resistance, others
like Moullavi Islam Paskohal used peaceful means to resists religion
assimilation. They have been jailed on false charges leveled against them,
and they have no access to a lawyer.
Iran pursues the idea of Persian homogeneity.
It has always been accepted that the Iran holds a sizeable Baloch minority.
It exists as a distinct, linguistic, cultural, into the indefinite future. A
wide range of justifications have been offered for pursuit of assimilation.
In some context, it was argued that the state needed to be more unified in
order to effectively defend itself against external or internal enemies. Who
would be the state internal enemies?
Cultural unified state was easier to administer and would have a more
efficient labor market. These sorts of racist ideologies which claim that
language and culture of minorities and indigenous people were backward and
inferior and barbaric, unworthy of respect to preserve. Within the
territories of Iran there are many groups possessing their own homeland,
language, history, culture, heroes, and symbols. Baloch are one of these
groups that are excluded entirely by the process of nation building . If
individuals accept assimilation then second-class status stigmatisation is
rewarded to them by the Persian Tehran-centric ideologies used to justify
the nation-state.
Indeed Yagub Mehrnehad is typically the target
of these policies since the Islamic regime in Tehran thought he is the
greatest obstacle to assimilation, and in Tehran’s nation building. Tehran
regime has created deep rooted forms of exclusion and subordination for
Baloch combining political marginalisation, economic disadvantage and
cultural domination. The claim that the international community has
legitimate interest in the treatment of minorities is a dramatic break with
tradition reversing the long standing assumption that states should have a
relatively free rein to manage ethnic diversity. Baloch basic human rights
such as freedom of speech, association, and conscience, while attribute to
individuals, are exercised in community with others, and so provide
protection for a minority group life. Where these individual human rights is
firmly denied it is felt further minority specific rights are needed to
protect Baloch minority in Iran from the Tehran regime. International
community have a duty to protect Baloch from genocide just as they protected
Kosovo from Serbia.
Iran has ignored three security council resolution, Iran is pursuing a
nuclear weapons programme, the Tehran regime has no respect for the
international community. The Iranian president stated that Iran will wipe
the Israel from the face of world on ideological grounds, but before the
Iranian president is able to do that with Israel, the Tehran regime will
wipe Baloch from the face of Iran if it is not contained.
Baloch’s problem is not an issue of separating
from Iran and joining another state, it is an issue of self-determination.
Iran is the only old Shiite ideology that survived the twentieth century,
and it is getting more and more difficult for the Iranian people, as well as
creating a crisis for the whole world.
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When Choosing Not
to Choose Becomes a Choice
11/04/2008
By Amir Taheri ; http://www.aawsat.com/
As always, the only thing that really mattered
in the recent elections in the Islamic Republic in Iran was voter turnout.
This is because, with all candidates approved by the authorities, the only
choice that voters had was to go to the polls or not.
Before polling day, the leadership did all it could to emphasize the
importance of voter turnout.
“Supreme Guide” Ali Khamenehi spoke of “a new vote of confidence” in the
Khomeinist system. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad described voter-turnout as
a test of his administration’s popularity.
What happened, however, was not what Ahmadinejad and Khamenehi expected.
Judging by official data published by the government and available on the
website of the Islamic Ministry of Interior, a majority of eligible voters
boycotted the exercise.
This was the lowest voter turnout in the history of the Islamic Republic in
a parliamentary election, especially in urban areas.
Those eligible to vote in the first round numbered almost 50 million. (The
precise figure given by the Interior Minister is 49,431245. That number
jumps to almost 50 million in the second round as those who have just
reached the legal age gain the right to vote).
However, the total number of those who voted was 22,832,000, a suspiciously
round figure, about 46 per cent of eligible voters, according to the
Interior Ministry.
From that total we must deduct almost two million votes, described as
“wasted”. These are ballots that had been torn, doodled upon or had names
other than official candidates added. According to Interior Ministry sources
thousands of ballots had “indecent slogans” scribbled on them. This means
that some who went to the polls did so to register a protest.
We have always maintained that even a bad election is better than none. If a
bad government could be removed through elections, it would be wrong to
dismiss electoral politics.
Last week we saw an imperfect election open the path for ending Robert
Mugabe’s disastrous rule in Zimbabwe.
No one expects a similar event in the Islamic Republic, at least not this
time.
Nevertheless, the Iranian election, too, deserves attention as a life-size
photography of public mood.
Obviously, one cannot assume that there was no cheating and that no ballot
boxes were filled for candidates enjoying greater official favor. Elections
in Iran are not supervised by an independent commission, as is the case in
genuine democracies, and candidates are not allowed to post observers at
polling stations.
Even then,the latest exercise offers a number of interesting lessons.
The first is the implicit popular rejection of the Khomeinist system,
especially in urban Iran.
In some cities, notably the national capital Tehran, those who voted
accounted for fewer than 20 per cent of the eligible.
Average voter turnout in the main cities of Iran’s 30 provinces was just
over 30 per cent.
In Tehran, that figure fell to just 19 per cent. Even then, most of those
elected in Tehran in the first round won less than 25 per cent of the votes.
Ghulam Haddad Adel, the current Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly
(Majlis), Iran’s ersatz parliament, topped the poll with just over 840,000
votes out of almost 10 million eligible voters. That is no more than 8.4 per
cent of Tehrani voters.
A similar pattern was seen in Mash'had, Isfahan, Shiraz, Ahvaz and Rasht,
provincial capitals where the Khomeinist establishment received a bloody
nose.
In Abadan so few voters turned up that the authorities had to cancel the
first round and order a re-run.
If official figures are believed, the Khomeinist system retains a popular
base in rural areas and some small towns but would lose big in all cities
with a population of over 100,000.
The second lesson of the election is the growing isolation of the regime in
parts of Iran where ethnic and/or religious minorities predominate. Voter
turnout in the province of Kurdistan, where almost half of Iran’s four
million ethnic Kurds live, did not exceed 25 per cent.
In the province of Sistan and Baluchistan, home to Iran’s estimated 1.8
million ethnic Baluchs, most of them Sunni Muslims, fewer than 20 per cent
voted.
Areas inhabited by Turkmens and the Taleshis, most of them Sunni Muslims,
also experienced what amounted to a massive boycott. In Hashtpar, the
stronghold of the Taleshis on the Caspian Sea, only 12 per cent voted.
The third lesson is that candidates least identified with the authorities
did better than those known as committed Khomeinists.
Ahmadinejad supporters, representing the most radical faction, will have a
majority of the seats in the new Majlis. Most of them, however, were elected
with fewer votes than those independent candidates who also manage to win.
Candidates identified with the “loyal opposition” also won with a better
margin. If the independents and “loyal opposition” figures did not end up
with a majority, the reason is that they were not allowed to field enough
candidates.
This means that a majority of Iranians would rather not vote for any
candidate approved by the regime and that of those who do vote a majority
would prefer candidates least identified with the system. Judging by the
results of the first round, 67 per cent of the seats in the next Majlis will
go to newcomers. This is a massive no confidence vote against the incumbents
who claim to have given the moribund revolution a “second breath”.
A more detailed sociological study of the results could take weeks to
complete.
But the first assessments reveal a number of interesting facts.
Chief among these is that dislike of the authorised candidates is common to
Iranians from all walks of life.
The extent of the boycott was such that one cannot claim that only the
better-educated and better-off middle class voters decided to stay home. It
is clear that Khomeinism as an ideology has also lost some of its appeal
among the poor and illiterate masses.
The message is clear: Most Iranians don’t want Khomeinism and, if forced to
choose only among Khomeinists, would go for the least committed.
But what if they are allowed a choice between Khomeinists and non-Khomeinists?
That is the crucial question of Iranian politics in the years to come.
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Tolerant Baloch
Religious Leaders executed in Iran
Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis ;
http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/58466
April 14, 2008
A few days ago, in an article entitled ´Appeal
to Save the Lives of 2 Baloch Teachers in Iran´
(http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/57991), we unveiled the ferocity
of the Shia theocratic tyranny of the Ayatullahs of Iran.
Three identity issues are not allowed in the Ayatullah theocracy; you cannot
be patriotic nationalist and struggle for your country´s independence, if
your fatherland happens to be peremptorily included in today´s intolerant
Iran.
You cannot be Zoroaterian, Sunni Muslim, Ahl-e Haq Muslim, Bahai or follower
of any religious minority. If Eastern Christians of Aramaean origin are
allowed to worship their faith under socio-political limits and always at
the margin of the society, the rest are terribly oppressed because it is
assumed that they lack international support or even interest.
In addition, you cannot be tolerant in Iran; the social behavioural model
that the Ayatullah tyranny has imposed is all of totalitarian nature, and
even religious leaders cannot indulge themselves in tolerance, moderation,
temperance and balance.
If you happen to resume all three aforementioned identities, Baloch, Sunni
and tolerant, you have great chances to be forced to confess that you
committed all sorts of crimes the tyrannical authorities may ask you, and
then to be paradigmatically executed. This happened early in the morning of
April 9, when the two Baloch moderate preachers, Moulavi Mohammad Yousuf
Sohrabi and Moulavi Abdol Qoddoos Mollazehi, were executed.
The international community failed to save two innocent persons´ lives;
let´s hope that next time the case of the tyrannized Balochs of Iran will
thoroughly preoccupy international bodies, humanitarian NGOs, Human Rights
activists, and democratic governments and people allover the world. The
illegitimate Iranian control of Balochistan must take an end.
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The Islamic Republic of Iran is creating civil war between Sunni and Shia in
Iran
By Reza Hossein Borr ;16-04-2008 ; Baloch Culture Yahoo Group
London, 15 April, 08--Following the executions of two innocent religious
leaders in Baluchistan on 9 April, a huge explosion on 13 April rocked
Shiraz, the capital of Fars province, in which dozens of people were killed
and injured. While the Iranian government tried to imply that the explosion
was caused by some ammunitions left in the building after an exhibition, the
people who witnessed the explosion claimed that it looked more like a
planned terrorist activity. Explosion of stored ammunitions usually happen
one after another when the explosion of one device triggers the explosion of
the next one but in this case, there was only one explosion that created a
huge and deep hole in the ground.
The place that was the target of explosion was the centre of organised
activities against Bahais and Sunnis. Anjavi, the leader of this centre, is
a controversial character and was able to attract 3000 to 4000 people every
week on Saturday evenings. In his sermons, he despised the Sunnis and
brainwashed ordinary Shia people against them. He was supported and financed
by the security forces.
The fact that such provocative speeches were delivered in the centre
regularly, indicates that the Iranian regime has been planning to spread
hatred against the Sunnis of not only Iran but the whole world. While there
are hundreds of centres like this in Iran in which the ordinary Shia people
are brainwashed against the Sunnis, the Iranian Sunnis are not allowed to
defend themselves and neutralise these hate mongering sermons. This is very
important to notice that a large number of Sunnis live in Shiraz and the
neighbouring cities.
It was not only the common sense but also in the interest of the country to
prevent the activities of such centres all over Iran but there must be a
hidden agenda by the Islamic Republic of Iran to entice the Shias against
the Sunnis. How the regime can utilize this issue is not yet investigated
but it is a matter of vital importance for the researchers to conduct
investigations to know why the Iranian regime has established such huge
centres in which religious hatred is propagated.
The Jihad Movement of Iranian Sunnis, a new organization, accepted the
responsibility for the explosion and announced its formation in the same
statement as well. This organization claimed that it has planted the bomb
because the Shia Islamic Republic of Iran has executed a large number of
innocent Sunnis including the two religious leaders in Balochistan. The
statement claimed that the regime has suppressed the demands of the Sunnis
for their religious and national rights and has responded to their
legitimate demands for fair share of power in the regime with mass arrests
and mass executions. It also warned that the Iranian regime would face the
consequences of its atrocities in the Sunni areas of Iran if it does not
stop the execution and oppression of innocent citizens of Iran who believe
in Sunni religion.
This organization claimed that it was supposed to begin its activities in
the next six months but as a result of execution of Sunni religious leaders,
it had to begin its activities earlier than planned and responded to stop
regime's atrocities. It also warned that since the Shia regime of Iran is
killing the innocent Sunni people, therefore, the Shia people of Iran will
be its targets indiscriminately.
Some analysts who had seen the statement believed that a new political
organization which intends to achieve human rights and equal opportunities
cannot put together such a huge bomb in such a short time and target
innocent prayers. The two religious leaders were executed in Baluchistan on
9 April and the explosion happened on 13 April. The bomb which is estimated
to have been about 30 kilos, cannot be built very quickly and specifically
by the ordinary people who happened to be desperate for revenge. They
believe that the making of such a bomb requires complicated devices as well
as a huge quantity of explosive materials and advanced skills and technical
people who are well organised, therefore, they believe that the explosion in
Shiraz was designed and implemented by a very powerful organization with
access to huge amount of materials and complete access to the site. A new
organization cannot do that in Iran, and therefore, it is concluded that the
Iranian regime has organised this criminal explosion to generate hatred and
conflicts between the Sunnis and the Shia population of Iran.
The execution of the two Baluch Sunni religious leaders was a provocative
act that only could have resulted in widespread protests by the Sunnis of
Iran. But so far, the Sunnis are not organised in political organizations
and therefore, cannot engage in such huge activity. Some analysts believe
that the People's Resistance Movement of Iran (PMRI) had such facilities and
skills but the spokesman of this organization flatly rejected any
involvement in this event and reiterated that they have very clear defined
mission statement and goals and they will never target innocent people in
mosques or other conference halls. The spokesman said that they are against
any act that may involve the killing of innocent people.
The human rights activists and the Sunni leaders of Iran regularly claimed
that the regime was planning inciting the Shia people against the Sunnis in
order to divert the legitimate political activities of the Sunnis for their
religious rights and proper share in the political power. They have said
that since the regime is facing widespread pressure by the Iranian ethnic
and religious groups and it is not ready to accept their demands for legal
rights, it tries to mobilise support from the Shia people of Iran by
inciting them against the Sunnis. Similarly, the Iranian national and ethnic
groups, including Kurdish, Turkish, Baluch, Arabic, Lor, and Turkamenian
organizations have joined forces and formed a huge national coalition: the
Congress of Nationalities for a Federal Iran. Again, instead of responding
to their demands for equality, the regime decided to set the Fars Community
against these communities to divide the Iranian people in racial terms and
backgrounds. But the Congress and the Sunnis were sufficiently vigilant to
neutralise this conspiracy and announced that ethnic groups of Iran and
regional political parties see the Fars Community as an ally and therefore
the Islamic Republic of Iran is responsible for all the miseries, poverty
and oppression that have happened in the country. Yet the Iranian regime
tries to set the Sunnis against the Shia instead of accepting their
legitimate rights for equality. The regime also had tried to set the Fars
community against other racial and religious communities of Iran and raised
the issue of territorial integrity of the country and pretended that the
Iranian ethnic groups intend to break the country and therefore, through
this false claim, mobilise the Fars community to support them.
The Iranian regime has committed serious crimes against the Sunnis and other
ethnic groups in Iran. In the last few weeks, the bodies of five Baluch
women were discovered in plastic bags in Balochistan. Attack on women in
Baluchistan is an act which has not precedent. In Baluch tradition, women
have always been safe and nobody has touched a woman for hundreds of years.
This is the first time that the Baluch women have been kidnapped, raped and
killed and left in the streets or around the cities. This act is clearly a
provocative act to incite violence among the Baluch and Sunnis of Iran
against Shia women. Yet, so far the Baluch and Sunnis of Iran have exercised
restraint and refused to get into traps that the Iranian regime has laid
before them but this will not be tolerated for a long time. If the
organization that has claimed responsibility for the explosion in Shiraz, is
a genuine Sunni organization, then we will witness a new political phenomena
in the country. This would be the first time that a Sunni organization has
acquired the capability for designing and implementing a huge explosion in a
city which is not predominantly inhabited by the Sunnis. It also proves that
the regime has united the Sunnis all around Iran against itself.
Shiraz is the capital of Fars province. It is an old city with a very
positive reputation not only in Iran but in the whole world as it has
produced two of the greatest poets of Iran and few top philosophers. Fars is
also the cradle of the Iranian civilisation before Islam. So far it has been
free from any violence. A large number of Sunni people live in Shiraz and in
Fars province. There is no accurate information about their numbers but it
is estimated that they may constitute 30 to 40 percent of the population of
the province. The Sunnis of Shiraz and Fars province have very close
relationship with Arab countries. A few of Arab tribes still live in Fars
too. A large number of Sunnis have migrated from Fars to Arab countries and
have set up very successful businesses.
Whether this explosion was caused by a Sunni group or by the regime itself
there are reasons for concern. The Sunnis and Shias have experienced
tensions in their relationships after the Safavid dynasty introduced Shia as
the official religion of Iran. As the absolute majority of the people of
Iran were Sunnis before, the Safavid dynasty had to threaten to kill a large
number of Sunnis in Iran to force them to convert to Shiism. Kasrawi, the
prominent historian, wrote that 20, 000 Sunni Turks in Tabreez, Azarbayjan,
Iran, who refused to convert to Shiism were killed in few days. The breasts
of their wives were cut off and their children were forced to convert. This
was the way of converting the Sunnis to Shia during the Safavid dynasty but
after the end of their violent period, and specifically after the emergence
of Nader Shah, the last great king of Iran who was a Sunni, the violence
between Shias and Sunnis subsided.
With the emergence of the Islamic Republic of Iran, anti-Sunni propaganda
began widely and effectively. Few Sunnis were persuaded by money and
position to convert to Shiism but the rest of the Sunnis began to reinforce
their Sunni identity and refused confrontation with Shias. At the same time,
the Shia people of Iran have demonstrated considerable maturity in refusing
to be incited against the Sunnis of Iran. They are aware that the regime
wants to use them against the Sunnis. They are also aware that this regime
has inflicted numerous blows to the reputation of Shiism and has turned it
into a terrorist religion. They are also aware that the Shia people are in a
minority in the world. They only constitute about 10 percent of Moslems and
confrontation between Shia and Sunni Moslems will not be in their best
interests. At the same time the Shia people of Iran are aware that Sunnis in
Iran are located along the borders of the country and have blood
relationships in neighbouring countries. All the Sunnis of Iran have their
family and tribal extensions in Sunni Afghanistan, Sunni Pakistan, Sunni
Turkmenistan, Sunni Kurdistan, Sunni Turkey and Sunni Arab countries of the
Persian Gulf. Any conflict between Shias and Sunnis in Iran would mobilise
all the neighbouring countries against the Shias in Iran and endanger the
lives of the Shias in the Islamic world gravely. If the Sunnis see the
massacre of Sunnis in Iran, they will massacre the Shias in their own
country.
The Iranian government also must not underestimate the number of Sunnis
inside Iran. The Sunnis constitute between 15 to 20 million. They are
located in strategic areas. They have access to the neighbouring countries.
The international community is watching the Iranian regime very carefully.
It has no friend in the region. While the Sunni people of Iran have millions
of blood-related relatives in the neighbouring countries. The Iranian
government and the Shia people of Iran also must remember that Iran is
surrounded by the Sunni countries which have been the targets of terrorist
organisations sponsored by Iran. If the regime thinks that it can massacre
the Sunnis of Iran and the neighbouring countries and the world will remain
silent, it is absolutely wrong in its assessment of the situation.
If Sunni killing becomes widespread, Iran will be disintegrated. Pressure on
the Sunnis to convert to Shiism was the cause of disintegration of Iran in
17, 18 and 19 centuries. Three million square metres of Iranian territory
seceded from Iran because of Shia pressure. The rest of it will be
disintegrated if the Shia regime and the Shia people of Iran do the same
gross mistake of committing genocide or a major ethnic cleansing of the
Sunni people happens.
Reza Hossein Borr is a leadership consultant and the creator of 150 CDs and
14 Change management models. He is also the author of Manual Success, Manual
of Coaching and Mentoring, Motivational Stories that Can Change Your Life,
and a New Vision for the Islamic World. He can be contacted by email:
balochfront@ aol.com
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The serial killer
of 20 Baluch women was captured in Iran
By Reza Hossein Borr ; Baloch Culture Yahoo Group
London, 17 April 08--The serial killer of 20 Baluch women was captured in
Zahedan, Balochistan, Iran on 16 April 08. The killer was captured after he
used his taxi to pick up three Baluch women from a hospital. The three
women, one old and two young, directed the taxi to go to the address they
had given him but suddenly he diverted his course and when the women
protested, he began beating the old woman that was sitting in the front
seat. The two young women who were sitting on the rear seats took off their
headscarves and grabbed the man from behind
The killer lost control of the car and the car began swirling and went off
the road. At this stage, another car noticed the struggle inside the car and
forced the taxi driver to stop. The women described the situation and driver
of the new car and his companions captured the taxi driver and moved him to
a safe place. The taxi driver confessed that he has already kidnapped 20
Baluch women and handed them to Iranian security guards. He also confessed
that all these women were raped, tortured and killed by the security guards
and their bodies were either left in plastic bags or buried in the desert.
Those who captured the serial killer recorded his confessions and they will
be available on Internet very soon. The authorities in Baluchistan have
approached the religious leaders and tribal chieftains of Baluchistan and
demanded that the serial killer should be handed over to them. It seems that
neither the Baluch religious leaders nor tribal chieftains have access to
the Baluch who captured the killer. So far, the security forces have began
to pressurize the leaders of the Baluch people to keep this matter quiet.
The killing of the Baluch women began about
four months ago when three Baluch women disappeared after they took a taxi
from a hospital to return home. They never returned home and their bodies
were discovered few weeks later in plastic bags in the suburb of Zahedan
city. Two Baloch women disappeared about four weeks ago and their bodies
were found two weeks ago. There have been other cases that the Baluch women
disappeared but nobody knew what happened to them. When the relatives of the
victims approached the authorities they were told that they would look for
them but so far no body has been discovered. It seems that the bodies of
these women have been buried in in somewhere which is only known to the
killers.
The disappearance of women in Baluchistan is a very new phenomenon. Women in
Baluchistan are considered sacred and have never been hurt by anybody. They
have never been arrested, kidnapped or killed. The Baluch women are not
involved in politics and therefore, arresting, raping or kidnapping them is
the most dangerous violation of Baluch code of conduct and code of honour.
When rarely such incidents have happened, they have caused long wars and
considerable loss of life. Dad Shah, the legendary hero of Baluchistan,
fought the Shah for 14 years when somebody pretended to be in his home alone
with his wife.
Dad Shah found the pretender not in Baluchistan but in Oman and killed him.
After that when he found out that there was a conspiracy to discredit him by
his wife's misconduct, he began a war against the conspirators who were
among top tribal leaders. Although his campaign was social but it turned
political when he killed two Americans in the late Fifties. Today Dad Shah
has found a prominent place in the history of Baluchistan. Many books have
been written about him. Few films have been made demonstrating his bravery.
He is a legend now and the subject of many epics.
When the women were announced liberated during the Shah and their hijabs and
headscarves were removed by force all over Iran, the Shah's regime even
could not dare thinking of doing the same thing in Baluchistan. Kidnapping
of the Baluch women has not been just thinkable. The Islamic Republic of
Iran is the first regime in the history of Baluch people that has ordered
the kidnapping, raping and killing of Baluch women.
The consequences of violating the most sacred values of Baluch people would
be very dangerous.
Reza Hossein Borr is a leadership consultant and the creator of 150 CDs and
14 Change management models. He is also the author of Manual Success, Manual
of Coaching and Mentoring, Motivational Stories that Can Change Your Life,
and a New Vision for the Islamic World. He can be contacted by email:
balochfront@ aol.com
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Suppression of Sunnis is Counter to National Unity
By Abdol-Karim Lahiji: - 22-04-2008 ; http://www.roozonline.com/
Following the arrest of cleric Mamusta Ayub Ganji, a Sunni Friday prayer
leader in the Kurdish town of Sanandaj in Iran, Abdol-Karim Lahiji, the
president of the Paris-based International Federation of Human Rights
Leagues spoke with Rooz about the incident and its implications.
Rooz (R): Under what conditions is a Friday prayer leader of the Ghaba
mosque in Sanandaj arrested and what is your take on it?
Abdol-Karim Lahiji (AKL): The arrest of Sanandaj’s Imam (Friday prayer
leader) follows the restriction that continue to be placed onto the Sunnis,
including their clergy in Sunni populated regions of the country. This is
of course not the first time authorities are imposing such constraints and
policies. Just ten days ago two clerics were hanged in Zahedan, also a
Sunni stronghold. Yes, such things take place in the Islamic Republic of
Iran. And of course as usual, officials said that these individuals had
affiliations with rebels. But nothing about the issue such as when where
the individuals tried, what exactly were the charges against them, was any
court-acceptable evidence available, etc has been announced.
R: What is the cause root of such acts?
AKL: The Islamic Republic (of Iran) is an ideological oligarchy. This means
that a group of people reserve special privileges for themselves. This
group believes in the Velayat Faghih, i.e. the rule of the clergy. Since
the time Velayat Faghih was incorporated into the constitution of the
Islamic Republic, even before the constitution was ratified, the first
slogan that they began to spread was “death to opponents of Velayat Faghih.”
So this regime cannot live with any one other its die-hard supporters. This
is the nature of the regime. It is because of these inherent properties
that the regime is considered totalitarian. See how easily Mr. Ahmadinejad
labels individuals as corrupt or spy.
R: What is the legal status of the accusations that are made this way?
AKL: They have been using the term “counter revolutionary” for their
opponents ever since the (1979) revolution. Then they provided a Shii cover
for the term and came up with things like Mohareb (rogue in Arabic) or
Mofsed fil Arz (corrupt of the world in Arabic) etc. And they do not
discriminate in this regard and have no mercy on any one. At one time they
used to say that the Islamic regime has no tolerance for dissidents but now
it does not even tolerate those who support it. Even if that person is
(former president) Khatami or (former Majlis speaker) Karubi.
R: What do you think is the effect of such measures on the religious
minorities and society in general?
AKL: The same situation that existed for non Muslims is now being practiced
against Sunnis, Sufis and any one who does not accept the Velayat Faghih
idea. Even Shiites who do not recognize this idea are persecuted. No one
can doubt the religious leadership of Mr. Montazeri (at one time appointed
to succeed Khomeini). But they treated him very harshly. We must take note
that if the Iranian population has a 20 percent Sunni following, this
branch also has a national-ethnic identity and peculiarity by being a Kurd,
Baluchi, Turkmen, etc. And displeasing them can produce dangerous
consequences because of their regional position which exists since the
first invasion of Iraq (i.e. 17 years ago when northern Iraq was completely
separated as Kurdistan). We have the same gravity in Turkmen and Baluchi
populated regions which are Sunni followers. So discriminating a part of
the population from the whole nation because of their religious beliefs and
pushing them to national-ethnic issues because nationality in Iran is
identified around the 12 Imam Shiite beliefs and Velayat Faghih only means
that the Islamic Republic has absolutely no belief in the national unity of
the country.
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Baloch Nationalism and the Geopolitics of Energy Resources: The Changing
Context of Separatism in Pakistan
Authored by Dr. Robert J. Wirsing ; 22-04-2008
The author examines the energy context of the simmering Baloch separatist
insurgency that has surfaced in recent years in Pakistan’s sprawling
Balochistan province. In particular, he looks at how Pakistan’s mounting
energy insecurity--a product of rapid increase in demand coupled with rising
scarcity and the region’s intensified energy rivalry--has both magnified the
economic and strategic importance of this province while at the same time
complicating Pakistan’s efforts to cope with the province’s resurgent tribal
separatism. The author concludes that Pakistan’s government needs to
overhaul its counterinsurgent policies to avoid protracted conflict and to
enlist the Baloch as partners in energy development, not antagonists of it.
Read Now>>>>
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