Balochistan

A very ugly reality

The HRCP also blamed school syllabi for spreading sectarian hatred and hatred of other faiths.

Editorial April 17, 2014

The HRCP has warned that civil war is now a possibility, the grim end-result of the widespread sectarian violence and it is a warning to be heeded. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE

There are dark echoes of Nazi Germany in the ghettoisation of Hazaras in two localities of Quetta. In the 1930s and through World War 2 the Jews of Germany, Poland and wherever else the Third Reich held sway were confined to areas of cities that were little different to prisons. Those Hazaras that live in and around Alamdar Road and the 11 kilometre-square Hazara Town are now hemmed in by checkpoints, and do not have free passage. Many have fled the persecution, and according to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) about 30,000 have migrated in the last five years. Almost 1,000 Hazaras have been murdered since 2009. It is not just the Hazaras that have fled Balochistan, 10,000 Hindus have left — driven out by kidnapping-for-ransom and pressure to change their faith.

The other parallel with the dark history of European countries is more recent than World War II — and it is the Balkan wars of the 1990’s that gave rise to the term ‘ethnic cleansing’. It is not difficult to see the similarities between what happened in Serbia and Croatia and what is happening in Balochistan today. People being driven from their homes, lives and livelihoods destroyed. It is happening to rich and poor alike, educated and illiterate it makes no difference. Their ‘crime’ is that they are simply different, minorities, in a province that turns a blind eye to their plight. The HRCP has warned that civil war is now a possibility, the grim end-result of the widespread sectarian violence and it is a warning to be heeded. The HRCP also blamed school syllabi for spreading sectarian hatred and hatred of other faiths, and the extremist mindset is pervasive among teachers and their students of every age. Minorities of faith and sect are safe nowhere in Pakistan. Although the example of Balochistan is probably the most alarming case of minority persecution, it is to be found in every province of the land. Christians, Hindus, Ahmedis and Buddhists are all leaving the country when they can, and religious persecution is a dark strain on the national escutcheon.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 18^th, 2014.

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COMMENTS (4)

Raj - USA | 10 years ago | Reply Hazaras, a largely peaceful community and not heard of participating in any violence or acts of terror are targeted not only for their shia sect but also for their ethnicity. They are considered the shudras of muslims in Pakistan. They face problems and discrimination not just in Pakistan but in some pockets in Afghanistan too. I clearly remember even today, what my Afghan friend told me ....... "If you want to insult or mock someone, call him a Hazara". My Afghan friend or his family did not have any hate for Hazaras but only considered them lower class. In Afghanistan they do not face death by slaughter, but in most parts of Pakistan, they face extreme hate and are killed ruthlessly. They are looked down upon in Afghanistan and that too only in some pockets, but do not get killed ruthlessly as in Pakistan. Hazaras, on the whole, are better educated, enterprising, and a peaceful community. But even Imran Khan, like all other leaders, be it Zardari or Nawaz Sharif, will do nothing for them and shall stop at just issuing a customary condemnation, once in a blue moon. No one shall follow through with any action or spearheading a legislation to demonstrate that they really meant it when they condemned it.

Haider | 10 years ago | Reply

@ali: But they are the only one who are being killed just because of their faith.

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ali | 10 years ago | Reply hazaras are not the only people getting killed in Pakistan

Freeha Shaukat | 10 years ago | Reply

This is the unvarnished Truth. HRCP is absolutely correct. The list of diverse victims is unaccounted for and multiplying. Anyone who thinks the comparison is a stretch is unaware of ground realities. Supporters or tacit approvers of this regime are just as disgusting as supporters of That regime, and are the ones to blame for Allowing this. People need to check back in history about how the whole of Europe attempted to appease Evil men prior to WW II until their Power was Irreversible. A Public that turns a blind eye as usual deserves the Consequences to Come. Their Enemy has Nothing to do with Faith, it is Anyone who Dares to Disagree.

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