London gathering: Baloch and Sindhi leaders and activists paid tributes to Baloch Guerilla Leader Nawabzada Balach Marri

LONDON: A meeting was held on 2nd December 2007 in University of London Union building at Mallet Street London UK. The gathering was organised by WSC (World Sindhi Congress), SBF (Sindhi Baloch Forum) and BAC (Balochistan Action Committee UK) A number Baloch, Sindhi and other human right campaigners from UK participated in the meeting to pay tributes and respect to Baloch National leader and hero Nawabzada Mir Balach Marri.

Samad Baloch conducted the proceedings of the meeting. The gathering observed 2 minutes silence to pay their tribute & respect to Shaheed e watan Nawabzada Mir Balach Marri and the other martyrs of balochistan.

A Large number of Sindhi and Baloch leaders and activists also spoke at the occasion.

Speakers paid tribute to the courage, seriousness and resoluteness of the Baloch leader. While paying tributes to the brave son of the Baloch land, the speakers highlighted his role in the Baloch national resistance for independent. They said that Balach Marri’s name will be written with golden words and he will be remembered as a Baloch National hero in the history of Baloch Nation. The speakers termed the martyrdom of Balach as a model of sacrifice and courage for the Baloch, Sindhis and other oppressed nations.

Speakers urged upon the Baloch to unite in order to defeat the oppressors and exploiters of the Baloch land. Speakers declared that the dream of Balach Marri and his comrades will live on and the dreams of a bright future which they cherished and for which you shed your blood will become reality.

Speaking at the occasion Dr Lakhu Luhana tried to present the life sketch of Balach Marri. “Balaach was born in 1966. He is the fourth among six sons of Saeen Khair Bux Marri. He was named after the great 15th century Baloch hero Balaach of Chaker-e-Azam era. It was the last days of military dictator Ayub Khan and the genuine Baloch leadership was under a lot of intimidation. He started his primary education at Queeta Grammar School. He was only six in 1972 when the government of Saeen Attaullah Mengal was removed forcibly at the instigation of military. The entire area around Saeen Khair Bux’s house in Queeta was surrounded by military and Balaach witnessed his father being arrested at the hands of army. The encirclement of the house continued for many months after the arrest. Baloch people started a resistance struggle against the atrocities and crimes of Pakistani army brought upon Baloch people and arrest of their beloved leadership. He remembers these days when many wounded, some near to death Baloch men, women and children use to come to hide in their house. This was one of the worst periods in Baloch history. This was the time when Chamaling massacre took place. Thousand of Baloch people were forced out of their homes and were moved to ghettos in Multan and Dera Gazi Khan. The military used to take many Baloch people in helicopters and threw them from the height and enjoying filming them when they were falling down in air. During this period more than 50 thousand Baloch men, women and children were killed and that equates to 1% of the total Baloch population. Growing Balaach was the first hand experience of the Baloch suffering and use to hear these stories from his elder brothers and other elatives.

Saeen Khair Bux was in prison for next 7 years and Balaach was only able to see his father couple of times during this period. When Saeen Khair Bux was released in 1979, Balaach has entered his secondary education. In 1980, Saeen Khair Bux moved along with his family and thousands of Baloch people to Afghanistan. Balaach continued and finished his secondary education there. Balaach was an extraordinary student he excelled in all his studies. He was a keen student who really loved his school and studies. This was the period when Balaach started to learn and understand politics. He started to attend the study circles run by Saeen Khai Bux that included Marxist philosophy, history of Baloch people and Balochistan and about the possible options for political struggle and emancipation. The study circles and discussions also included the analysis of international situation. At that time a lot was happening in Afghanistan, there was a socialist government; it was a usual place for many leftist and liberal activists and intellectuals from the surrounding countries. The study circles and the interactions that Balaach had during this period had a deep mark on his understanding of Baloch issue. He is also believed to be probably the nearest to Saeen Khair Bux among his sons. Balaach interacted more frequently with his father, which he uses to call as ‘Ada’. Pakistan agencies did not stop the atrocities against Baloch people even in Afghanistan. Pakistan conveyed to so-call mujahdeen that who ever will kill a Marri Baloch would be given 5000 Rs. The mercenary mujahdeen use to kill innocent Baloch people and show the photo of the body to earn 5000 Rs. His understanding about the struggle and suffering of Baloch people took deep roots during his stay in Afghanistan.

After finishing his secondary education in Afghanistan, Balaach moved to Moscow to finish his higher education in communication engineering. Again, he proved to be an excellent student. Moscow University was the place for people around the world, particularly from developing countries with enormous political, social, economic problems. Balaach was very effective in interacting with many people from that time Soviet Union and from many other countries with revolutionary ideas and enthusiasm to bring a change. He continues to maintain many of the relations that he established during this period. His stay in Moscow appeared to have broadened his understanding of Baloch struggle from an international perspective.

Saeen Khair Bux returned to Balochistan in 1992 and Balaach returned in 1993 after completing his studies. He left Balochistan at the age of 14 as an adolescent and returned as a full-grown young man of 27 years. Next few years were relatively calm, as some believed that milder forms of political struggle might bring some positive change. During this period, Pakistani agencies tried to bribe and discredit Saeen Khair Bux and his family to coerce them to allow them for oil and gas exploration in Marri area. When the Pakistani agencies realised that it impossible to surmount the tallest mountain of Balochistan, Saeen Khair Bux Marri, they decided to pressurise, coerce and intimidate him and his family. In 2000, the entire family of Saeen Khair Bux was implicated in the murder of Justice Marri. Saeen Khair Bux was imprisoned. Balach incidentally was at that time in London and at the advice of his family and Saeen Attaullah decided to be here due to the circumstances. Here he immediately set up on working to raise awareness among the international community about the disadvantaged position of Baloch people. He became very close to Saeen Attaullah and worked tirelessly to inform international community about Baloch suffering. He firmly believed in the combined struggle of Baloch and Sindhi people. He was one of the founders and first secretary general of Sindhi Baloch Forum established in 2001. The purpose of this forum is to provide common platform to Baloch and Sindhi cause at the international stage. He participated in the 2002 elections in absentia while here and won the elections overwhelmingly. In early Nov. 2003, he went back and He attended only one session of assembly during oath he did not say the words “that he shall be honest to Pakistan” but instead he said he will be loyal to his motherland which of course meant Balochistan. Balach was offered seats and to join PML-Q but he turned down all the offers. Soon realised that the Pakistani agencies were after him and re-filing false cases against him thus moved to Kahan and never attended a session of the assembly again. He started working on to develop the backbone of the current Baloch struggle. One of his greatest achievements is that he resolved long-term feuds between Marri and Bugti tribes and brought back Saeen Akbar Bugti back to the fold of Baloch national cause. This demonstrates his visionary and statesman capabilities. He organised the Baloch struggle not as a Marri struggle for entire Baloch nation and popularised it. He brought the Baloch struggle to a new level and recognition within Baloch nation, other oppressed nations, within international community, and within the Pakistani establishment. The impact was so much that on many occasions general Mushraf mentioned him explicitly to be eliminated. Close to him, tell that from very beginning he was a perfectionist and wanted to bring perfection in Baloch struggle so that it does not bring part of the history.

We were proud to work with him while he was here. He was a through gentleman with enormous passion for his people and motherland. He had very analytical mind and try to dissect everything. He was humble and caring. He had the immense sense of realisation that what historical responsibility was on his shoulders and had a mountainous determination to fulfil it.

In the path of this fulfilment, he has sacrificed his head but he has raised the head of Saeen Khair Bux even higher, he has raised the heads of his family and friends even higher. Most importantly, he raised the heads of entire Baloch nation even higher in pride to the sacrifices of one of their finest heroes who now will be remembered and loved among Baloch people and other oppressed nations in Pakistan forever. He has sacrificed his head so that the head of Baloch nation could be crowned with liberty, dignity and peace.”

Another prominent Sindhi speaker Dr Haleem Bhatti of World Sindhi Congress said as following “Today we gathered here to pay tribute to great Baloch Nationalist leader, hero and legendry che Guevara of the Baloch freedom struggle, Mir Balach Marri who was martyred by Pakistan’s military on NO 20th. World Sindhi Congress offers its heartfelt condolences to the Baloch people on the loss of one of their finest sons and charismatic leader, who paid the ultimate price for the liberation of his country and Nation.

We strongly condemn the barbaric crime of Pakistani military who repeatedly have unequivocally reiterated their intention to eliminate genuine Baloch leadership. The death of Balach Marri is not going to affect the Baloch resistance. We know that the ultimate sacrifice of Balach will not go in vain. He was and will always remain a source of inspiration for the people of Balochistan and Sindh and his sacrifice will prove a beginning of an end to the subjugation of Baloch and Sindhi people.

Balach, Nawab Akbar Bugti, Nawab Nauroz Khan, Chakar-e-Azam and so many other great martyrs will be remembered as great heroes of the Balochistan and the wealth of Baloch Nation; perhaps no one else has such wealth. They become bigger then their bodies and their souls. They transform into tier spirit of the nation, they never die, and they thus defeat the death. The prefect thing upon which nation becomes proud.

Balach was son of a Nawab who left all comforts of the life in London for the hills of Balochistan to take up the struggle for a cause he believed in which was the liberation of his country Balochistan from the brutal Pakistani occupation. He never compromised the Baloch principles of fair war and never restored to terrorist tactics, despite Pakistani provocations. He died a hero to his people. Balach Marri was a fine, handsome and cultured gentleman. He was well educated. He spent some time in London working for the cause of Balochistan. He was one of the founders of Sindhi Baloch Forum.

Military operation in Balochistan is one of the most unforgivable sins committed by the present military regime in Pakistan. The repressive and lethal wars imposed on the Baloch people of Balochistan has caused death and injuries to a large number of people and has uprooted hundreds of thousands form their homes. It has caused untold of miseries to the people. The unabated military operation has also caused a serious blow to the federation and has permanently alienated from Pakistan a large section of the population in Balochistan, which is now openly calling for an independent Balochistan.

If Islamabad failed to grasp the gravity of the situation in Balochistan Pakistan cannot survive as a state. To make it viable state Islamabad rulers will have to stop fighting with its own people, and to rewrite the constitution that may truly represent the aspirations of all nationalities living in Pakistan. The forceful occupation and colonization of Balochistan and Sindh will escalate the tension and problems further.

It is surprise that musharraf regime is negotiating and releasing the terrorist and extremists in Waziristan and Swat but killing Patriot leaders of Balochistan, which is clear indication that they want to push Baloch to war to create justification to break Pakistan.

We also demand and immediate end to the military operation in Balochistan, release of all political prisoners, rehabilitation of all uprooted people and institution of cases against the military regime for heinous crimes it has committed in Balochistan and Sindh including the assignation of veteran leader Nawab Akbar Bugti, Balach Marri and several others.

We believe Balach’s ultimate sacrifice will give inspiration to Baloch people and we believe this irreparable loss will not dither the genuine struggle of Baloch people. His death would prove a wake-up call for many others. This is time, we all oppressed nations should unite and fight together to get our freedom and rights."

Baloch leader Mir Ghulam Hussain Baloch also spoke at the occasion, he express his views as following. “We are once again as a nation facing a time of adversity and distress. On the 20th of November, a beloved son of Balochistan gave his life for the cause and freedom for his motherland. We are forever indebted to Mir Balach Jan’s fortitude and sacrifice. I do not have enough words to stress how highly regarded and dear Mir Balach was to me. Mir balach has validated his vow to protect and serve Balochistan. As a nation, we have a duty to preserve and continue the journey of Mir Balach; we can only achieve this through unification and consolidation of out love for Balochistan. Our objective should not be one of short-term tenure without any substance; rather it should be based on the goal of Mir Balach, the formation of an independent and democratic Balochistan.”

Sister Fareen Baloch (daughter of Balochistan) whose wise words touched the heart of everyone in the meeting hall said as following. “It was only recently in the very place that we paid tribute to my grandfather Nawab Akbar Bugti on the first anniversary of his death. Unfortunately, when adversary is place upon us, it is at times in multiples, and Balochistan has lost one of its beloved and courageous sons Balach Marri. However, Mir Balach left us with headed held up high and fulfilling the oath, he took on the land of Balochistan.

I had heard a lot about Balochistan’s brave son Balach form my father; it was my wish to talk to my brave and courageous uncle. Only few weeks earlier, uncle Mehran came to our house and I told him to give my salaam to uncle Balach and give my message that: I am proud of him and his companions and that I pray for their health and safety. Uncle Mehran has told me that very soon I will be able to talk to uncle Balach on the phone. After hearing this, I became so excited that my happiness had no boundaries. I always used to think how I should begin my conversation with my brave uncle on the phone. should I start by saying that the Baloch children and I would like to thank you for fighting with the occupiers for our future or should I replicate the voice of Balochistan who proudly is saying look at my brave courageous sons who are fighting against occupiers for the respect of their motherland.

Today balochistan is very depressed from being separated from its dear sons and is crying blood from her eyes, but is saying to her proudly that she has given birth to valiant sons who were fighting with the occupiers, shedding their blood and who are now with their motherland in the depth of her soul. Uncle Balach jaan, the desire of talking with you has remained in my heart but I pray to Allah (SWT) that in the other world I will inshahallah meet you and grandfather Nawab Akbar Bugti. Standing right here in this same place, I promised grandfather Nawab Akbar Bugti that we would continue our struggle until we free our motherland Balochistan. Today I promise you the same that in my life there is only one goal, which is: I will not rest in peace until I free my motherland Balochistan from its occupiers. Uncle Balach jaan, you are not with us in this world but your memories and spirit are with us internally. I will promise you that we will not let your sacrifice for the freedom of Balochistan be wasted and I request to you that please could come in my dream and guide me the way to free our motherland Balochistan, so that we will reach the goal for which you have been fighting for and given your life.

In life, we face hardships and struggle but this is the fundamental factor in determining an individual’s character. Those who succumb and fold are frail and fragile but those who accept and rise are our modern day heroes. My dear uncle Balach you are one the latter.”

An audio message of the great mother of Shaheed Dr Khalid Baloch from radio Gwank was also played in the meeting