00:00The Balochistan Liberation Army has claimed responsibility for these attacks in Pakistan.
00:04The attacks on police stations, railway lines and highways killed dozens of people,
00:10mostly ethnic Punjabis, and security forces in Balochistan, a province in the southwest
00:16of the country. In response, Pakistan's government has launched a military action
00:20against the group. But who are these militants and what do they want?
00:24The conflict in Balochistan dates back decades. The Baloch are a Sunni Muslim ethnic group who
00:29live across the Iran-Pakistan border in parts of southern Afghanistan. Some want independence
00:35from the countries that rule them but any efforts for this have been violently suppressed by both
00:41Tehran and Islamabad. In Pakistan, such efforts are viewed as attempts to fragment the nation.
00:47Pakistan classifies the BLA as a terrorist organization.
00:51The BLA is a terrorist organization. We have seen time and time again how
00:59there are a lot of incidents of violence.
01:01Baloch separatists see this differently. They say national governments are exploiting the
01:06rich natural resources of their land, such as gold, copper and iron ore. In Iran and Pakistan,
01:12the Baloch are among the poorest ethnic groups in the countries.
01:15Balochistan is very rich. They have the copper, they have the ore and everything.
01:22And then the Baloch people, they have this argument that we have rich resources but
01:29we are not beneficiary of that resources. Someone else is benefiting that. They blame
01:35that Islamabad is beneficiary of that resources. The province is very rich in minerals and at the
01:41same time the people are very poor. So that is the main argument which the insurgents sell to
01:49the people over there. Pakistan's government is working with China to develop the region
01:54under a program called the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor or CPAC, part of Beijing's
01:59flagship Belt and Road project. Development projects being carried out as part of this
02:05are being targeted by the BLA. They view China's inroads in Balochistan as a new colonial project
02:11and have released multiple statements after attacking these Chinese nationals and projects
02:17warning Beijing to leave the province. The BLA is concerned that the CPAC will give China too
02:22much access to the region. It worries that China and Pakistan will economically marginalize the
02:28Baloch people. As a result of this recent attack, of course security institutions have to increase
02:33their security measures. That is also one of the reasons or causes which contributes to people
02:38joining militant organizations which start fighting against the state. But the BLA is
02:45not the only group campaigning for Baloch rights and visibility. Various peaceful civil rights
02:50movements in Balochistan have gained momentum in recent years. They campaign for the civil,
02:56political and socio-economic rights of the Baloch and have galvanized massive protests
03:01across the province through rallies. The Baloch Joint Committee, which was headed by Maram Baloch,
03:07they organized the protest there and people have joined them in large scale. By and large,
03:14people of Balochistan joined them and they showed their sympathy. Even from people of Punjab
03:20and the media showed that they are protesting for the missing people. I believe that the insurgents
03:26they feel insecure that people are going towards them. I think they did this because to get the
03:33more attention that we are there. Analysts say the Baloch militant attacks could make it easier
03:38for Pakistan's government to clamp down on the peaceful protests as the government will brand
03:44all separatist movements as ultimately violent and threatening the state. This terrorism is also
03:51caused by lack of dialogue, lack of true representation in the parliament. So, on one
03:58side the state should initiate a crackdown against terrorists which cannot be tolerated. Dialogue
04:04with the disgruntled people and dialogue with true representatives of the people.
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