facetoface
Trained to die
Two ‘would-be’ suicide bombers, in the custody of the FC in Bajaur, share their respective stories
By Daud Khattak
I left early Tuesday morning for Bajaur Agency. It was a nearly five-hours’ drive to reach the tribal agency located north of Peshawar and joining border with the Afghan province of Kunar.

No entry
Talks are underway between Pakistani and American diplomats to end a month-long controversy over visas
By Shaiq Hussain
Intense talks are underway between Pakistani and American diplomats to put an end to a month-long row over delay in issuance of visas to US officials and aid workers. But, diplomatic circles in Islamabad see no chance of early settlement which, they believe, could harm the ongoing Pak-US efforts to eliminate the scourge of terrorism.

"Baloch sardars are stooges of establishment"
By Murtaza Ali Shah
TNS: What is Baloch movement for you? How do you define it?
Mehran Baloch: It’s a retrospective movement. The new generation has revived the origins of the Balochistan movement. There was a time when the occupation and forceful assimilation of Balochistan by Pakistan was accepted by many, but my generation with the guidance of leaders like my father, have been successful in reviving the cause with the aim of achieving a permanent long-term solution. This generation cannot be misled by packages and privileges such as the one recently announced by the Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. I have full faith in the new generation and I believe the new generation is more aware of their rights and are firmly committed to achieve the goals set by our great leaders. Speculating on day-to-day political matters is not an option for us.

Attack on media
Terrorists strike the Peshawar Press Club seemingly to ‘fix’ the journalist community
By Javed Aziz Khan
It was around 11:45 am on December 22. Some journalists were sitting on the lawns behind the main Peshawar Press Club building, a few were reading newspapers in the library or checking their emails in the IT room while others had just entered the building after shaking hands with the lone security man head constable Riazuddin. As the cop stopped a boy wearing black clothes to frisk, he detonated explosives around his vest.

 

Trained to die

Two ‘would-be’ suicide bombers, in the custody of the FC in Bajaur,

share their respective stories

By Daud Khattak

I left early Tuesday morning for Bajaur Agency. It was a nearly five-hours’ drive to reach the tribal agency located north of Peshawar and joining border with the Afghan province of Kunar.

The security forces launched a massive operation in Bajaur in August 2009 to root out the militants led by Maulvi Faqir Muhammad, the deputy chief of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). We got the army escort from Mardan to avoid kidnapping which is rampant in tribal areas and parts of NWFP these days. Passing through the Malakand Pass, we entered Dir Lower, where a suicide bomber attacked a mosque in Khurshid Police Lines during Friday prayers last week and killed a dozen civilians.

Driving on the bumpy road in Munda tehsil of Dir Lower, I reached the Torghundi Fort of Dir Scouts. Another escort arrived from Khar, the headquarters of Bajaur Agency and I was taken to the Frontier Corps (FC) main centre in Khar.

On the way, schools were open and young boys and girls could be seen leaving schools for their homes. However, the number was not as before as thousands of Bajaur people are still living as IDPs in two camps – Katcha Garhi in Peshawar and Jalozai in Nowshera district. Though roadside markets were open, there was less business activity and the rush of people was thinner.

The road leading from Tor Ghundi to Khar and onward to Mamoond and Loy Sam, once the hotbeds of Taliban, was manned by levies and FC personnel. Here I met Usman Ghani who was trained as a suicide bomber.

Fourteen-year-old Usman Ghani is perhaps the luckiest boy to have escaped a horrible end despite being trained as a suicide bomber by the Taliban and sent on a suicide mission.

Hailing from Khar, the agency headquarters of Bajaur, Ghani was forcefully picked up by four armed Taliban from his house one morning about a year ago and taken to Bandai area of Mamoond tehsil to be trained as a suicide bomber.

Son of a poor lock-maker, Gul Khan, Ghani’s family could do little but to pray to Almighty Allah and shed tears over his fate as the armed men told them (the family) that he was going to be trained as a suicide bomber. The hapless father kept mum as he was accused by the Taliban of selling charas (hashish). "Give us your son or get ready to be slaughtered in public for selling hashish" was the threat from Taliban that kept Lal Zaman silent.

It was after four months that the boy managed to escape the Taliban prison, came back to his house, then to Mardan and finally ended up in the hands of security personnel three months ago. He is presently being kept at the Bajaur FC Fort and undergoing rehabilitation, although no psychiatrist is available there for proper treatment.

A blind-folded Usman, who studied up to grade 4 at a primary school in Khar, said after being picked up from his house by Taliban, he was taken to Banadai area of Mamoond tehsil, headquarters of Taliban chief in Bajaur Maulvi Faqir Muhammad. The eldest son of his father, (Usman has five brothers and one sister), Usman said four among the Taliban were residents of his area.

Reaching the Taliban centre of Mamoond, he was presented before three bearded men who told him that his father was selling hashish and he had to work for them (Taliban) to avoid punishment for his family. "Get ready to be a suicide bomber or be slaughtered," the three men told the young boy.

"Upon refusal, I was fastened to a post for six days and severely beaten up. Finally I agreed to become their recruit because I could not bear further torture," the young boy told TNS in an exclusive interview.

After his agreement to become a suicide bomber, the militants took him to a room, where he met two other boys, one of his age and the other a little older than him, who were also brought from somewhere for the same purpose. The three bearded men visited them the same night and started preaching about the benefits of Jihad and suicide attacks. "One among them was Mullah Abdullah, who is resident of Banadai village of Mamoond tehsil and whom I knew," he continued.

"You are lucky to be chosen for this sacred mission. This will take you straight to paradise where you will meet beautiful women and streams of honey and milk," said one of the three people. "You’re going to sacrifice your lives in the way of Allah and you will get a place in paradise, but don’t forget us when you go there."

Usman said after repeating the practice of giving them emotional lectures, showing them CDs and playing audio cassettes for a week, one of the mentors asked him: "Are you ready to be a Fidayee (one who sacrifices his life in the way of God) and I replied in negative because the lectures had no effects upon me."

When they failed to persuade him through lectures, audio and visuals, they started administering him medicines. "One of the three men blindfolded me one night and handed me a tablet and directed to swallow the same," he said. "I asked what this is, and he said it was good for your health," said the boy who added that he went into a state of forgetfulness after taking the tablet and could no more recall his brothers, sister and parents.

"Everything they told me seemed justified and I got emotional and the whole world changed just in 10 minutes. Then they started telling me that the army and police were the enemies of Islam and we have to safeguard our religion and I started believing in their words," said the boy.

"I said yes to become a suicide bomber and they patted me on the back," Usman recalled. He said the practice of administering the pills continued for at least one week "after which they started instructing me on how to reach the target, how to draw the pin, how to walk towards your target and how to detonate the explosives."

"Whenever I used to ask for prayers and water for ablution, the trainers told me that you don’t need to pray as you have already won a place in paradise because of your sacred mission and I used to believe their words," he recalled.

About civilians as targets he said, "They used to tell me that don’t care much about civilians because those pious among them would go to paradise while the sinful would get their place in the hell. You will get the credit for sending the faithfuls to paradise and sinfuls to hell."

After completion of his training, Usman said he was introduced to the Taliban chief Maulvi Faqir Muhammad who again kept him for two days and delivered him lectures about the "great sacrifice" by becoming a suicide bomber and the leisure in life after death.

He was then handed over to Maulvi Omar, the then Taliban spokesman who is now in the custody of security forces. He instructed him to go to the targeted mosque for prayers so that people may not consider him a stranger when he walks in the streets.

The last thing that Usman did before going after his target was to fire with an AK-47 assault rifle in front of a video camera in the presence of his mentors at an unknown location. Then he was asked to go to the mosque on Friday and detonate the explosive vest in the second row of the mosque to kill a tribal elder (Malak Rahmatullah, the name told by the boy).

"To send me on the mission, they brought a suicide vest but it was a little larger than my size. They replaced it with another one that fitted me," he said. Usman said it was his luck or the mercy of God that he suddenly recalled his youngest brother as soon as he reached the mosque for the explosion. "I looked at copies of the Holy Quran and the elderly people and it struck my mind that they are all Muslims. I returned without carrying out the suicide mission."

Usman said he was handed over to another commander Jan Wali, alias Sheena, in Sewai area after he returned without fulfilling the mission. According to the boy, he was again subjected to severe physical punishment. It was from Sewai area that he managed to escape one day and reach his home in Khar. Usman said Taliban continued to visit his house which forced him to come to Mardan and live with his aunt there. Remaining with his aunt for a few days, he said he returned home in Khar. But, by that time, the security forces were informed about his absence from the area and his return, and they picked him from the house.

The intelligence officials who arrested Usman told TNS that he was known as Fidayee in the area. They believed he was trained and sent into Khar to be used against a target at a particular time. However, the boy said he escaped from the Taliban captivity.

Asked if there were foreigners in the training facility, Usman said all were locals. He said he wants to go to school and become a soldier. During his talks, Usman did not oppose girls’ education. He was in his senses and said girls’ education was necessary because they will be doctors in future "to treat our mothers and sisters."

He was happy with the treatment given to him by the security officials during his captivity. However, no psychological treatment has been given to him by a specialist so far. When asked, the people looking after him said it was a decision of their seniors.

Ikramullah, another boy of the same age, son of Sardar Bacha, who is a Hafiz-e-Quran and hails from Munda tehsil of Dir Lower, was also in the custody of the security forces on charges of getting training with Taliban.

He said he got his education at a seminary in Peshawar. However, he was not ready to talk because he was presented blindfolded to this scribe and was insisting that he would talk only when his eyes are opened.

The security officials said he was not behaving normally. "Sometimes he says one thing while at another time he says different things," they added. When asked about the education of girls, he said he could not say anything something about that. He also refused to say anything about the Americans in Afghanistan. However, he added that Jihad against Americans "must be done".

He said he would become a prayer leader at a mosque if released by the security forces. The two boys, who have been with the security forces for several months, need proper psychological treatment, which is not available at the moment.

 

 

 

No entry

Talks are underway between Pakistani and American

diplomats to end a month-long controversy over visas

By Shaiq Hussain

Intense talks are underway between Pakistani and American diplomats to put an end to a month-long row over delay in issuance of visas to US officials and aid workers. But, diplomatic circles in Islamabad see no chance of early settlement which, they believe, could harm the ongoing Pak-US efforts to eliminate the scourge of terrorism.

Sensing the urgency of the matter, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry has also included senior security officials of the country in the ongoing dialogue with the US Embassy on this diplomatic row. Apart from procedural hurdles causing delay in issuance of visas to hundreds of US citizens, Pakistani law enforcement agencies have also raised objections to the presence of, what they believe, more than the required number of US citizens on the Pakistani soil.

"We have included diplomats from both sides as well as security officials from Islamabad in the current talks aimed at resolving this problem of visas so that the concerns of Pakistani security apparatus could be conveyed directly to the Americans," said a senior Pakistani official privy to Pak-US talks, requesting anonymity.

He said it was necessary to inquire about the large presence of Americans in the Pakistani capital and other cities after appearance of repeated media reports on their alleged involvement in "objectionable activities". Much is being said and written about the presence of private US security firm Blackwater, now renamed as Xe Services and Dyncorp etc, in Pakistan with their operatives reportedly displaying their weapons publicly in violation of Pakistani laws and squabbling with local law enforcement agencies’ personnel.

"This is a very sensitive issue, which needs to be thoroughly investigated. Our security agencies are active on this front but it is going to take some time and as a result there may be delays in clearance of some people from abroad," he said.

He said the failure of two sides to end row over visas hitherto was also because of the US authorities’ inability to accede to our demand for giving the exact number of their officials and contractors to be deputed in Pakistan, for which they required visas. "If they tell us at one time that visas are required for 10 people and after some days come to us again with a request for 10 more visas and that thing goes on, that is going to disturb us," he said.

However, he said, many of the cases of delay in visas meant for US citizens were related to the fulfilment of required procedures. The official explained that around 150 cases of delays in issuance of visas to the US citizens could be divided into two broad categories. "One group of people is those who come to Pakistan with visas of short period such as that of three-month stay, but seek extension when the visa expires. Hence, the required clearance by law enforcement agencies takes some time. The other category is of those people who need to be cleared by the Pakistani law enforcement agencies after they apply for Pakistani visas in the United States," he said.

Noted analyst Dr. Hasan Askari believes that the major reason behind delay in visas issuance to US diplomats and aid workers was the pressure the government was facing as a result of media hype about the expansion of US Embassy and deployment of additional staff. Moreover, the anti-US sentiments prevailing in the middle and lower tiers of the country’s armed forces and intelligence agencies could be another factor behind the controversy.

The US administration, nonetheless, is very upset over what it believes unnecessary delay in granting visas to its citizens. This row is adding to the prevailing tension between Islamabad and the US over strong and repeated demands by Washington for another military offensive in North Waziristan by the Pakistani security forces after a successful army operation in the adjoining South Waziristan against the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) led by Hakimullah Mehsud.

Pakistan’s civilian and military leaderships believe the US authorities are asking for too much and too soon, as another military operation after that in South Waziristan and Swat in recent months will be a burden for the already overstretched Pakistani armed forces.

The frustration of Obama administration is evident by a number of American media reports about Pak-US differences over a fresh military operation in North Waziristan and a ‘deliberate campaign’ by Pakistani authorities to harass American diplomats including delays in visas’ issuance.

The US State Department deputy spokesman Robert Wood, a few days ago, expressed Washington’s disappointment over continuation of visa row, saying the US government had raised its serious concerns at senior levels with Pakistan. He also warned that the delay could undermine US-backed efforts to fight terrorism and boost the economy in Pakistan.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry’s Spokesman Abdul Basit belied the media reports about harassment of Americans in Pakistan. He said, "There has been some delay in the processing of some 60 visa applications primarily for want of requisite information from the US."

Spokesman for the US embassy in Pakistan, Richard Snelsire, told TNS, "We are continuing to work with the relevant ministries in the government of Pakistan to resolve the visa issue." Asked whether he agrees with the Pakistani officials that the delay in visas to the Americans is because of bureaucratic hurdles, he said, "I would refer you to the government of Pakistan on this issue."

However, a diplomatic source said there was resentment in the US Embassy and Washington on the ‘unnecessary’ row over visa issuance, which they believe is not a very difficult problem to resolve. He said the US administration needs a large number of American officials, aid workers and other staff in Pakistan owing to a number of new development projects that are being launched in different parts of the country. The additional deployment of US officials is likely to increase the strength of the US Embassy staff from around 500 to well over 800. Around 130 American diplomats and aid workers need visas to facilitate smooth funnel of 1.5 million dollars annually to Pakistan under the recently approved Kerry-Lugar Bill.

"This increase in the number of Americans in Islamabad and elsewhere in the country is being seen with suspicion here and Pakistani officials think this surge is needless," he said.

 

 


"Baloch sardars are stooges of establishment"

By Murtaza Ali Shah

TNS: What is Baloch movement for you? How do you define it?

Mehran Baloch: It’s a retrospective movement. The new generation has revived the origins of the Balochistan movement. There was a time when the occupation and forceful assimilation of Balochistan by Pakistan was accepted by many, but my generation with the guidance of leaders like my father, have been successful in reviving the cause with the aim of achieving a permanent long-term solution. This generation cannot be misled by packages and privileges such as the one recently announced by the Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. I have full faith in the new generation and I believe the new generation is more aware of their rights and are firmly committed to achieve the goals set by our great leaders. Speculating on day-to-day political matters is not an option for us.

TNS: You are active at the international level to raise awareness about the Balochistan issue. What successes have you achieved?

MB: I was the only Baloch to address the human rights violations committed in Balochistan by Pakistan in 2001 before the United Nations Human Rights Commission. Things have considerably changed since then. I had an uphill task. People used to think Balochistan was one of the states of former USSR or just a small and poor province of Pakistan. I am proud to say I have worked hard on my own, and without a team, and today the world knows about our issue. Now people know who we are. There are more people working on highlighting the plight of the Baloch nation internationally, including non-Balochs such as Peter Tatchell, Selig Harrisson, Wendelin Johnson and Charles Graves, to name a few.

TNS: Is it correct that the biggest antagonist you face at the world stage is the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC)?

MB: That is absolutely correct. Pakistan has a lot of power in the Islamic world as it provides its services to a number of Islamic states in legal and illegal, moral and immoral ways. The Islamic states return the favour by supporting Pakistan at international forums and turning a blind eye towards Balochistan. The OIC has become an organised Islamist mafia, hijacked by Pakistan.

The western countries, on the other hand, operate differently; they listen to your point of view and grievances as long as you are not working under the influence of some sinister agenda. Though our movement is based on secularism, patriotism and human rights, unfortunately due to the vested interests of western superpowers in this region, they need to oblige Pakistan.

TNS: Does the current regional geo-political situation favour your belligerent position?

MB: The current situation is favourable to us because the United States, Nato and ISAF forces are operating in Afghanistan and along the border. They are in a better position to see things for themselves, whereas before they totally relied on Pakistan for all kinds of information, which Pakistan conveniently manipulated for its benefit. Now the international ground forces as well as American drones, which operate in Pakistan, clearly see the ground realities for themselves and no longer have to rely on the Pakistan army for intelligence. These powerful countries now have a better insight into the situation and they know very well about the atrocities taking place in Balochistan at the hands of the Pakistani army.

TNS: General (rtd) Pervez Musharraf wanted you extradited from the UK and you topped his most wanted list? Are you still being hounded?

MB: There is no doubt that my life is under persistent threat and intelligence agencies are after me.

Musharraf and his incompetent Inter-Services Intelligence were so unintelligent that they didn’t even check the basic fact that I am a British national and have never held a Pakistani passport. I was not even born in Pakistan. Pakistan spent vast resources and used state influence to get me, my brother Hyrbyair Marri, Faiz Baloch and numerous other advocates of Baloch human rights victimised by foreign governments. Due to the extraordinary situation in Britain, I was forced to live abroad fearing that UK authorities would arrest me on false allegations as they did with my brother, Hyrbyair, and swap me with its home-grown Islamic extremists in Pakistan to please dictator Musharraf and the ISI.

Now they realise that they have wasted their taxpayers’ money on victimising us and understand that we are not Islamic fundamentalists planning to "blow up Britain". Even though now they realise that we have our own national issue, I am still stopped at airports, whisked and quizzed on petty matters.

Only in September this year, the Swiss police questioned two Pakistani spies that were sent from the Pakistani embassy to harass me at a hotel in Geneva, where I was residing. They always tried to bar my entry and have pressed foreign governments and institutions to criminalise, defame and undermine my credibility by saying I was a terrorist and should not be allowed to speak on international forums regarding Balochistan. They have gone so far as to fabricate Interpol red notices on false names and presented it to the head of my NGO Dr. Charles Graves and threatened him with serious consequences if he did not revoke my accreditation with the organisation.

TNS: Your father Nawab Marri stood for autonomy but you have abandoned his idea?

MB: He has always advocated the restoration of a sovereign and independent Balochistan and we are pursuing exactly his path and vision.

TNS: You too are a product of the sardari system, its beneficiary and sitting abroad while the ordinary people suffer?

MB: Yes I hail from a sardari system but that should not be held against me. I am proud to be the son of a renowned Baloch patriot, Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri, who has sacrificed his life and confronted consecutive military dictators for the betterment of the Baloch nation and never bowed before the enemy to gain personal privileges and wealth. We should indeed be acknowledged for remaining committed to our nation and determined to ensure their welfare and dignity. In my view, a genuine sardar should be a representative of his people, not the Punjabi-Pakistani establishment.

TNS: What are your views on the armed insurgency mainly around Bugti and Marri areas?

MB: I differ with you. I call it a self-defence movement. Sixty two years of occupation and constant disrespect and systematic genocide of our people have driven them to resist and defy the dictates of the occupying army and its cahoots. The people are not willing to suffer in silence anymore. Those who have taken to the mountains are heroes and they are defending their land and its honour.

The independence movement is widespread. It’s all over Balochistan. Since Marri and Bugti areas are resource rich, the army is targeting these areas because Pakistan’s viability depends on the oil and gas reserves present there. We are struggling for the rights and sovereignty of Balochistan, not only for the Marri and Bugti areas.

TNS: But majority Baloch leadership opinion doesn’t match yours?

MB: I would ideally like the tribal leaders to sit back and think hard over what’s going on in their country rather than being carried away and enthusiastic about the ministries, packages and petty benefits thrown to them by their masters. They have responsibilities but they have been corrupted. They are not sincere to their people. These people are rogue traders and merchants of their motherland. The Baloch nation recognises them.

TNS: Insurgents have killed Punjabis and other non-Balochs. Do you condemn such acts?

MB: It’s a one-sided view to ask this question. Before I condemn such acts, I should explain why such incidents are taking place. The establishment, mainly comprising Punjabis, has targeted Baloch youth and leadership for a long time. This is just a reaction to the Pakistani actions. They (Punjabi settlers) are facilitating the establishment’s desire to ethnically flood Balochistan and are seen as being sympathetic to the Punjabi occupiers rather than their host Baloch nation. The settlement of Punjabis in Balochistan was a conspiracy from the start by the establishment. Therefore, they are always viewed with suspicion because it is believed that many were stationed in Balochistan under different guises for the purpose of espionage.

TNS: Isn’t it unfair and unjust to blame all Punjabis?

MB: It might be unfair and unjust to blame all Punjabis, but it is up to the Punjabi people to take a stand against their representatives whose hegemony remains over Pakistan, the military and the predominantly Punjabi bureaucracy. Therefore, the burden lies upon them. The resources of Balochistan are usurped for the betterment, development and prosperity of Punjab. The survival and prosperity of Pakistan is dependent upon the occupation of Baloch resources. You don’t have to be Einstein to figure out whom to blame. They can hold long march for the restoration of a judge, but they choose not to raise their voice when their army is committing genocide in Balochistan.

TNS: What about the Baloch sardari system that has held people back?

MB: This is a misconception propagated by the Pakistani establishment in order to undermine the Baloch system, which is in theory democratic, just, principled and merit-based. But, due to the interference by the occupying Pakistani forces, the system has been undermined and the sardars’ loyalty bought. If the sardars were the only element holding back prosperity and development, then Makran, where there is no sardari system, should have prospered remarkably.

TNS: What is your view on the Khan of Kalat Suleiman Ahmedzai’s vow to take the Baloch case for autonomy or independence to the International Court of Justice at The Hague?

MB: I have respect for the Khan of Kalat. I hope the Khan is sincere in his intentions and I wish him good luck. I appreciate each and every individual’s effort to safeguard the national interest of the Baloch nation and highlight the sufferings of the Baloch people. However, I feel that the Khan is capable of far greater tasks because of his noble position. But, unfortunately he has compromised his status and undermined his credibility in the Baloch nationalist society in Balochistan and among the diaspora by only assuming the role of a publicity stuntman for the past three years.

TNS: How can you survive independently as a clear majority in Balochistan wants to stay with Pakistan?

MB: I am confident that we will be a key player in the region due to Balochistan’s geo-strategic importance. We have natural resources in abundance and a coastline that will serve as a gateway to Central Asia. We will probably even have a higher per capita income than Brunei.

I am sorry that I disagree with your point that a clear majority in Balochistan wants to stay with Pakistan; on the contrary, a clear majority wants to break free from Pakistan’s slavery. It’s only a handful of traitors who are always part of the government including the present, who accepted being slaves of Punjab and have no sympathy with Balochistan.

TNS: What kind of support are you offering from abroad?

MB: I am trying to highlight and inform the world in my capacity as to what is going on in Balochistan and expose Pakistan’s repressive conduct in Balochistan internationally. My aim is to internationalise Pakistan’s role in international terrorism as well as to expose its champion status as a state that sponsors and commits terrorism for its survival. Pakistan benefits from destabilising its neighbouring countries.

TNS: Who in your opinion is leading the current struggle against military?

MB: It’s a phantom leading the struggle. The entire Balochistan is a war zone. The occupying Pakistani army is carrying out military offensives unabatedly, thus the Baloch nation has no option but to defend itself. Nawab Akbar Bugti and Balach Marri were the torch-bearers of the struggle against Pakistan’s genocide of the Baloch. The Pakistani army was hopeful that the struggle would end once they murder Nawab and Balach but what they failed to understand was that the Baloch struggle was a national struggle for the Baloch nation and led by the Baloch nation. The martyrdom of our national leaders enraged the Baloch nation, and as a result the resolve of the Baloch for liberation has been further strengthened.

TNS: What will be your conditions for negotiations with the government of Pakistan?

MB: Politics is the science of possibilities, but Pakistani politics defies all logic. The government of Pakistan has always been a puppet and subservient to the military establishment, therefore it lacks authority to even determine its own petty administrative affairs. I don’t think they are in any position to initiate negotiations on serious matters such as Balochistan. We need a credible third party as a guarantor before any negotiations can take place.

Maybe there comes a point when there will be a different scenario and we will see when it comes to that. If our occupiers change the reality and become sincere in dealing, we will be ready for an amicable solution like withdrawal of Indonesian forces from East Timor.

The people of Balochistan do not trust Pakistan and are strongly convinced that Pakistan is insincere with the people of Balochistan. Mir Aali Bugti and Shahzain Bugti don’t endorse an armed confrontation and are negotiating with the government. Mir Aali and Shahzain are toeing a line that is completely acceptable to the Punjabi-dominated civil-military bureaucracy. The Pakistani military-nominated leader of the Bugti tribe, Mir Aali, doesn’t have any authority to carry out any meaningful negotiations with the government and it’s ironic that they have the military to protect him from his own tribesmen.

According to the Baloch patriots, the true successor of Nawab Akbar Bugti is none other than his grandson Brahamdagh Bugti. He is continuing on the footsteps of his grandfather and is defending the rights of the Baloch nation and its resources from being looted and plundered by Pakistan at the cost of his own comfort and security. Being the youngest leader, he has proved that he has the vision and endurance required for attaining a nation’s independence.

TNS: There is a lot of speculation about the sources/funding behind BLA and BRA?

MB: I don’t want to be one of the speculators. I suggest you ask somebody linked to these organisations about their funding. However, throughout the Baloch struggle, the Baloch nation has been constantly accused of being foreign agents. The establishment has to misinform the international community and keep the Islamist Punjabi-Pakistani masses, media and opinion makers on their side by levelling such absurd allegations. The best cohesive strategy is to say a non-Islamic country India, Israel or America is behind the struggle. If a credible nation such as the ones mentioned were behind the Baloch freedom fighters (homeland defenders), Balochistan would have surely regained its independence by now.

The writer is an assistant editor at The News-UK edition. Email: ams0409@gmail.com

Mehran Baloch is the youngest of six sons of veteran Balochistan nationalist leader Nawabzada Khair Bukhsh Marri. Educated in Oxford, he is an international voice, and arguably the most articulate and passionate one, of the Balochistan case, especially at the United Nations and western think-tanks where his voice is considered critical.

Living in Britain for over 20 years now, Mehran was thrown into spotlight in March 2007 when it emerged that the Pervez Musharraf-led government of Pakistan wanted to trade Mehran against Rashid Rauf, a British terrorist suspect from Birmingham, who was in the custody of Pakistan at the time and wanted in Britain on a number of terrorism charges.

When the details were published, it became known that the Pakistani establishment was attaching a huge price tag to the extradition of the young Marri.

He fled from London, awakened to the rude reality that British intelligence was monitoring him round-the-clock on Pervez Musharraf’s personal request.

Mehran, who has shunned Pakistani media for over three years despite repeated requests for interviews, spoke to TNS in London in an exclusive interview and emphasised uncompromisingly that too much blood had been shed of the Baloch to negotiate with the incumbent setup. But, he also singled out the redundant Baloch sardari system for being in a criminal pact with the federal government in order to hold back the progress of poor Baloch masses. He minces no words in his harsh criticism of Baloch sardars, including Aali Shahzain Bugti and the current Khan of Qalat Mir Suleiman Daud Khan, whom he calls "a directionless stuntman".

 

Attack on media

Terrorists strike the Peshawar Press Club seemingly to ‘fix’ the journalist community

By Javed Aziz Khan

It was around 11:45 am on December 22. Some journalists were sitting on the lawns behind the main Peshawar Press Club building, a few were reading newspapers in the library or checking their emails in the IT room while others had just entered the building after shaking hands with the lone security man head constable Riazuddin. As the cop stopped a boy wearing black clothes to frisk, he detonated explosives around his vest.

The daring cop on duty at the PPC for the last many years, Riazuddin, accountant of the club Mian Iqbal Shah and a passer-by woman Rubina Shaheed were killed while 18 others, including The News photographer Khurram Pervez, sustained injuries. The main gate, the security room next to the main entrance and front elevation of the main building were destroyed.

Initially only threats were hurled to hush the media and when it did not work, terrorists struck the Peshawar Press Club (PPC) on December 22 to ‘fix’ the journalist community — for calling a spade a spade.

The first victims of the war on terror from media were the tribal journalists. Some journalists were kidnapped, some shot dead while the houses of several others were either looted or bombed. Musa Khankhel and his several colleagues were targeted in Malakand. But aggression against journalists increased when the media started exposing the real face of militants. Azam Tariq, new spokesman for the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), had threatened to attack press clubs and media offices. Intelligence reports suggest TTP head Hakimullah Mahsud has tasked suicide bombers, snipers and other members of his outlawed organisation to target journalists. Though senior police officials have visited the PPC and offices of some newspapers and TV channels, they have done nothing except asking the respective management to beef up security on their own. The PPC building, situated along a main road, was an easy target for terrorists because only one policeman was deployed there as part of the "foolproof security measures".

"The attacker wanted to get inside the PPC building. Eight kilogrammes of explosives and two kilogrammes of ball bearings were used in the attack to cause maximum damage," Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Peshawar Liaqat Ali Khan told TNS. Specimen of the suicide bomber’s body was sent for a DNA test, a routine practice that has failed to stem the ongoing violence.

"This is an attack on our house. The destruction could have been enormous, had the terrorist succeeded in entering the Press Club main building as around 50 journalists and a few politicians were present there," recalls Yousuf Ali, secretary-general of the Khyber Union of Journalists (KhUJ) that observed three-day mourning against the attack.

Apart from politicians, journalist bodies from all over the world condemned the attack. Threats are still there. Media offices in the city of flowers have no security. Some have made arrangements on their own, but they are not adequate to counter any suicide attack or bombing. In this situation, media persons in the province, especially in Peshawar, are exposed to innumerable threats.


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