Gwadar, Pakistan: The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) released a video warning China to stop aiding Pakistan to brutally suppress Baloch people.
In the video the BLA said, “Baloch youth has time and again warned China to immediately stop its exploitation of Baloch land. But China has failed to take notice of our genuine concerns. China is using Baloch land to further its evil designs and in doing so it is aiding Pakistan to brutally suppress Baloch civilians.”
The BLA had yesterday stormed into a luxury hotel, Pearl Continental Hotel, in Balochistan which resulted in four deaths.
The BLA claims that scores of families in Balochistan have suffered at the hands of Pakistani military due to China’s flagship infrastructure project, the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
They say that China financially aided and armed Pakistan to move against the Baloch people. The BLA said that the people of Gwadar do not have drinking water and their only source of income is being snatched because of CPEC.
The BLA which demands freedom from Pakistan and wants to carve an independent Balochistan, opposes the CPEC because it aims at exploiting the resources of the province without actually improving the lives of the Baloch people of the province.
In recent years the BLA have increased their attacks on Pakistani establishment and many suicide attacks have been reported from the area. They were also behind the attack at the Chinese Consulate in Karachi last year.
Yesterday’s attack at the Pearl Continental, which many Chinese businessmen choose to stay, is also a message to the red giant to stay away from Balochistan.
The BLA fights for the Baloch people who are subjected to repression for decades by the Pakistani military. Balochistan is the largest province in Pakistan with huge natural resources. However, the Pakistani establishment are not interested to invest in the betterment of the Baloch people and is only interested in exploiting the resources of the region.
Interestingly, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his Independence speech in 2016, spoke about the people of Balochistan, who thanked him and expressed good wishes for the Prime Minister of India.
Narendra Modi had days before the speech promised to take up the atrocities of Pakistani government in three areas, which included Balochistan, on the world stage.