World, UN must differencitate between terrorism and independence movement of Balochistan, FBM
21 March, 2025
London: (Press Release) The spokesperson of the Free Balochistan Movement (FBM), in a policy statement, said that the United Nations’ characterization of the Baloch national struggle as terrorism, in the context of the ongoing freedom movement in Balochistan, is equivalent to encouraging Pakistan to further expand its Baloch genocide. The UN must understand that the national resistance in Balochistan is a struggle against the aggression of Iranian and Pakistani states, aimed at defending national identity and homeland.
The Baloch National Army is engaged in resistance against the occupying Pakistani and Iranian forces to restore the independence and sovereignty of the united Balochistan. The day the Pakistani and Iranian occupation of Balochistan ends, the Baloch nation will be responsible for ensuring complete peace and security within its borders.
The spokesperson further stated that the Baloch independence struggle against Iran and Pakistan has been ongoing since the very first day of occupation. Even before this, in the 15th century against the Portuguese and in the 19th century against the British, the Baloch nation has always collectively resisted imperialist forces occupying their land. Today’s resistance movement in Balochistan is not a new phenomenon but a continuation of efforts spanning centuries, aimed at preserving national identity and securing freedom against systematic genocide. Every nation, including the Baloch, has the right to resist occupying powers on all fronts. The history of the world is filled with stories of resistance against imperialists and occupiers. Today, the United Nations recognizes Ukraine’s right to resist Russian occupation and imperialism—do the Baloch not have the same right? The right to resistance predates the formation of the United Nations and has existed throughout human history.
The statement further highlighted that philosophers such as Thomas Aquinas, Niccolò Machiavelli, Francisco de Vitoria, Hugo Grotius, John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Immanuel Kant, John Stuart Mill, and Karl Marx have analyzed this human tendency and supported the right to self-defense and resistance against foreign occupation in their writings. Before the existence of the United Nations, numerous legal agreements and documents—such as the Treaty of Westphalia, the American Declaration of Independence, the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, The Hague Conventions, the League of Nations Covenant, the Kellogg-Briand Pact, and the Atlantic Charter—recognized the sovereignty, independence, and right of resistance of nations. Moreover, according to the UN Charter itself, Pakistan is an occupying force in Balochistan, and its presence there violates Articles 2(3) and 2(4) of the Charter.
Pakistan, violating these articles, rejected the resolution passed by both houses of the Balochistan Assembly to maintain an independent Balochistan and launched a military invasion against a free state. The United Nations has a legal responsibility to hold Pakistan accountable for violating its own Charter and address the Baloch national issue. As a leading global peacekeeping institution, the UN must distinguish between occupiers and the occupied and compel Pakistan and Iran to stop the Baloch genocide while respecting the aspirations for independence and sovereignty in the region. However, instead of understanding the Baloch freedom struggle, the UN seems to be echoing the rhetoric of these occupiers, which is completely unacceptable to the Baloch nation.
The FBM spokesperson further stated that the Baloch national struggle for freedom is entirely legitimate and aligned with global principles and regulations. Just as national resistances against occupation and systematic genocide—such as the French Resistance and the Polish Resistance—have been globally recognized, the United Nations should acknowledge and understand the Baloch resistance instead of condemning it.
The spokesperson added that not only have Iran and Pakistan occupied Balochistan, but they are also carrying out a slow-paced genocide against the Baloch people. Yet, the United Nations has never issued any memorandum or resolution highlighting the severe conditions in Balochistan. On the contrary, the UN provides Iran with millions of dollars under anti-narcotics programs to prevent drug trafficking to other countries. The question arises: has the UN ever considered how and where Iran, as an oppressive and occupying state, spends these millions of dollars? The UN has always turned a blind eye to the fact that most of these funds are used for Baloch genocide. Under the pretext of controlling drug trafficking, thousands of Baloch political activists are executed, and thousands of Baloch involved in transportation and trade are shot dead simply because, due to a lack of job opportunities, they engage in fuel transportation and food trade.
The UN’s financial assistance is systematically used to suppress and kill the Baloch people, but no one questions the Iranian occupying state. This is reminiscent of the Philippines in 2016 when President Duterte ordered the execution of all individuals linked to drug activities, resulting in the deaths of 7,025 people in a year. Later, an Amnesty International report revealed that many of those killed were innocent and were targeted due to financial greed, personal enmity, or political opposition.
Despite Iran’s state-sponsored terrorism and human rights violations in Balochistan, the UN has never presented or passed a single memorandum or resolution. Meanwhile, in the name of development, the occupying forces of Iran and Pakistan are demolishing Baloch homes. Those who refuse to leave their ancestral lands face severe persecution, false charges, or extrajudicial killings. This is all part of a systematic effort to reduce the Baloch population in their homeland, make Chabahar Iran’s administrative capital, and settle non-Baloch populations in large numbers. Iran’s aggression against the Baloch nation demands the full attention of the international community and global peacekeeping institutions, especially the United Nations.
The FBM spokesperson further stated that approximately 5,000 to 6,000 bodies of Baloch political activists have been recovered in Pakistan, and human rights organizations estimate that thousands more are imprisoned in Pakistani state-run torture cells, where they face inhumane and unethical treatment before being killed and dumped in desolate areas. Yet, the United Nations has never questioned Pakistan about these enforced disappearances. Pakistan is a signatory to international human rights conventions and is bound to ensure the protection of war prisoners, detainees, and human rights in occupied territories. However, the UN’s endorsement of Pakistani and Iranian narratives against the Baloch nation is eroding the faith that the Baloch people once had in this institution. If such biases persist, the Baloch will begin to see the UN as a mere mouthpiece of the occupying and oppressive states.
The spokesperson emphasized that fearing the growing intensity of the Baloch freedom struggle, the occupying states of Pakistan and Iran are collectively punishing the Baloch people. Many innocent Baloch individuals have been targeted simply because their relatives were involved in the Baloch independence movement. Following recent incidents in Kalat, Pakistani forces have carried out staged encounters to kill numerous innocent Baloch people. Across Balochistan, ordinary Baloch civilians are being killed daily. This collective punishment is reminiscent of Chile’s brutal purge under Pinochet or the politically motivated massacres in Argentina. However, the political and social landscape in Balochistan today is even worse, yet the United Nations remains negligent in its responsibilities, aligning itself with the political agenda of the occupiers.
The struggle for independence in Balochistan consists of two opposing forces: on one side, the Baloch nation is fighting to regain its lost sovereignty and defend its homeland, while on the other side, the Pakistani military and its institutions are waging a war of aggression to maintain their occupation and exterminate the Baloch people. The UN must understand that the Baloch struggle is about the freedom of united Balochistan, not about violence for the sake of violence or expansionism, as practiced by Iran and Pakistan. The Baloch freedom movement aims to adhere to internationally established laws, one of which is the right to self-determination and control over natural resources. The Baloch national independence movement is about restoring the freedom and sovereignty of united Balochistan, and any attempt to misrepresent it will never be acceptable to the Baloch nation.
