University of Turbat
On 31 October 2023, the local police and personnel of Pakistan’s infamous intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) stopped Baloch students from carrying books in University of Turbat.
The incident wasn’t reported in the local or Pakistan’s national media due to complete censorship in Balochistan but a video of the incident went viral on social media. The video showed that that some Baloch students were attacked by the armed police personnel. They were heckled, pushed back and the police personnel could be seen trying to snatch their books. However, the Baloch students managed to avoid any clash with the armed personnel though they were provoked to do so.
This video of University of Turbat students being restricted from carrying books sparked a stormy reaction from Baloch society kicking off a student protest. Baloch students started their protests through a sit-in outside the campus to convey their message to the university administration.
Responding to this protest, the university authorities directed by the Pakistan deep state blocked the entry of Baloch students as well as Baloch faculty in not only the premises of University of Turbat but directives from Islamabad ensured that the Baloch faculty wasn’t allowed to enter other universities also.
Professor Manzoor Baloch, a senior faculty from university of Balochistan was barred from entering into University of Turbat on 13 November this year. He was also not allowed to take part in an academic programme that was supposed to take place in University of Turbat.
Manzoor Baloch posted a video message to share his plight and concerns. He categorically said that his lecture was primarily related to academic issues but he stopped so to ensure that there was no interaction with Baloch students.
Meanwhile, according to ground reports, police had opened indiscriminate firing on peaceful students of Lasbela University of Agriculture, Water and Marine Science in Balochistan on 16 November, 2023. University of Agriculture, Water & Marine Sciences (LUAWMS) is a government university located at Uthal in Lasbela District in Balochistan. The students had gathered to protest over the non-availability of basic facilities in the campus. Instead of addressing their grievances, the armed personnel opened direct fire on students. According to the student leaders, dozens of Baloch students had sustained bullet injuries and many had become unconscious due to tear gas shells that rained on the campus.
About 50 students were arrested by the local authority and taken to police stations in Uthal and Lasbela. Sameer Baloch, a young student of LUAWMS is one of those who are missing as ISI picked him up like many others. Given the past record of more than 20,000 Balochis missing after being picked up by security forces, the fate of most Baloch students hangs in balance. There is a distinct pattern now where the Pakistani security personnel pick up young Baloch students, slap bogus charges on them and put them in jail. A very few are fortunate to come out of the prison. In fact, a large number of Baloch students go ‘missing’. There are hundreds of families who have been searching for these missing students which are suspected to have been the victim of the ethnic cleansing carried out by the Pakistani authorities.
Meanwhile, the central spokesman of the Baloch Students Organisation (BSO) has said in his statement that educational institutions throughout Balochistan have been militarised and handed over to gunmen, where they inflict the worst violence on students whenever they want. Pakistan authorities were victimising the unsuspecting Baloch students through brutality and coercion.
The central spokesperson of BSO said that students were shelled, and the administration also issued a dictatorial order to vacate the hostels.
On 27 October last month a Baloch student, Fareed Baloch, of the Punjab University (PU) was abducted by ISI and local police in broad daylight from the gate of the New Campus. The video of his abduction was also posted on social media which went viral. Luckily, he was saved and police revealed his arrest and charged with fake FIR. But there are several other Baloch students who were picked up from Punjab University campus and have never returned back. Hundreds of students had been expelled from various universities of the Punjab province. Many Baloch students have been attacked by Jamaat-e-Islami activists and other radical Islamists in Punjab.
Targeting Balochi female students through secret cameras
The local Baloch leaders recount with horror the 2019 scandal in Balochistan University. A number of professors had found out secret cameras and microphones in bathrooms of both male and female students. They were purportedly installed by the ISI and the Baloch students were blackmailed to work secretly for Pakistan authorities as well as for sexual favours. The issue had created an uproar in the Balochistan assembly. The then vice chancellor of the University Dr Javed Iqbal had to resign. Though the news was censored to a large extent but The Tribune (a Pakistan-based newspaper) managed to publish some details on 20 October, 2019 in a story titled, ‘Balochistan University VC steps down as FIA probes harassment case’.  It said, “The university and Dr Iqbal have been receiving widespread criticism after students claimed that CCTV footage was being used by the administration to blackmail female students for sexual favours. Along with the CCTV cameras on campus, the students have said they were being monitored through additional cameras and microphones placed in washrooms and smoking areas. The university’s professors and staff members confirmed to the media that they have seen these ‘secret cameras.”
According to the ground reports, the fallout of this incident is that thousands of girls have been taken out of the university by their parents due to safety concerns. This is a major blow for Baloch population and especially women who are already on the bottom of the ladder in terms of education standards. The local Baloch leaders suspect that this scare has also been created deliberately to ensure that Baloch youth should avoid campuses and remain uneducated.
Earlier on 27 February this year, Baloch students were attacked in Quaid-e-Azam university in Islamabad. Many of them sustained serious injuries. In July 2023, after a suicide attack killed a police officer in Turbat, hundreds of Baloch students were picked up illegally by the Pakistani authorities in retaliation. This led to widespread protests, but the Pakistani establishment remained undeterred clearly indicating that its brutal crackdown on Baloch students would continue unless they get their homeland — an independent Balochistan.
The writer is an author and columnist and has written several books. He tweets @ArunAnandLive. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views.
Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,
India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Join our to get the latest global news updates
Published on: November 22, 2023 14:13:25 IST
TAGS:
The timing of the ‘leak’ makes it clear that it is an internal wrangling of a faction unhappy with Biden admin’s courting of India
Choosing a side in the Israel-Palestine conflict may not be easy on the face of it, but think of the greater evil and it becomes clear
While Pakistan reaps the harvest of its past actions, the repercussions extend beyond its borders, urging regional players to remain vigilant in this evolving geopolitical landscape
Network18 sites
Copyright © 2023. Firstpost – All Rights Reserved.

source