In August 1947, Pakistan inherited from the British colonialists the
so-called "British Balochistan"and after 7 months, with the tacit
approval of the British government, they forcibly occupied the rest of
Balochistan, i.e., the State of Kalat as it was formally known at the time.
Pakistan not only inherited the land from the British but it also inherited
their colonial mindset. The Pakistani leaders regarded themselves as the
"rightful" beneficiaries of the British left-overs and the true heirs
of their colonial heritage. They saw it fit to continue the colonial policies
of the former rulers in every sphere of life, be it political, economic, social
or cultural. They almost overnight transformed themselves into the new
"gora saahibs", mimicking grotesquely the British in their speech,
behavior and attitudes. Because they were the new "rightful"
occupiers they loved the status quo. They did not want to change anything at
all unless it suited their interests.
The Quetta College
As in all walks of life they most religiously maintained the status quo
in education as well. When they occupied our land they inherited one single
college which was located in Quetta. It was a non-degree intermediate college.
They lost no time in promoting the college to degree level just to accommodate
the children of the bureaucrats and the army officers stationed at the Quetta
cantonment. This was the only change they brought about until well into the
middle of 1960s. Despite popular demand for more colleges, it remained the only
college in the whole of Balochistan. The rulers did not want the Baloch to
benefit from more schools and colleges. If they had their own way they would
rather have closed all schools in Balochistan. Going back to the subject of the
Quetta college, it was much easier in the early years for Baloch students to
get admitted in colleges as far away as in Karachi and Lahore than the one in
their own country. But, apart from the very rich the overwhelming majority of
students could't even afford to go to Quetta let alone to Karachi or Lahore.
They could only dream of it. Besides, there were many other reasons as to why
the ordinary Baloch students were not able to get admission at the Quetta
college. The list is indeed very long but here are some of the main reasons:
Institutional Racism and Discrimination
1. Baloch students were discriminated against openly and brazenly.
2. Ordinary students could only afford to register at the college
if they received a government scholarship without which it was
absolutely inconceivable to live and study in Quetta.
3. Almost all scholarships were reserved, although unofficially,
for the children and relatives of bureaucrats and army officers, overwhelming majority
of whom came from Panjab. If there were still some scholarships left they
would, without any qualm, be allocated to the children of the
friends of the Panjabi officials. Just to show their
"generosity" one or two scholarships would be given to those
Baloch students whose parents were close to the ruling clique. When
students and their parents protested at this injustice they
were dubbed as 'miscreants'.
4. Only those students who were domiciled in Balochistan
were entitled to apply for a scholarship. They were required to
submit a domicile certificate issued by an appropriate official. Since
almost all officials came from Panjab they would either refuse to
issue a certificate to a Baloch student under one pretext or
another or delay the issuance for months on end until it
would be too late to apply for a scholarship. Whereas the children and
relatives of the officials, who were not even born in Balochistan and
could still very well be living and studying in Panjab, would be issued certificates
on a fast-track basis in order to prove that they were bona fide
domiciles of Balochistan.
5. Since almost all scholarships would go to the Panjabi students, many Baloch
students would become so utterly disillusioned tha they would drop out.
The rest would wait until the next year hoping against all hope to finally get
a scholarship. Come next year they would go through the same pantomime again
and consequently many more would drop out. Students and parents protested
against this cruel policy but there was no one to listen to them. It was a
deliberate policy pursued by the government to deny the Baloch their
lawful right to a decent education.
In the early years there were only a few high schools in the whole of
Balochistan. Because distances from one town to the next were so incredibly
vast people demanded more schools but their pleas fell on deaf ears. Not only
that but they were threatened with punitive action. Speaking of distances the
following brief list will show how vast the distances indeed are:
Turbat - Quetta 607 km Turbat- Mastung 562 Km
Gwadar - Quetta 730 k
Turbat - Khuzdar 405 km Panjgur - kalat 334 km
Gwadar - Turbat 129 km Turbat - Panjgur 148 Km
Turbat - Kalat 483 km Mand- Sibi 688 km
Jiwani - Quetta 770 km Pasni- kharan 416 km
Mand - Turbat 102 km Turbat- Jiwani 169 km
Mand - Quetta 667 km Quetta- kalat 138 km
Quetta - Mastung 48 km Turbat - Tump 69 Km
Although some of the distances are in double figures and do seem much
shorter but we are talking about 60 years ago when the only modes of transport
were either the camel back or the goods lorries which were endemically unreliable.
These lorries were 20 to 30 years old. They ran only once a week from one town
to another delivering goods. They were not meant for carrying passengers.
Occasionally the driver would agree to carry a few passengers or a sick person.
Because these lorries were pretty ancient they would break down half way
through the journey; as a result the passengers would be stranded and reach
their destination two to three weeks later. So the only reliable mode of
transport was, in actual fact, the camel. One of the shortest journeys, say
from Turbat to Tump (only 69 km), would take 2 whole days on the camel back.
Imagine how many days and weeks it would take from Turbat to Quetta, a journey
of 607 km. If one was to embark on the same journey by a goods lorry it would
take between 7 to 10 days in normal weather conditions and without the lorry
breaking down.
One can understand as to why the people demanded schools and colleges in
all the towns and larger villages. But the new colonial rulers ignored their
demands with utmost contempt. They did not want Baloch children to be educated.
It is worth reminding the fact that this was a time when high schools, colleges
and universities were mushrooming in all parts of Panjab, the rulers neither
increased the number of schools nor even bothered to develop the
infra-structure in Balochistan which reminded one of dark ages. Each year
hundreds of under-privileged pupils would drop out of school because after
finishing primary or middle school there won't be any higher schools in the
nearest towns. Even if there was a higher school in the nearest town the
distance would, in most cases, be so great it would be physically impossible
for a pupil to walk to school and come back home on the same day. Because of
the vastness of the country the nearest town could in many cases be between 30
to a 100 miles away. As a result the pupils would have no choice but to quit.
The situation of high school students was not any better either. After
finishing high school not many students could afford to go to Quetta and study
in the college there. Only a very small number of those lucky enough to get a
scholarship would be able to continue their education whilst majority of them,
some of whom the brightest, would unfortunately have no option but to drop out
to make way for students IMPORTED from Panjab. Such was the heritage of the
colonial and racist educational policy of Pakistan. It was the cruelest of all
their policies.
Examining Board
Balochistan, for a very long time, wasn't thought fit enough to have its
own secondary education board. At the time of Annexation it came under the
jurisdiction of the Panjab secondary board. People were not happy with this
arrangement because the Panjab board had only one examination centre in
Balochistan for matriculation exams which was located in Quetta. Every year
examination papers would be sent from Lahore which would seldom arrive on time.
Students from all over Balochistan after WEEKS of travel would converge on
Quetta, some staying with relatives but many at musafirkhanas, the
old-fashioned travelers' inns with notoriously unhygienic facilities. The
students would all ensure to arrive on time. But quite often they would be
shocked to learn that their exam papers hadn't arrived yet. They would sometimes
be made to wait for weeks. The poorest of them who could not afford to stay any
longer wait a few more days and then leave saying farewell to Quetta and to
their dream of a better future. People demanded that Balochistan should have
its own examining board and that more examiation centres should be set up in
different districts of Balochistan. But the rulers were not prepared to change
the status quo. People would be routinely accused by the authorities of
"anti-Pakistan" activities just for demanding a separate examining
board for Balochistan and establishment of more schools and colleges.
In the middle of 1950s students began organising themselves. In 1956,
students in Makran founded "Makran Sudents Federation". Its main
demands were 1) the estalishment of a Balochistan Secondary Board, 2) more exam
centres throughout Balochistan and 3) establishment of more schools and
colleges in all major towns. The General Secretary of the Federation was
Mohammad Siddiq Azad. He was accused of anti-State activities and links with
the Communist Party and anti-Pakistan Baloch leadership. In those early days
these were some of the patent charges, especially that of communist links,
leveled against anybody who raised his or her voice against any kind of
injustice. Azad says he and his friends didn't then know much about communism
and communists. However, they fully supported the Baloch leadership but the
latter never tried to influence them in any form or shape.
In 1961 a Balochistan wide student organisation, i.e., Warna Waninda
Gal, which later became Baloch Students' Organisation, was formed in Quetta.
Because of his previous experience in the field, Siddiq Azad was elected
General Secretary of Warna Waninda Gal. Again the main objectives of this
new organisation were to strive for the establishment of a Balochistan
secondary board an d of new schools and colleges in all the major towns. It
also demanded more exam centers throughout Balochistan. Instead of addressing
these problems the authorities accused WWG of "subversive"
activities. The rulers' totally unreasonable and inflexible attitude
politicised the students even more so. They began to see the rulers in their
true colonial colours. And the people in general were very angry with the
rulers for failing to accept their non-political and reasonable demands.
In 1963, Siddiq Azad visited Lahore, which was then the capital of West
Pakistan, to lobby for the establishment of a separate examining board for
Balochistan. He met several West Pakistan Assembly members from Balochistan who
were all sympathetic towards the idea except for one member, i.e., Nabi Bakhsh
Zehri, who was a staunch Panjab-worshiping businessman-cum-politician.
According to Azad the former tried to convince him that Punjab Board was
"in the best interests of Balochistan". He advised Azad not to press
for a Balochistan Board because it would be unwise "to invite the wrath of
Punjab". However the rulers, sensing the mood of the people decided
to "appease" them by bringing Balochistan under the jurisdiction of
the Multan Board. As is evident it was the most foolish act on the part of the
government because this change was seen as a bad joke and it obviously didn't
solve any problem. Multan was and still remains an important city in Panjab.
The Baloch people took this decision as an insult to their intelligence.
(To continue)
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