Baloch National Movement — Constitution and Manifesto

The Baloch National Movement shall struggle for the restoration of Baloch national sovereignty on the basis of national freedom. The party regards the national domination and occupation of the Baloch homeland by foreign occupying nations, the deprivation of the Baloch nation of its national sovereignty, and the oppressive, colonial, political and social structures imposed by the occupying nations as the fundamental cause of the political, economic, social and cultural backwardness of the Baloch nation. For the national, political, economic, social, educational and cultural construction and development of the Baloch nation, the party shall therefore struggle for complete deliverance from the present colonial system, founded on oppression, exploitation, and national subjugation and domination.

The Baloch National Movement shall struggle to build the national economy of Balochistan on the basis of a mixed economy and to establish a welfare society through a partnership of national and private ownership and capital, and the following policies shall be implemented:

(i) The Baloch National Movement shall struggle to secure the free and independent development of the Baloch nation, protecting the political, economic and cultural interests of the Baloch nation from every kind of negative effect of foreign domination and monopoly.

(ii) The Baloch National Movement shall end the remnants of the feudal and comprador capitalist economy in Balochistan and make possible industrial and agricultural development in accordance with the needs of the national economy. To this end it shall ensure the participation of labourers, peasants, small farmers, traders and fishermen in the process of economic development, protect their rights, and encourage private industry and crafts alongside national industrialisation.

(iii) The Baloch National Movement shall cancel all anti-people agreements made on foreign and domestic investment and trade, and with multinational corporations, that conflict with Baloch national interests, and shall impose a complete ban on non-beneficial investment.

(iv) The investment of all multinational corporations and financial capitalist companies shall be brought into harmony with the national financial system, and local industry and crafts shall be protected from the negative effects of imperial investment.

(v) To protect local industry, the onslaught of foreign products shall be checked, and a policy of self-reliance shall be adopted by controlling dependence on the import of luxury goods.

(vi) The public sector in industry shall be encouraged. All domestic and foreign banks, insurance companies and large financial institutions of a national character shall be linked through the financial system of the national central bank.

(vii) Large monopolies shall be discouraged and medium and small-scale investment encouraged; to achieve balanced development, a network of suitable industries shall be laid throughout Balochistan, and friendly commercial and economic relations shall be established with foreign countries.

(viii) To derive the greatest benefit from mineral resources, mineral industries shall be established, monopolies over these resources shall be ended, and the resources shall be taken into national ownership.

(ix) Special measures shall be taken to develop the gas reserves of Balochistan; their wasteful use and unsuitable distribution shall be controlled, and the supply of gas shall be ensured to all the towns and rural areas of Balochistan, so that industries may be promoted and every citizen may be provided with cheap fuel for domestic needs.

(x) Special measures shall be taken to discover oil reserves and to develop them and bring them into use; by making full use of these reserves, domestic needs shall be met and foreign exchange earned through the export of oil products.

(xi) For the discovery of the underground mineral resources of Balochistan — oil, gas, coal, uranium, iron, sulphur, copper, gold, silver, gypsum, chromite and other minerals — agreements shall be made with developed countries, keeping Baloch national interests in view.

(xii) Special arrangements shall be made for the development of the mining industry, and modern equipment and machinery shall be provided for its development and expansion.

(xiii) To free Balochistan from the semi-feudal, outdated and backward relations of production imposed by the occupying nations and to bring the agricultural economy into harmony with the needs of the modern age, a policy of agrarian reform shall be adopted: the ceiling on the ownership of irrigated agricultural land shall be fixed at not less than 50 acres, the ceiling for rain-fed land shall be determined according to output per unit, and all uncultivated land shall be distributed among landless peasants in proportion to the ceiling.

(xiv) To develop agro-industry, agriculture shall be given the status of an industry. The free supply of modern agricultural implements, tractors, fertilisers, agricultural pesticides, seeds and the like to farmers and peasants shall be made possible, and no unjust agricultural tax, water rate or the like shall be levied on them in any form.

(xv) Interest-free agricultural loans and other financial grants shall be provided to peasants and small farmers to increase agricultural production; laws shall be made for the encouragement and protection of farm labourers and tenants, and farm labourers and tenants shall be given the right to organise.

(xvi) Water reserves shall be developed. To modernise and improve the irrigation system, underground water resources shall be brought into use and, to store flood water, large dams and check dams shall be built on all rivers and streams, and these sources shall be put to use.

(xvii) Recognising employment, education, housing, medical treatment and other basic facilities as the fundamental right of every citizen, the Baloch National Movement shall take practical steps to entrust these responsibilities to the state.

(xviii) The experience of developed countries shall be drawn upon to establish an effective system of taxation. To increase the sources of revenue, a research centre of economic experts shall be established, which shall plan the use of national income for development work in order to build a welfare society.

(i) To develop fisheries and marine resources, special arrangements shall be made to provide fishermen with modern equipment that does not destroy marine life, loans on easy instalments, boats, engines and nets, and technical training. Harbours shall be built in all coastal areas, cold storage and factories shall be established for the modern packing and preservation of the fish catch, and marketing at local and international level shall be guaranteed for the export of the fish catch abroad.

(ii) Co-operative societies shall be established to create fishing farms, and the economic security of fishermen shall be ensured.

(i) Cattle farms shall be established for livestock breeding and herding. Special measures shall be taken to provide basic human facilities to the nomadic population, and they shall be provided with water, electricity, housing, education, medical treatment, means of transport and employment opportunities. Cattle farms and poultry farms for livestock breeding shall be given the status of cottage industries, and the facility of bank loans shall also be provided.

(ii) Wildlife shall be protected. Effective laws shall be made for the protection of natural pastures, wild animals and birds and for the development of forests, and national parks shall also be established.

(iii) To promote tourism, places of recreation shall be made attractive. The tourism sector, too, shall be given the status of an industry and made an important means of earning foreign exchange.

(i) Adapting the means of trade and transport to the needs of the modern age, and in view of the geographical conditions of Balochistan, an effective transport system shall be established. A comprehensive network of roads, bridges, railway lines and modern sea and air communications shall be built so that all the areas of Balochistan may be linked with one another.

(ii) Balochistan shall be linked to the global village through information technology, modern electronic equipment and computer technology, and, to bring it into harmony with the needs of the modern age, institutions of education and training of international standard, equipped with modern technology, shall be built as a matter of urgency.

(i) The colonial and neo-colonial system of education in educational institutions shall be abolished. Keeping in view national needs and the needs of the modern age, new curricula shall be drawn up in which special attention shall be paid to science and technology, national history, civilisation and culture, and positive national values, and which shall also be acceptable to international universities.

(ii) The system of education founded on class and commercial bases shall be abolished and equal educational facilities shall be provided to all citizens. Centres of basic education shall be opened in the villages. Education shall be declared free and compulsory.

(i) Special measures shall be taken for the discovery and protection of the Baloch historical heritage.

(ii) Dedicated institutions shall be established for the encouragement of writers, poets, researchers, artists, painters and musicians of the Balochi and Brahui languages.

(iii) Special measures shall be taken for the development and promotion of Balochi handicrafts, embroidery and architecture.

(i) Adopting an independent, positive and non-aligned foreign policy, the Baloch National Movement shall establish political, economic, commercial and cultural relations with the nations of the world on the basis of equality, under the principle of peaceful coexistence.

(ii) The best of friendly relations shall be established with all neighbouring countries, and fraternal ties shall be built while adhering to the policy of non-interference in one another’s internal affairs.

(iii) For the establishment of peace at the international level, the survival of humanity, democracy, and social and economic development, the Baloch National Movement shall struggle, together with the peace-loving forces of the world, to bring about an end to war and nuclear weapons, and shall oppose countries engaged in a race for weapons of mass destruction in violation of the Charter of the United Nations and contrary to international law.

(iv) The Baloch National Movement shall struggle on every front against the colonial and neo-colonial system, racism and discrimination, and shall co-operate fully with the countries and political movements struggling against these forces.

(v) The Baloch National Movement shall support anti-imperialist national freedom movements, labour movements and democratic forces; declaring the right to national freedom to be the natural right of every nation, it recognises this universal principle as the fundamental basis of world peace, the survival of humanity, and political, economic and social development.

To shape the political and social structure of Balochistan in a national democratic mould, the Baloch National Movement shall struggle on the following points for the restoration and protection of fundamental human, democratic and social rights:

(i) To establish a national democratic form of politics and society and the sovereignty of the people in Balochistan, the Baloch National Movement, declaring the people to be the source of power, shall completely end the exploitation of one individual by another, and shall guarantee to every citizen, without distinction of colour or race, religion or belief, caste or sex, an equal freedom to take part in the affairs of establishing Baloch national sovereignty, to hold office, to be elected to public bodies, and to put forward his or her point of view in the affairs of the state.

(ii) The political policy of national democratic politics shall be founded on a people’s democratic system, which shall guarantee the welfare, progress and prosperity of the people.

(iii) The people’s right to vote shall be recognised, respected and protected under the principle of one person, one vote. In place of separate electorates, the principle of joint electorates on the basis of adult franchise — one person, one vote — shall be adopted; and freedom of writing and speech, of organisation, of expression and of voting shall be guaranteed.

(iv) Discrimination on the basis of sex shall be ended; there shall be a struggle for the equal rights of women and men in society, and the equal participation of Baloch women in the process of Baloch national construction and development shall be ensured.

(v) The provision of employment, education, housing, medical treatment, food and other basic facilities shall be recognised as a fundamental right, and practical measures shall be taken in this regard.

(vi) The rights of children shall be fully protected. Special attention shall be paid to their upbringing, education and training, and to their health and nutritional needs, so that they may play a positive and constructive role in the building and development of society as healthy and capable individuals.

(vii) Educational institutions run on class and commercial bases shall be prohibited, and equal educational facilities shall be provided to all citizens. Education shall be declared free and compulsory. Education in the mother tongues shall be recognised as a fundamental right and introduced in educational institutions.

(viii) Modern educational, technical and scientific institutions and health centres of international standard shall be opened in the urban and rural areas of Balochistan.

(ix) There shall be a struggle to secure for labourers the rights to form unions, to strike and to bargain collectively, and the rights of labourers shall be protected in accordance with the charter of the ILO. The minimum wage of labourers shall be fixed in proportion to inflation.

(x) Appropriate industrial laws shall be made to provide medical treatment to labourers and their children and educational facilities to their children. Special legal arrangements shall also be made to improve the industrial environment and to ease the conditions of labour.

(xi) To provide speedy justice to the people, the judiciary shall be separated from the executive, and special measures shall be taken, and laws made, to keep the administration and the bureaucracy free from oppression, corruption and other social evils.

(xii) Opposing dictatorship, one-party rule and undemocratic measures in political affairs, and recognising the role of political organisations and democratic institutions, there shall be a struggle to promote the political process.

(xiii) The fundamental democratic and civil rights of all linguistic and religious minorities living in Balochistan shall be fully protected; all discriminatory laws that cause division in society or affect fundamental human rights shall be abolished, and equal rights and privileges shall be given to all citizens without any discrimination.

(xiv) All anti-people black laws made to protect the interests of the imperial and colonial bureaucracy, of feudalism and of comprador capitalists shall be repealed, and in their place laws in harmony with positive Baloch traditions, values and customs and with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights shall be introduced.

(xv) Old people’s homes and care centres shall be established for elderly citizens. Old-age benefit insurance policies shall be made, and in the event of disability the responsibility for all expenses shall rest with the state. Every possible arrangement of facilities shall be made for elderly citizens.

(xvi) The trade, use and spread of narcotics in Balochistan shall be declared a serious crime, and urgent measures shall be taken for the treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts. A comprehensive struggle shall be waged to prevent narcotics and other social evils.

(xvii) The protection of the fundamental rights of doctors, engineers, teachers and all employed and skilled persons shall be ensured.

To establish peace in the Baloch state, the party shall form a national army on a professional basis, free from aggressive and expansionist designs, which shall protect the country’s geographical frontiers.