“We have lost our freedom, not our dignity. 11 August is not a day of celebration, but a reminder that we were free and that we must be free again.” These views were expressed by speakers at an organizational meeting of the Baloch National Movement (BNM) Kech Gwadar Zone.
On the occasion of 11 August – Pledge Renewal Day, BNM Kech Gwadar Zone held two different programs, addressed by BNM’s Information and Culture Secretary Qazi Dad Mohammad Rehan, Finance Secretary Nasir Baloch, Zonal President Baba J.R., and Zonal General Secretary Bahaar Baloch.
On this occasion, the speakers further said: “What is freedom?” The answer lies in our slavery and today’s conditions. Because of slavery, Baloch today are forced to live like thieves and criminals on their own land. We fear standing at the doors of our own homes lest we be arrested by personnel of the foreign occupying forces. We are not even safe inside our houses, from where we are abducted and forcibly disappeared. For us, freedom means liberation from Pakistan’s slavery.
They said that 11 August is observed every year as Pledge Renewal Day, on the proposal of the martyred leader Waja Ghulam Mohammad Baloch. On this day, we renew our commitment to the freedom struggle, because although we have lost our freedom, we have not lost our dignity or national spirit, nor have we renounced our right to freedom. Yet some circles celebrate this day as if we have already gained freedom, giving a misleading impression. In light of its historical and political significance, we must, following the example of our leader, observe this day as Pledge Renewal Day, not as a festival.
The speakers said that, in erasing the stain of slavery, the current phase of the Baloch freedom struggle represents its fifth stage, in which the sons and daughters of the homeland are sacrificing their lives. In this struggle for freedom, every hardship must be faced with unwavering determination. Pakistan, described as an enemy devoid of civilization, continues to inflict atrocities upon the Baloch nation. Alongside men, women are now also being forcibly disappeared. The Baloch have persisted in their struggle, and as a result, the entire Baloch nation now stands united in support of the freedom movement.
