On September 30, 2022, the Islamic regime violently repressed the demonstrations of Baloch protesters gathering in front of a police station in Zahedan, leading to what would become known as the "Zahedan massacre," or "Bloody Friday," in which more than 150 people were killed and hundreds injured. Baloch media outlet Balochwarna.com stressed that the protests in Zahedan erupted after news emerged that the police head of the coastal city of Chabahar, Colonel Ebrahim Kochzai, had raped a 15-year-old Baloch girl Maho Baloch on September 27, 2022, after arresting her.
The people of Zahedan took to the streets to protest the sexual assault of the Baloch girl and the "systemic discrimination and structural repression" against the Baloch people. The protests emerged within the context of the 2022 uprising against the Iranian regime, after Kurdish-Iranian woman Jina (Mahsa) Amini was arrested by the Iranian religious police for wearing her headscarf "improperly" and died in police custody. Her killing sparked protests all over Iran as she became the symbol of the uprising against the Iranian regime.
It is worth noting that the 2022 protests against the Iranian regime can be defined not only as a women-led uprising, but also an ethnic minorities-led one. In fact, for the ethnic minorities that comprise almost half of Iran's population (e.g., Ahwazi Arabs, Kurds, and Balochis), the uprising represented a "revolution" for liberty and basic ethnic and human rights of which they have been deprived not only by the Islamic Republic of Iran, but also by the former Persian regimes (e.g., under the Pahlavi dynasty) for almost a century.
On October 2, 2023, prominent Baloch leader Hyrbyair Marri, the head of the Free Balochistan Movement and one of the most popular leaders among Baloch youth, gave a seminar in London, remembering the victims killed by the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Zahedan Massacre. Despite his speech was given a year ago, his words still resonate today.
Marri supports the independence of Balochistan from Iran and Pakistan. He envisions a free, secular and democratic Balochistan, in which men and women from all spheres of society will be equal and entitled to all democratic rights, protections, and freedoms.
Prominent Baloch Leader Hyrbyair Marri
Following is the transcript of Marri's speech:[1]
"For The Baloch, It's A Zero-Sum Game"
"One year ago, on this day, the Iranian forces indiscriminately opened fire at peaceful protesters in Zahedan – the capital of Iranian-Occupied Balochistan – and killed more than a hundred people in the space of a few minutes. For us Baloch it was another reminder that if and when the Baloch try to raise their voice for justice, freedom and democracy, they will be massacred and silenced. What the Baloch enemies (Iran and Pakistan) keep forgetting is that nations cannot and will not be subdued by the sheer use of military might. Their guns and bombs may kill us, but they cannot silence our voices forever. The Zahedan Massacre, also known as Bloody Friday, reawakened the Baloch and there have been continuous protests and anger since.
"The Baloch youth under Iran's occupation are realizing the fact that Iran will never accept Baloch as equals to Persians. The Baloch are also realizing that those who are trying to mix the Baloch national question with demands of federalism or regime change are playing into the hands of the enemy. That is why the main slogan of Baloch people currently has become 'Neither Shah nor Sheik are our well-wishers.'
"Pakistan and Iran have been hand in glove since the 1970s, working against the Baloch Independence movement. In the 70s the Shah's regime provided financial aid, military advisers and Airforce to Pakistan to suppress the Baloch freedom movement. Now the Iranians have provided Kamikaze drones to Pakistan, with the blessing of China, which has invested in both parts of occupied Balochistan. However, the Baloch drive for independence is stronger than ever, and no amount of cooperation between the occupiers will deter the Baloch people. The Chinese cooperation will not change anything.
"Historically, no occupier has ever been able to conquer the Baloch. The Mongols, the Portuguese and the British all tried but failed. We strongly believe that the current occupiers and mass murderers will also fail, and the Baloch will be victorious.
"For the Baloch, it is a zero-sum game. Either they take and conquer our land totally, or we get rid of the occupiers. There is no way the Baloch are going to stop struggling. The international community has never aided or helped the Baloch people, they have only sided with the occupiers of our land.
This clip is a compilation of footage from Friday demonstrations in Balochistan on January 27 and February 3, 2023. In the clip, demonstrators can be seen chanting such slogans as "Our tables are empty, Khamenei is a killer," "Death to Khamenei!," "Curse upon Khomeini!" "Death to the Basijis!" "Death to the IRGC!" "I will kill whoever killed my brother!" "Death to the oppressor, whether it is the Shah or the Leader!" (See MEMRI TV Clip No. 10102, WARNING — GRAPHIC: Anti-Regime Demonstrations In Balochistan; Iranian Regime Security Opens Fire On Demonstrators, Arrest Citizens, Publicly Flog Man, February 3, 2023)
"The International Community Remains Criminally Silent"
"The international community including the UN have witnessed the Zahedan Massacre and the other brutalities of Iran and Pakistan in Balochistan, but remains criminally silent on the atrocities of these states against the Baloch nation. They have their own priorities and interests. This is why they try to cover and conceal each other's crimes; as it benefits them.
"The UN is more like a club of states than a representing body of Nations because only States can represent themselves in the UN assembly. Nations, more specifically occupied nations, cannot represent themselves. It is obvious the occupying states that are involved in crimes against humanity in occupied lands will not go and testify against themselves at the United Nation's ICJ or ICC. That is the reason that the genocide of oppressed nations like the Kurds, Arabs of Al-Ahwaz, and Turks of South Azerbaijan under Iran's occupation, and the Baloch, Pashtun, and Sindhis under Pakistan's occupation go unnoticed and ignored.
"The occupiers of Balochistan say the Baloch people cannot live without them if we become independent. But actually, they are the parasites, living off Balochistan's wealth, resources and land. It is like a parasite telling its host 'if we are separated, you will not survive.' The truth is, it is the parasite, not the host, that would not survive.
"Pakistan is a country of 230 million people that are thriving on the resources and riches of Balochistan. The Pakistanis are stealing gold, copper, petroleum, and more from Baluchistan, allowing Punjab to thrive. Starting with Reko-diq and Saindak, which are two of the world's largest gold deposits, worth trillions of dollars, and are being plundered by the Pakistanis. Likewise, Balochistan's natural gas not only enables every household in Punjab to cook their food, it is also essential for running the tens of thousands of industries that rely on it. Similarly, over ten thousand coal mines in Balochistan, such as those in Bolan and Chamalang, are running Pakistani industries. Pakistan as well as China are forcibly constructing Gwadar port, to push forward CPEC – as part their belt and road initiative. They have also displaced and destroyed dozens of Baloch villages in order to push forward their agenda. Meanwhile, the Baloch people fall victim to Pakistan and Iran's theft. This wealth is being taken out of their land, yet they do not even have the purchasing power of one meal a day. How is it possible that a country that is sustaining 230 million Pakistanis and millions of Persians, is pushed into a position where its own people are struggling to survive?
Footages of protests in Zahedan. Based on the footage, thousands of Balochs attended the protests. The protestors chanted "I will kill whoever killed my brother!", "Death to Khamenei!", "Mullahs should get lost!", "Basiji and IRGC, you are our ISIS!", "Khamenei – have some honor and leave the country!", and "This is the year of bloody [uprising]!" (See MEMRI TV Clip No. 10102, WARNING — GRAPHIC: Anti-Regime Demonstrations In Baluchestan, Iran; Regime Security Opens Fire On Demonstrators, Arrest Citizens, Publicly Flog Man, February 3, 2023.)
"Our Occupiers Don't See Us Based On Our Religious, Democratic, Socialist, Or Communist Groups – They See Us As Baloch"
"I believe it is time for the occupied nations to strive for unity within themselves to strengthen their resistance and effort for freedom, and to build broader unity between the oppressed and subjugated nations. Without our Unity, the oppressive states and their B teams like the parliamentarians and the federalists will continue to misguide our people, divide and weaken our struggle for our national sovereignty and independence.
"Although there is a long list of atrocities committed against the Baloch people, including but not limited to the Chamalang massacre, multiple mass graves, countless disappeared people, thousands murdered under the 'Kill and dump' policy, and the recent Zahedan massacre. We should brace ourselves for more of such atrocities if we stay divided along the line of ideologies. Our occupiers do not see us based on our religious, democratic, socialist or communist groups – they see us as Baloch. So, my message to my people is that we have to stay strong and keep going, and accept and respect each others ways and values, in order to achieve our common Baloch goal. We have suffered enough. We have been deceived enough. Now is the time to unite. We should stop using terms such as 'Iranian Baloch' and 'Pakistani Baloch' – we are one.
"The Baloch were on this land well before these nations even existed."
[1] Freebalochistan.com/transcript-of-the-speech-by-hyrbyair-marri-president-of-the-free-balochistan-movement-at-fbm-seminar-in-london, October 2, 2023.
