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Iran Represses Sunnis in Balochistan

(Diplomat-Japan) Karlos Zurutuza - Balochistan, as the Baloch refer to their homeland, is an area the size of France, divided today between Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan. It holds significant reserves of gas, gold, copper, oil and uranium, but Tehran hasn't exploited the energy and mineral reserves in the area. Today, the region has the lowest per capita income in Iran, with almost 80% of the Baloch people living below the poverty line. The average life expectancy is at least eight years lower than the national average, while infant mortality rates are the highest in the country. "Annexation of the region to Iran in 1928 brought terrible episodes of repression, caused a mass exodus of the local population and saw virtually every Baloch place name changed to a Persian one," says Prof. Taj Muhammad Breseeg. The problem for Balochs is that they are Sunni Muslims in a Shiite-ruled nation. "The Islamic Shiite missionaries sent by Tehran told us that we'd have no jobs, no schools and no opportunities unless we converted," says Faiz Baloch, one of thousands of Baloch refugees who were forced to leave their homeland. According to figures from Amnesty International, Iran executed at least 1,481 people from 2004 to 2009, with the London-based International Voice for Baloch Missing Persons claiming that about 55% were Baloch.
2011-05-20 00:00:00
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