3/5/2017 ABriefHistoryofBalochistan|TheDiplomat

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A Brief History of Balochistan

How did the Baloch nation come to be?

By Akhilesh Pillalamarri
February 12, 2016

ThearidregionofBalochistan,situatedattheeasternendoftheIranianplateau,issplitalmostevenlybetweenPakistans
BalochistanprovinceandIransSistanBaluchistanprovince(asmallportionofthesouthernpartsofAfghanistansNimruz,
Helmand,andKandaharprovincesarealsopartofBaluchistan).Balochistanistodayattheforefrontofmajorgeopolitical
events.PakistanhasfacedalmostconstantturmoilinBalochistansinceitsindependence,evenasitstrugglestosecureand
developtheregionwithChinesehelp.

TheportaccessofferedbyGwadarinBalochistanisanimportantcomponentinChinasemergingtransportationnetwork
acrossAsia.RightacrosstheborderinIran,IndiaisstrugglingtocompleteChabahar,itsattempttoanswerGwadarandlinkto
AfghanistanbygoingaroundPakistan.IranianBalochistanisIranssoftunderbelly,arestlessSunniregioninamostlyShia
country,aplacewhereSaudiArabiacanmakemischiefusinggroupsliketheradicalSunniJundallah.

ButwhataboutBalochistanitself?Howdiditcometobedividedandruledbyotherpeoples?Surprisingly,verylittlehasbeen
writtenaboutBalochistan.IthasalwaysbeenuncomfortablysandwichedbetweenthegreatPersianandIndianempirestoits
westandeast.AndunliketheirAfghanneighborstothenorth,whoalsofelttheconstanttugofwarbetweenPersiaandIndia,
thepeopleofBalochistanhadnomountainstoprotectthem.Itisaregionatonceneglected,exploited,andignored.

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BalochistantakesitsnamesfromtheBalochwhoinhabitit,amostlySunniMuslimpeoplewhospeakanIranianlanguage,
Balochi,thatisoddlyclassifiedneitherasaneasternIranianlanguagelikePashtotoitsnorthorasouthwesternIranian
languagelikePersiantoitswest.Rather,BalochiisanorthwesternIranianlanguage,mostcloselyrelatedtoKurdish.Itisthusa
matterofsomeconjectureastowhenandhowtheBalochactuallygottoBalochistan.

Inancienttimes,theregionwasapartoftheAchaemenidPersianEmpireandthenvariousPersianandIndianempiresand
localkingdomsandwaspresumablyinhabitedbysomemixofIranianandIndianpeoples.PeopleinBaluchistanfollowed

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3/5/2017 ABriefHistoryofBalochistan|TheDiplomat
Hinduism,Buddhism,andZoroastrianism.TheregionacquiredanotoriousreputationduetoAlexandertheGreatdisastrously
marchingbacktoBabylonafterhisIndiancampaignthroughitsdeserts,leadingtothedeathsofthousandsofsoldiers.

BythetimeoftheriseofIslaminthe600s,BalochistanwaslooselycontrolledbytheSassanidPersianempire,butasthat
empirefacedtheonslaughtoftheArabs,Balochistan,thenknownasMakran(afterthenameofitscoastalregion),passedtothe
controloftheRaiDynastyofSindh.TheArabsdefeatedthisdynastyin644attheBattleofRasilandconqueredMakran,which
convertedtoIslambutcontinuedtoremainalightlypopulated,peripheralregion.

Inthe11thcentury,theSeljukTurksinvadedPersia.Thisisthoughttohavestimulatedtheeastwardmigrationofthenomadic
tribes(ancestorsoftodaysBaloch)ofcentralIranandtheareasouthoftheCaspianseaintoBalochistan.Asthesetribeswere
usedtolivingmarginallyinaridterritory,themovetotheevenmorearidBalochistanwasnotacatastropheandwasindeeda
pathoflessresistancethanfightingtheinvaders,whocompetedforthesamepasturespaceinIran.Aroundthesametime,
Balochistanslargestminoritygroup,theBrahui(whospeakaDravidianlanguagelikeotherSouthIndianlanguages)migrated
toBalochistanfromcentralIndiaandformedasymbioticrelationshipwiththeBaloch.ManyBalochbecomesedentaryduring
thisperiod,farmingoases.Theyformedmanykingdomsandtribalconfederations,sometimesindependent,sometimesunder
thesuzeraintyofexternalempires.

Inthe1500s,Balochistan,likeAfghanistantoitsnorth,becamedividedintozonesofcontrolbetweentheSafavidPersian
EmpiretoitswestandtheMughalEmpiretoitseast.ThisapproximatelyreflectstheIranPakistanbordertoday.Because
PersiasSistanprovinceisafrontierprovince,itwaslooselycontrolledanditspeoplehadleverageoveritscentralgovernment
(theycouldswearallegiancetotheMughalsiftheywished).Asaresult,unlikemostoftherestofIran,itmanagedtoescapethe
centralgovernmentspolicyofimplementingShiaIslam.AsfortheMughals,whileinitiallytheyruledBalochistandirectlyfrom
MultaninthePunjab(intodaysPakistan),itwasneveraplaceofmuchimportance.Controlwasdelegatedtoalocalvassalwho
organizedtheKhanateofKalatin1666(locatedincentralBalochistan).OnbehalfoftheMughals,Kalatruledoverthevassalsof
thestatesofLasBela,Kharan,andMakran,whichmakeupmostofPakistaniBalochistan.In1783,theKhanofKalatgranted
suzeraintytotheportofGwadartoamanwholaterbecametheSultanofOmanandwhodecidedtokeepitaspartofhis
domains.PakistanhadtobuyitbackfromOmanin1958.

ThedivisionofBalochistanintowesternandeasternhalvestemporarylapsedduringthe18thcenturyasfirsttheSafavidand
thentheMughalEmpire,andfinallythebriefempireofNaderShahcollapsed.Balochistanrevertedtoacollectionof
principalities,someofwhichthenfellunderthecontrolofAfghanistan,butmostremainedindependent.Themostimportantof
theseindependentprincipalitieswasKalat.Withinacentury,though,theQajardynastyestablisheditselfinPersia,andthe
BritishinIndia,squeezingtheBalochagain.TheBritishattackedKalatin1839aspartoftheirrelatedinvasionofAfghanistan,
installingafriendlyruler.In1854,KalatbecameanassociatedstateoftheBritish,andin1877theBritishestablishedthe
BaluchistanAgencytodealwiththeBaluchprincelystatesinitsIndianEmpireanddirectlyruleofthenorthernhalfof
Balochistan,includingQuetta.

Inthemeanwhile,PersiareconqueredwesternBalochistan,whichhasremainedpartofIraneversinceexceptforabriefperiod
inthe1920swhenitacquireditsownking.TheBritishandPersiansdemarcatedtheboundarybetweentheirterritoriesin
18711872,withsomechangesmadein18951896.Pakistan,whichabsorbedtheprincelystateofKalatin1955(allegedlyKalat
hadtriedtofindawaytojoinIndiainstead),reconfirmedthisboundarywithIranwithsomeveryminorchangesduringa
demarcationin19581959.

TheseagreementsbasicallyestablishedthemodernfrontierbetweenIranandPakistaniBalochistan,butitisnotanarbitrary
divisionthatsuddenlyseveredtheBalochnationintwo.ThecontrolofthewesternpartofBalochistanfromIranandtheeastern
fromthesubcontinenthasbeenafactmoreorlessforoverfivecenturies,anditscurrentdivision,basedontheAngloPersian
divisionrepresentedzonesofexistingcontrolonthegroundratherthananunenforceable,randomline.Nonetheless,thereis
nodoubtthatethnicBalochonbothsidesofthefrontieraregettingtheshortendofthestick,becausetheirneedsare
subordinatedtotheneedsoftheirstates,butunlikethePashtunandKurds,theyhaveneitherthenumbersnorthefirepowerto
seriouslycontestthisandnegotiatefurtherrights.

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