The Baloch Students Organization Azad (BSO-Azad) has issued a statement condemning the establishment of Gwadar International Airport, calling it a tool for Punjabi and Chinese colonization disguised as development.
The BSO Azad spokesperson claimed that while the local population in Gwadar struggles for basic amenities like clean drinking water, substantial investments are being made in infrastructure projects that serve the interests of Punjabi and Chinese settlers.
The organization also accused the Pakistani military and intelligence agencies, backed by Chinese funds, of “engaging in enforced disappearances, fake encounters, and genocide against the Baloch people.”
“On one hand, the Pakistani Army and agencies are involved in extrajudicial abductions, ‘fake’ encounters, and mass ‘genocide’ of Baloch people at the expense of Chinese investment. On the other hand, they have built a huge airport marking the beginning of significant demographic changes in Gwadar city,” the spokesperson said.
BSO Azad highlighted that the airport is not intended for the development of the local population but is a strategic move to facilitate the settlement of non-Baloch people. “The new airport in Gwadar is part of a wider plan by Punjabi and Chinese imperialists to turn the Baloch people into a minority in their own land,” the spokesperson added.
The statement further claimed that the strategic importance of Balochistan has prompted China and Pakistan to establish a strong military presence in the region. “China and Pakistan want to control this land and create a military base in the port city of Gwadar. China aims to position itself against capitalist and imperialist powers of the West, while applying the same tactics of European colonialism in Balochistan by building large military bases,” the spokesperson noted.
BSO Azad called on the Baloch people to organize a resistance movement against the airport, warning that its construction could lead to further military suppression. “If Gwadar has become an open-air prison for a few hundred Chinese, we can’t imagine the extent of violent military suppression when thousands of Chinese arrive in the future,” the statement warned.
The organization urged the Baloch population to resist Chinese and Pakistani policies, which they claim aim to eradicate the Baloch identity. “The state’s current policy is based on sheer violence and force, aiming not only to turn the Baloch people into a minority but also to achieve a complete ‘genocide’ of the Baloch population,” the spokesperson concluded.