Name of Organization |
Baloch Student Organization Azad (BSO-A) |
Formation |
The Baloch Student Organization Azad was founded by the
separatist fighter and political activist
Allah Nazar Baloch
in the year 2002,
his organization has spread
throughout Balochistan, and is known for being
youth-centric. It was banned by the Pakistani state on
the 15th of March, 2013 for allegedly being
involved in terrorism. |
Leadership |
Chairperson: Zahid Baloch
Zahid Baloch was serving as the Chairperson for the BSO-A
when he was picked up at gun-point and abducted on March
18th, 2014. The members of BSO-A have claimed
that Baloch was kidnapped by Pakistani intelligence
agencies. Subsequently, they have been organizing
rallies and campaigns, demanding his release.
Zahid Baloch
Leader:
Banok Karima Baloch
The current leader of BSO-A is Banok Karima Baloch.
Banok Karima
Baloch |
School of thought/ Classification |
Ethno-Nationalist,
Separatist,Baloch-Nationalist |
Ideology |
The Baloch Student Organization-Azad rallies and fights
for the liberation of Balochistan Province from
Pakistan, who it considers to be colonial. |
Status |
The group has been banned by Pakistan government on 15th
of march 2013. |
Framework |
Information about the organizational framework of Baloch
Student Organization-Azad is not available. |
Financial resources
|
No information about its financial resources is
available. |
Recruitment tools & demographics |
The BSO-A is a movement that actively recruits youth
members into the Baloch separatist movement. The youth
of Balochistan are attracted to the struggle’s central
premise of building an independent national identity and
fighting against the perceived injustices and oppression
of the Pakistani state and the army. There have already
been four waves of uprisings since Pakistan’s inception
in 1947; the BSO-A is a part of the fifth
one, which is currently in progress. |
Connections & linkages |
The founder of BSO-A, Allah Nazar
Baloch, is leader of Baloch Liberation Front (BLF)
proscribed by government of Pakistan on September 8,
2010. |
Areas of Operation |
Balochistan and Karachi |
Tools |
Offline Tools
The magazines and publications of BSO-A are available in
English, Urdu, Balochi and Persian. These can be
accessed online through the website of BSO-A.
Online Tools
Website:
The active website of BSO-A
http://sagaar.org/joomla/
Suspended website of the BSO
http://www.sagaar.net/
Facebook:
The Facebook pages of BSO-A and their members
https://www.facebook.com/BanokKarimaBaloch
https://www.facebook.com/BSOLondon?fref=ts
https://www.facebook.com/groups/BSOAAZAD/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Baloch-Student-Organization-Azad/555216384562611?fref=ts
https://www.facebook.com/BSOAZAD?fref=ts
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/BSO__AZAD
https://twitter.com/BSO_London
https://twitter.com/BSOAzadLondon
|
Name Variations |
N/A |
Who
they are
The Baloch Student Organization-Azad is one of the most popular
student groups who are currently active in Balochistan and are
fighting for the independence of their province from Pakistan.
The group is now banned by the government.
History
The history of BSO-A is deeply rooted in the Baloch-Nationalist
struggle that has continued to persist since 1948, when
Balochistan’s Khan of Kalat acceded his state to newly formed
state of Pakistan.
There was widespread resentment from the local Balochs, many of
whom did not agree with the idea of Pakistan, and feared
marginalization and Punjabi dominance. There have been four
local rebellions since; BSO-A constitutes the fifth one in a
series that has claimed hundreds of Pakistani soldiers and at
least 5000 Baloch.
Organization’s Message
Baloch Student
Organization-Azad is a student organization struggling for
liberation of Baloch and restoration of independent Baloch
national state.
Target Audience
Baloch Student
Organization-Azad is a student wing and aims to target youth.
This organization engages youth through various social media
platforms.
Tools
Website
The magazines and publications of BSO-A are available online
Facebook
Baloch Student Organization’s current leader, Banok Karima
Baloch is on the social networking website Facebook. It seems
inactive from the past two years. The following accounts of BSO
can be accessed on facebook.
Twitter
Splinter Groups
Not available.
Annexure
Allah Nazar Baloch
Dr Allah Nazar is a Baloch separatist, nationalist leader from
Balochistan. He is the new face of Baloch separatist leading, as
he is from middle class while all other leaders are mostly from
the elite class of Baloch society. He started his political
career from BSO (Baloch students Organization). In February
2002, he founded his fiction of called BSO-Azad. He is the
leader of BLF (Baloch liberation front), in 2003 he went
underground to reorganise BLF. The killing of Chinese in Gawadar
in May 2004 was blamed on BLF. He was picked by Intelligence
Agencies from Karachi, during a raid on an apartment in March
2005. He made headlines after his arrest and became very
popular. After his release he went into hiding again.
Allah Nazar Baloch is referred to as “YouTube-Commander” as
various folk singers, writers and poets dedicated Balochi folk
songs to Dr. Nazar.
These folk songs are also available on YouTube.
Ethno-nationalist
Nina
Caspersen “The term ethnonationalism refers to a particular
strain of nationalism in which the referent object is an ethnic
group. This ethnic group, or rather its leaders, makes demands
based on dissatisfaction with the existing political
arrangement. Such demands can involve the pursuit of statehood,
although more limited demands, such as cultural autonomy, are
also encompassed by the term.”
Baloch nationalist
Baloch nationalism is an ideology, which says that Baloch is a
distinct ethno-linguistic group of people, leaving in
Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran should unite and should found
their own state free from these countries influence.