June 5, 2024
By Nadeem Khan
QUETTA
A group of Mashkel residents gathered outside the Quetta Press Club last week, protesting against the prolonged closure of the Pakistan-Iran border.
The protestors arrived in Quetta on May 31, covering the long distance of 700 kilometres between Mashkel and Quetta on foot, in the extreme summer heat.
Marching under the banner ‘Stop the Baloch economic carnage’, the protestors call for the immediate reopening of the MazhaSar Crossing Point to facilitate the delivery of essential food items from Iran and allow the movement of families living on both sides of the Pak-Iran border.
Mir Jiand Khan Reki, the organizer of the sit-in, says the border divides their families. “One brother lives on one side of the border, while the other lives across it. This interaction has not been possible in three years since the border was closed.”
Before the border closure, residents of Mashkel relied on food imports from Iran. Now, they face significant hardship, having to transport essentials from Quetta at a much higher cost. The situation worsens during the rainy season when the river floods, isolating Mashkel from Dalbandin and Quetta for months
“There is a fence on one side and a river on the other. It feels like we are trapped in a cage. We demand that these two passages be opened,” says Reki.
Mir Asadullah Baloch, a three-time elected provincial assembly member from Panjgur district and head of the Balochistan National Party (Awami), joined the protest in support of the protestors from Mashkel. Speaking to Voicepk, he says the protesters’ demands for basic necessities are legitimate. “The governments of Pakistan and Iran should open the border crossings to ease the local people’s plight.”
Baloch adds the historical and familial ties across the border cannot be severed.
In response, Shahid Rind, spokesperson for the Balochistan government, tells Voicepk that provincial cabinet members Shoaib Noshirwani and Saleem Khosa, following instructions from Chief Minister Mir Sarfaraz Bugti, are negotiating with the protesters – “A better solution to the problem is expected soon.”
However, the participants of the long march remain steadfast. They have vowed to set up a hunger strike camp in front of the chief minister’s house in the red zone if their demands are not met.