What’s new? As Iran struggles with geopolitical tensions and economic duress, its periphery regions are facing additional challenges. Baluchestan, the southern part of Sistan and Baluchestan province, has experienced recurrent unrest. Many residents feel the government discriminates against them as a religious and ethnic minority. Militancy persists. Environmental concerns compound the difficulties.
Why does it matter? The central government’s repeated pledges to reduce poverty in Baluchestan through development and improved governance have been undermined by chronic mismanagement, lack of investment and suppression of dissent. Deepening socio-economic disparities, threats of militancy and growing environmental challenges are likely to bring greater strains.
What should be done? Enhancing popular participation in local governance, making economic reforms and improving environmental stewardship are the best ways to address Baluchestan’s entrenched crisis. But meaningful progress will require considerable support from the central government, notwithstanding the other huge challenges it faces at home and abroad.
Executive Summary
Even as it recovers from its twelve-day war with Israel, faces increasing U.S. pressure and contemplates the prospect of renewed UN sanctions, Iran is struggling with domestic challenges that cry out for Tehran’s attention. Among these are the grievances of the Baluch residents of the volatile Baluchestan region. Baluchestan covers most of the south-eastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan. Two thirds of its inhabitants are Baluch – a primarily Sunni group that is ethnically and religiously distinct from Iran’s Persian Shiite majority. The region has seen years of underdevelopment, socio-political exclusion, repression and environmental degradation. It has also seen violence, including on 30 September 2022 – known among Baluch as “bloody Friday” – when state forces killed over 100 protesters. Though unrest has waned, its drivers remain unaddressed, providing grist for separatist groups, one of which provoked a clash with neighbouring Pakistan in 2024. Efforts to advance economic development and political inclusion – and to tackle environmental problems – can help put Baluchestan on a more stable footing.
No comments:
Post a Comment