A note about a recent broadcast on Dan Rather Reports about Mr. Abdolmalik Rigi           By Willem Marx and A. Baloch

Dear A. Baloch,

A note you have sent about a recent broadcast on Dan Rather Reports has just come to my attention - if it is ok with you, I will respond point by point, as I am the reporter for this program, and I visited Balochistan for a number of weeks.

Dear Friend,
 
Some of our so called Baloch websites have posted a Pro-Al-Qaida terrorist Jundallah's leaders Terrorist Reigi's interview with Dan Rather on their website in taking part of western medias Anti-baloch Campaign to sends a wrong message to the world world community that Baloch are terrorist and pro-al-Qaida. which is not true.

-I do not believe that there is a western media anti-Baloch campaign, and I myself certainly am not anti-Baloch. Everybody I met while I was in Balochistan was incredibly friendly and helpful, and the only problems I had while there were with Punjabi members of the MI and ISI. I do not believe that my report says that Baloch are terrorists or pro al-Qaida, nor do I myself believe that to be the case.
 
I wish the the reporter would interview the real secular Baloch freedom fighters instead of Jundullah, then you would see a different picture of Balochistan as compare to what is shown in this video.

- I have interviewed members of what you call the "real secular Baloch freedom fighters" in areas southwest of Quetta (as BLA commander Baloch Baloch and BLA spokesperson Bramdegh Bugti can confirm), and my interviews with them will be broadcast very soon, also on Dan Rather Reports.

In fact, Compare to the Baloch freedom Fighters, Jundullah is a small group of thugs group and terrorist,

- From my meeting with Mr. Rigi, I would not describe him as a thug. He is an intelligent and charismatic young man (we are both 25 years old), though obviously his movement, or at least elements of his movement, have resorted to extreme violence. His movement does in fact have significant support in Iranian Balochistan, as Jundullah or the People's Resistance Movement is a coalition of older Baloch resistance movements in western Balochistan.

came to existence since last year and was created and armed by Pakistani ISI on behalf of CIA and Bush Administration to provoke Iranian Mullah to have a pretext of Jundullah association to arrest and kill every young Baloch in Iranian Occupied Balochistan and to hang them in public as we have seen more since last year.

- What evidence do you have for any of this? There are some media reports from America on the internet, but none of the people who wrote those reports have visited the region (I know them personally), and their information comes from "Pakistani intelligence sources", whom I sure you would agree are hardly reliable. I have found no evidence whatsoever, except for rumors. It is not my job to report rumors as truth.

This paki trick is called "killing two birds with one arrow." On one side they are doing a favor to United States by arming Jundullah to pay Iranian back for what they are doing in Iraq, and at the same time irking Iranian Mullahs against Baloch people to lash out their wrath against them and kill more Young Balochis.

- I do not think the US is asking Pakistan to arm Jundullah, so that the Iranians kill ordinary young Baloch, nor do I think that the Jundullah group has any real contact with Pakistan intelligence - I know that the Pakistani intelligence are trying to catch Rigi and punish him, not support him. Again, where is your evidence for these claims, as I have been unable to find anything except rumors?
 
The sad part is America who claims to be one the side of freedom, Democracy and Justice loving people, is supporting Jundullah instead of Baloch secular Nationalist in both occupied Balochistan. If American want to teach a lesson to Iranian Mullah, they should support the secular Baloch Nationalist not a pro-al-qaida terrorist group. They should not project Mr Reigi as a baloch hero to make the Baloch people look bad or give Baloch struggle a bad name.

- I am not supporting Jundullah, any more than I am supporting America, Iran or Pakistan. I am a Dutch journalist trying to show as much of the truth as I can, with both compassion and yet also scepticism. I am not working on behalf of the American government, and so it is difficult for me to see how the American government is "projecting" Mr. Rigi as a Baloch hero. I do not believe my report projected him as a hero; rather it was a critical look at his aims and objectives.  Nor do I think that this report gives the Baloch a bad name - my second report on the Baloch movement in Eastern Balochistan will provide more information to viewers in the United States about this little-understood region.
 
Anybody who watches this Video will think that all Baloch are like Reigi, who like to slaughter people like Al-Qaida does by saying Allah-o-Akbar, like killing a goat or sheep as shown in the interview. I ask our Baloch websiters, what kind of message your all trying to give out to the world community by posting this anti-Baloch propaganda video on your websites?

-This report about Rigi is not an anti-Baloch propaganda video. There were rumors in the US and Pakistan that Rigi was getting money from the CIA, and I wished to discover if those were true, while also explaining the situation of the Baloch inside Iran. Have you yourself ever traveled to Iranian Balochistan? To Zahedan, Chabahar, Saravan? What do you know of the Baloch in that region, and who they support?

Why this reporter didn't interview the real Baloch Nationalists in both eastern and western Occupied Baluchistan to project a better picture of what is going on in Balochistan and what baloch people wants?

-I have interviewed many of the real Baloch Nationalists in eastern balochistan, if you include BLA members, BNP member Ataullah Mengal, BSO members Bashir Zaib Baloch and Dr. Imdad Baloch in that category - those interviews will appear in the second part of my report. And as for the Baloch nationalists in western Balochistan, who are they in your opinion? I have interviewed veterans like Jumma Khan, do you mean nationalists like him? Or Wahid Baksh, whom I met alongside Rigi? If not these men, then whom? I ask you to name them...
 
If Mr. Reigi is a true Baloch, He must abandon his ISI mission and shun his extremist ideaologies and he should join the real Baloch Nationlist struggle for freedom. Whatever he is doing is going against the Baloch Nation and baloch struggle. It is giving Baloch a Bad name. There is no room for his extremsit ideology in Baloch struggle.  Baloch are Nationalist secular and freedom fighter who are fighting the two Islamic terrorist state who have occupied their land by force.

-Mr. Rigi does not have an extremist ideology, at least from what I could gather during my conversation with him. He believes that religion is an individual choice and calls not for a separate Baloch nation, but rather federalism in Iran, with increased political and human rights for the Baloch nation. That is of course different from the Baloch nationalists in eastern Balochistan, but is he not permitted that individual choice? As for your claim that he is working for the ISI, I once again you request you tell me your evidence for this claim, does it merely come from ABC News in the US? The Baloch freedom fighters in eastern Balochistan may well be nationalist secular freedom fighters, but that does not mean that Mr. Rigi, who has grown up in a slightly different environment from those men, is obliged to pursue that same nationalist agenda. 
 
It is the duty of world conscious and the so called Champions of freedom and Justice loving people to morally support the secular Baloch struggle, not Mr. Reigi, a Terrorist Thug.

-While I do not represent the world conscience, nor am I an American citizen nor American government employee, you are right to say that the Baloch deserve the moral support of people in the West. I hope that my reporting may help that to happen, in whatever small way, but I do not think you have credible evidence to call Mr. Rigi a terrorist Thug - unless you wish to hold the same opinion as the Iranian government, who call him that exact thing.
 
I request all these Baloch sites to please remove this video from their site and to not be a part of the anti-baloch campaign aimed to to show Baloch as thraot salughter terrorist in the form of Mr. Reigi.

- My report was not part of an anti-Baloch campaign, and I strongly resent you describing it in this way.

Mr reigi is not a good representation of Baloch struggle. This will not give the world community to have a good opinion about us once they watch the video. They will think or judge every Baloch like him as the Terrorist Reigi. Let's keep distance from these tricks who are meant to paint our secular struugle a bad name.

-I do not think you give enough credit to the people in the West who will watch this report. Just because one man behaves and says these things, that is not to say that people watching the report will believe he is representative of all other Baloch in Iran and Pakistan.
 
Mr. Dan rather and his reporter could show the better side of Baloch struggle to the world community instead by interviewing Bramdagh Bugti and Balach Marri, but he chose not to do so.

-I did not chose to avoid interviews with Mr Bugti and Mr Marri. I have met with two of Balach Marri's brothers, as they can confirm to you if you were to ask them. I did not unfortunately have the time (because of the restrictions that the Pakistani government and army placed on me) to travel deep into the Marri and Bugti areas to meet these two men. Their representatives told me it would have taken two weeks in entirety, and having spent 4 weeks traveling all around Eastern Balochistan by then, I did not unfortunately have the time to do that kind of a trip - though I would like to in the future.

Obviously, they don't support the secular minded freedom loving baloch but are there to support a less popular group of thugs created and funded by Paki ISI to kill Iranian Guard and let the backlash goes to innocent baloch people in Iran so they crazy Mullahs kill and hang more Baloch.  

-I was not in Balochistan to support any side, only to show the truth as I saw it, and as my research and interviews showed it. The truth is that the Pakistani government and military is absusing many Baloch people, and my second report from the region will I believe make that very clear.

A Bbaloch

-Best wishes, Willem Marx

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Posted:20070805