✍Muhammad Ahmad Khan – Research Associate, Pakistan
The women in Balochistan are struggling very hard to meet their dreams in terms of social freedom, amidst the security and cultural preposition of the province. Besides huge resources in the province, and various potential to engage the women in Balochistan, they often fell prey to terrorist organizations working against the state. Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) is the most prominent among those terrorist groups with its advanced tactics of using violence to seek political motives against the Pakistani government. One of those tactics is the use of women as suicide bombers as could be seen in the case of Shari Baloch, Summaya Baloch and Mahal Baloch. The recent story by Wilson Centre reveals how BLA manipulates females, abuses them psychologically and physically, and coerces them into terrorist activities.
Historically, only men were discussed in the discourses of terrorism, while women were never considered part of the domain. One main reason behind this discursive negligence was to trace out the motivations behind a woman conducting terrorist acts. For men, motivation is not an issue because they are dedicated to a cause and prepared to use violence. At the same time, females for certain times were unable to seek motivation. However, traces of women’s involvement in terrorism can be found in the ‘anti-colonial’ wave in the 1970s and even before that. Ulrike Meinhof in 1970 cofounded the Red Army Faction. She was charged with numerous murders, but she took her own life before the trials could occur. In 1878, Vera Zasulich of ‘People’s Will’ in Russia was involved in assassinating the governor of St. Petersburg. Fanny Kaplan, a member of the anti-Bolshevik Socialist Revolutionary Party was involved in assassinating V.I. Lenin. Later, she was arrested and shot. Moreover, Wafa Idris was the first Palestinian female suicide bomber in 2002. Similarly, Reem el Riyashi was a suicide bomber of Hamas in 2004. Besides, Women have also been part of the ‘Shining Path’ in Ireland, PKK in Turkiye and Abu Sayyaf in the Philippines.
However, the manipulation of women in Balochistan for terrorist acts is of utter significance. Balochistan is the largest province of Pakistan by land, with around 47 percent female population. The province has remained mired in extremist movements for decades, with the latest terrorism wave carried out by organizations including BLA Baloch Liberation Front (BLF), and many other affiliated groups. The overall motivations which can be related to terrorist acts are either religious, social and economic marginalization, personal grievances, or sub-nationalist agendas. Specifically about women, there can be four motivating approaches.
Firstly, it can be inspired by feminist liberation. Secondly, female terrorists can portray themselves as acting against gender discrimination in male-dominant societies. Females feel liberated by using violence as a symbol of rebellion against social norms. Thirdly, it can be the recent awarding of the title of ‘Martyr’ for females, which was earlier dedicated to men only. Lastly, it can be some coercion by the inspiring figure who is urging women to terrorist actions. Among all these motivating factors, one can anticipate that the reason behind Baloch women being misused for terrorist activities can be women’s marginalization in Balochistan or the excitement of being called a martyr. But the financial, educational, and social background of all three female suicide bombers of BLA, reveal the facts otherwise.
Shari Baloch, the first female suicide bomber of BLA, blew herself up in 2022, killing four passengers including three Chinese teachers, at the gate of the University of Karachi. At the time, Shari, a 31-year-old woman, and mother of two, was a school teacher with a Master’s degree in Zoology. Her husband was a professor at Makran Medical College and a dentist. Baloch’s father was a retired civil servant and served as a registrar at the University of Turbat. Moreover, her three brothers are a deputy director at a government-funded project, a doctor, and a civil servant. Similarly, Summaya Qalandrani Baloch, who blew herself up in Turbat, in 2023, targeting a military convoy, was also an educated woman with deep interests in Journalism and writing. The same is the case of Mahal Baloch, an LLB student at the University of Turbat who drove an explosive-laden car at the gate of the FC camp in Bela. Mahal’s attack was a part of wider ‘Operation Herof’ by BLA in 2024 against the security agencies. The recent case of Adila Baloch, a 27-year-old woman who worked for the World Health Organization (WHO). Adila was recruited by the BLA for suicide bombing, but she was apprehended before her further involvement. During her confession, Adila revealed that although Balochistan is facing socio-economic challenges, most of the women in BLA are coerced to conduct terrorist acts. BLA identifies the vulnerable elements in society and brainwashs them for terrorist acts. The organization has utilized two revolutionary aspects the use of social media and using female suicide bombers because they create less suspicion.
Nevertheless, education, social marginalization, religious agendas, or economic deprivation cannot be regarded as a motivation for female suicide bombers in BLA. This is because all the women were highly educated, and belonged to socially and financially stable families. The vulnerable women in the name of sub-nationalist agendas are being coerced into such heinous acts. Adila admitted that Baloch women do not commit such crimes by their will, but are rather coerced. She said it was a lie. Terrorists blackmail women into this.” On one side when it brings policy requirements for the Pakistani government to engage women, it would bring challenges for the Baloch women themselves as parents would be more cautious in sending them away to university or for employment purposes. Amir Rana, an Islamabad-based policy analyst said that the emergence of females in BLA resembles the ‘Shining Path” in Peru. It is a common threat for Pakistan that needs to be answered jointly.
