History Repeats Itself: From Bangladesh to Balochistan, Pakistan’s Brutal Legacy

By Sohrab Sangeen

Genocide Awareness Month is commemorated in April. This month was chosen because April contains many significant dates in the history of genocide. These include the beginnings of the Genocide Against the Tutsi in Rwanda, the Armenian Genocide, and the Anfal campaign against Iraqi Kurds. The goal of Genocide Awareness Month is to share knowledge about what genocide is, about genocides that have happened in the past, and about the continuing scourge of genocide today. With April approaching it is important to remind the world of a forgotten genocide which happened in Bangladesh. 

The year 1971 stands as a haunting reminder of one of the most heinous crimes against humanity—the genocide in Bangladesh at the hands of the Pakistani military. What began as a political crisis following Pakistan’s first general elections quickly spiraled into a bloodbath, leading to the massacre of nearly three million Bengalis and the sexual enslavement of hundreds of thousands of women. This was not merely a civil conflict but a calculated extermination aimed at suppressing Bengali nationalism and asserting West Pakistan’s dominance. Today, history demands that we not only remember this genocide but also recognize the similar patterns of oppression faced by the ethnic minorities in present-day Pakistan.

On the night of March 25, 1971, Pakistan launched Operation Searchlight, a ruthless military campaign targeting Dhaka University, Hindu communities, intellectuals, and nationalist leaders. General Tikka Khan, infamously dubbed the “Butcher of Bengal,” orchestrated this campaign to silence Bengali aspirations for autonomy. What followed was a systematic massacre where men were lined up and executed, women were subjected to mass rape, and Hindu communities were erased from existence. Reports suggest that 200,000 to 400,000 women were raped, many of whom were forced into sexual slavery in military camps.

For months, the Pakistani army and its collaborators, including the Islamist militias Al-Badr and Al-Shams, hunted down pro-independence activists, journalists, and academics. In December 1971, just days before Pakistan’s surrender, thousands of intellectuals were abducted and brutally killed, their bodies dumped in mass graves. The scars of this genocide still linger in Bangladesh, yet Pakistan has neither acknowledged its crimes nor faced justice for its actions.

Despite widespread reports of the atrocities, international powers largely turned a blind eye. The United States, under President Nixon, refused to condemn Pakistan due to its strategic Cold War alliance, dismissing the genocide as an “internal affair.” Archer Blood, the American consul in Dhaka, desperately attempted to expose the brutality, only to be ignored by his government. The silence of global institutions at the time enabled Pakistan to evade accountability, a failure that continues to haunt international human rights advocacy today.

While the Bengali genocide of 1971 remains a historical stain, Pakistan’s mistreatment of its ethnic minorities has never ceased. The Balochs and Pashtuns, native to the regions bordering Afghanistan, have long been victims of state-sponsored violence, economic neglect, and cultural erasure. The Pakistani military’s approach towards these ethnic minorities bears striking resemblance to its policies in 1971—mass killings, enforced disappearances, and targeted assassinations of activists.

Pakistan has continuously used counterterrorism as a pretext to suppress Pashtun nationalism. Entire villages in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan have been razed under the guise of military operations. Thousands of Pashtun youth have disappeared without a trace, their families left in limbo. The Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), a nonviolent movement demanding basic human rights and an end to state violence, faces constant persecution. Its leaders are arrested, journalists covering their cause are silenced, and protests are violently crushed—an eerie repetition of what transpired in 1971.

Just as the Bengali people resisted Pakistani brutality and fought for independence, the Pashtuns and Balochs today are fighting for their rights and survival. Pakistan’s attempts to silence their voices, much like its suppression of Bengalis, have only strengthened the movement for self-determination. The parallels between the two are undeniable: both suffered systematic killings, both were labeled as threats to the state, and both had their legitimate demands met with military crackdowns.

Pakistan’s oppressive policies towards ethnic minorities raise alarming questions—if the world failed to stop the Bengali genocide in 1971, will it continue to ignore the plight of ethnic minorities today? The international community must recognize these patterns of state-sponsored violence and take a stand against Pakistan’s continued human rights violations.

The genocide in Bangladesh serves as a cautionary tale of how unchecked state power can lead to mass extermination. More than fifty years later, Pakistan continues to employ the same violent tactics against its ethnic minorities, particularly Pashtuns and Balochs. History has shown that silence and inaction allow oppression to thrive. The world must remember Bangladesh’s painful past to prevent another atrocity from unfolding.

Pashtuns and Balochs, like Bengalis in 1971, seek dignity, equality, and justice. Their struggle must not be ignored. The international community, human rights organizations, and global powers have a moral obligation to intervene before history repeats itself. Justice delayed is justice denied—and in Pakistan, justice has been denied for far too long.

The author chooses a pseudonym. Sohrab Sangeen is a human rights activist in Balochistan, Pakistan. 

Note: The contents of the article are of sole responsibility of the author. Afghan Diaspora Network will not be responsible for any inaccurate or incorrect statement in the articles.