Imagine a life characterized by a relentless cycle of monotony. You wake up, eat, and spend your days staring at deserted surroundings. The sole recreational activity is fetching water from the reservoir. Then, one day, you are ordered to bomb some infrastructure. You feel a rush of excitement and thrill at the task, but once it’s done and you survive, you return to the same monotonous routine—waking up, eating, staring at your surroundings, and occasionally fetching water, with no end in sight.
This is the life of a young Baloch who chooses the path of violence and extremism. These young men endure this harsh and ruthless path because they are told that only armed struggle can secure their future rights and prosperity. Little do they know that they have merely become pawns for those who benefit from their actions. While the recruitment mechanism for these youngsters involves numerous steps, the most crucial one is engaging with them emotionally through speeches, slogans, and social media.
Studies have shown that when a leader delivers fervent speeches laden with sub-ethno nationalist themes, they have a significant psychological impact on the youth. These speeches often begin by emphasizing identity and agency among the youngsters, followed by promoting collective self-esteem, which makes them more positive about their ethnic identity. Once these young individuals feel strongly connected to their ethnic identity, leaders then downplay issues requiring international cooperation. Additionally, the fiery speeches and slogans, rooted in perceived injustices and threats, instill a sense of frustration and anger in these young minds. At this point, leaders have successfully connected with the youngsters on an emotional level, making it easier to mobilize them under the guise of ethnic nationalism.
While this process might not be inherently wrong, its impact on the youth is critical, as it makes them vulnerable to exploitation by extremist elements. This pattern has been observed in Balochistan, where some sub-ethno nationalist leaders have employed the same strategy to mobilize Baloch youth, leading to terrorist organizations like the BLA and BLF recruiting these young people for terrorist activities.
It is also important to note that previously, uneducated youth were primarily involved in such activities, but now, educated youngsters are becoming puppets at the hands of the same manipulators. Once the young, educated, and enthusiastic individuals, charged by a sense of Baloch identity and agency, join the terrorist ranks, they start experiencing the monotony and nothingness previously described. In their minds, they signed up for a journey marked by strong kicks of adrenaline, only to find themselves in a perpetual cycle of hopelessness and despair. They feel that the gravitational pull of nothingness will consume them from the inside out, making them hollow and empty.
Overwhelmed by hopelessness, they decide to leave the terrorist ranks, thereby putting their organizations at risk. These organizations view deserters as liabilities who might reveal secrets to potential recruits or law enforcement agencies. To maintain secrecy, the leadership sends these deserters on deadly missions, like those in Gwadar and Turbat earlier this year, where these young pawns tragically lose their lives. This not only puts an end to their brief and ill-fated journey but also allows sub-ethno nationalist terrorist groups to glorify them, thereby recruiting more individuals.
Hence, this grim reality highlights the tragic fate of these young individuals, who, driven by a misguided sense of purpose, ultimately find themselves used and discarded by the very leaders who once promised them a brighter future.
