Why are the miners of Balochistan more afraid of coming out than going into thousands of feet of mine?

November 11, 2022 was like a usual day for Zeenat Bibi (pseudonym), a resident of Shangla, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, but after sunset, the date became a source of trouble for her when, after finishing household chores, she contacted her husband that evening. Zeenat could not reach out to her husband on the phone despite her efforts throughout the night.

Zeenat was facing doomsday, thoughts that her husband may have met with an accident while mining, then she found out the next day that his husband and father of five children and the sole breadwinner of the house had been kidnapped.

She faced various rumors of widowhood every day until her husband returned one day. Zeenat Bibi’s husband has been working in a coal mine in Machh Tehsil of Bolan district of Balochistan for the past several years.

After 17 days on November 27, the 5 coal miners who were abducted along with Zeenat Bibi’s husband returned, but the kidnappers did not release Barkat Ali, the 32-year-old brother of (S), who lives in Machh.

When this news reached Barkat Ali’s sister, she was shocked. Distraught, she vowed to fast every Friday for 3 years for her brother’s safe return out of religious devotion to Allah because she does not want her to lose her younger brother Barkat like her elder brother Sher Alam.

Sher Alam, like his brother Barkat, was working as a clerk in a coal mine. They were engaged and were about to get married in 2012 when 33-year-old Sher Alam was shot dead by unknown gunmen when he was returning from the mosque. He was coming home after praying, after this incident, his mother was very traumatized and remained seriously ill for a long time.

This was the reason why Barkat Ali’s mother was kept unaware of his kidnapping. The prayers of the bereaved sister paid off and on December 11, the kidnappers released Barkat Ali.

Among the 6 abducted miners, Barkat Ali was allegedly not released by the abductors on the basis of suspicion of ration slips, who pleaded hard and abductors did not find any evidence of links with state institutions, was released later.

According to local sources, ration slips are issued for those working in a specific area of mines in the hilly areas of Machh, which is based on the number of people present, which is passed by the FC officials. The forces monitor the ration delivery process.

Deprived of better health, education, and paved roads, the families of laborers extracting coal from mines thousands of feet deep in the difficult mountainous areas of Balochistan used to worry about daily mine accidents, but now security issues have made the women of the miners’ homes more vulnerable. They also suffered from psychological problems.

On January 3, 2021, armed men killed 10 Hazara miners with a sharp instrument in Geshtri area of Machhi.

Among those killed, 5 people were from the house of Amina Bibi, a resident of Murriabad, including her 18-year-old son, a brother and maternal uncle. There were 2 sons and an aunt’s son whose graves are in the same row in the Behisht Zainab cemetery in Marriabad area of Quetta, where Amina Bibi spends 3 to 4 days of the week from morning to evening sitting by the graves of her son and brother. They and their families have not been able to come out of this deep shock till date.

In Balochistan, where miners belonging to the Hazara community have been killed on religious grounds, many miners from other nations have also been killed after being termed as agents of the state institutions.

While the miners are working in difficulties in various conflicts between the banned organizations, the state institutions and the mine owners, the families of the laborers are also suffering from psychological problems due to security reasons.

Wajid Ali, who works in the coal mine, says that when he goes into the mine, he recites the kalma, as he does not know whether he would come back or not, but now even while leaving the mine, he reads the kalma not to be killed or kidnapped.

“It is very difficult to find alternative employment in the period of unemployment. We are working hard only to feed our children,” Wajid Ali said.

“Otherwise, who would like to risk their lives away from their families and go into a mine thousands of feet deep. They say that now Due to the incidents of terrorism and kidnapping, the laborers are in a mental state, but more than them, the women of the house are also facing problems,” he said.

The incidents of abduction and murder of miners in Balochistan have been going on for a long time, but there has been a sharp increase in these incidents during the last one year.

According to the careful statistics of attacks on miners, on November 1, 2013, 6 workers were killed by firing on a vehicle of miners belonging to the Hazara community in Bolan district, for which no one claimed responsibility.

In July 2014, 7 miners were shot and killed in a coal mine in Degari, 35 kilometers north-east of Quetta, the responsibility of which was accepted by a banned organization. He was kidnapped

On November 21, 2021, armed men shot and killed 3 miners working in a coal mine in Shahrig area of Harnai district.

On June 12, 2022, an engineer and 3 miners working in a coal mine were kidnapped in Spain Kariz, a suburb of Quetta.

Apart from the murders and kidnappings of workers, the statistics of accidents in the mines are also shocking for the psychological problems of the miners.

In the year 2022, there were 56 accidents in coal mines, in which 71 miners died, while in 2021, the number of accidents was 65, in which 87 miners lost their lives, while 43 were injured. have lost their lives,

Muhammad Iqbal Yousafzai, President of Coal Mines Labor Federation Balochistan, says that meetings are held in which we have demanded to build check posts at various places but our proposals are not being listened to.

“We want better security and a conducive environment for the miners,” Yousafzai said.

He said that Pakistan’s mining is the most dangerous in the world, which does not even comply with the 1923 Act. The miners inside the mine are deprived of safety measures. The accidents that happen inside the mine are due to the negligence of the mine owners or the Department of Mines. We call these incidents as natural accidents, but now, should we call the incidents of kidnapping and murder also the fate of coal miners?

He said that recently kidnapped laborers and mine clerks have been recovered through Jirga and tribal chiefs. Muhammad Iqbal Yousafzai further said that the miners of Balochistan are deprived of the benefits of labor organization ILO. That the leaders of ILO organization Pakistan are making money in the name of workers, international funding agencies need to audit them.

Psychologist Sadia Ashfaq says that just as it is necessary to treat any physical illness, it is necessary to get rid of any trauma for mental peace, because just as the abductees have gone through hardships, their family members must also have gone through such hardships. When a person has never imagined what will happen, the mental effects are very dangerous and it is very difficult to get out of such a trauma immediately. It is important to tell the psychologist because it also happens that old thoughts come to them suddenly or they also have strange dreams at night etc. Survivors and their families should also undergo mental health counseling so that they can lead a better life again.

Interior Minister of Balochistan Zia Langau says that Balochistan is a province comprising more than 43% of the area of Pakistan, where the long borders of Iran and Afghanistan are located. They are trying to maintain Gwadar Port, Sendak, Reko Diq, Mines and provide full security to those working on various projects, but such elements who do not want peace in Pakistan are doing such incidents to create fear and their presence.

“They choose such easy targets,” he said.

He said that in cooperation with the mine owners and labor organizations, the security of the workers in the mine will be made more strict and the institutions will make their efforts to bring to justice the elements who kill and kidnap the workers. The work is going on, soon the worsening conditions of Balochistan will be controlled. The sacrifices made by the people and the forces in the past for peace will not be allowed to go in vain.