Why are Hazaras persecuted?
In recent decades, there has been a steady flow of Hazara refugees to Iran from Afghanistan. They constitute the majority of illegal migrants fleeing to Iran from harassment by the Baloch and Pushtuns in neighboring countries.
Photo: Hazara People International Network
By IAR Desk
The Sunday, July 18, death toll from a suicide attack on a crowded wedding hall in Kabul soared to at least 63 people, with more than 200 wounded, according to Afghan authorities. It took place in the Western region of Kabul which is populated predominantly by the Hazara community – an ethnic minority in Afghanistan, whose members are mostly Shia Muslims. The Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL), which considers Shias as apostates, has claimed responsibility for the attacks.
The Hazara community has been subjected to frequent attacks and violence, both in Afghanistan and in Pakistan, where also communities of Hazara live.
Why are Hazaras so persecuted?
An article on the Russian portal Zolotaya Orda traces the lineage of the Hazaras, who appeared on the territory of Afghanistan in the thirteenth century and represent a unique ethnicity. Most of them have Mongolian features and traditionally are thought to be the descendents of the ulus of the Chengizide Hishkuderi, the grandson of Chagtai Khan. Both nomadic and sedentary, the Hazaras appeared as a result of the interactions and mix between the soldiers of the Mongol army with the local population. The word “Hazara” orginates from the Persian “hazar” or “thousand”.
The Hazaras speak in Dari, which includes about 10 per cent of terms and words are of Mongol and Turkic origins. About 2.5 million Hazaras live on the territory of Afghanistan, 1.7 million in Iran and about 1 million in Pakistan. Those living in Iran are to be mostly found in the eastern province of Khorasan. There are also communities of Hazara diaspora spread across the West, numbering from 400, 000 to 500,000 persons.
Due to their external “otherness” and their tolerant spirit, they have been subjected to persecution from other ethnic groups, especially by the Pushtuns. The end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century often saw them sold into slavery. The article quotes Russian geographer and martial researcher A. E. Snesarev (1865-1937), who wrote about the Hazaras, in his book “Afghanistan’ which was published in 1921 and which is still relevant today:
“…the content of their religion, as is their spirit, are closed, speak of secrecy and doubts. At the same time they are also a very lively, hospitable and curious nation.”
The Hazaras appeared in Iran first during the reign of Nadir Shah Afshara (in the first half of the XVIII century), the next strong presence of Hazaras occurred during the reign of Nasiruddin Shah Kajarai (in the end of the XIX century). At one time, they served the Persian rulers, thwarting the gradual advancement of Turkmen predatory raids deep into Iranian territory in the north of the country.
In recent decades, there has also been a steady flow of Hazara refugees to Iran from Afghanistan. They constitute the majority of illegal migrants fleeing to Iran from harassment by the Baloch and Pushtuns in neighboring countries. Researchers note that the Hazaras have always been distinguished by the lack of unity and division along tribal line.
They always usually count 8 tribes: Sheikhali, Besud, Daisangi, Uruzgani, Jaguri, Daikunti, Fuladi, but each ethno-territorial community has its own way of life. Thus, for instance two neighbouring villages of Hazaras of two different clans in Kalai-Nov in Khorasan have almost no contact with each other.
However, in more recent times a process of national consolidation may be observed, necessitated first of all by the many hardships that they are made to suffer. A World Council of Hazaras has been formed, but significant differences in the social and cultural development, especially amongst those who migrated and those who have stayed behind in their own land, has been an obstacle in this consolidation process.
The main traditional occupations are land cultivation and cattle breeding. They hardly ever interact with the neighbouring communities and lead a semi-isolated lifestyle. As far as religious affiliations go, most Hazaras are Shiites-Imamites, though small groups of Sunni and Ismaili Hazaras also exist in Afghanistan. In some places the community also holds on to some remnants of pre-Islamic and animistic traditions.
As Shiites, Hazaras have become objects of religious persecution, by Sunnis, many of whom consider Shias to be apostates. This persecution became more pronounced after the emergence of the Taliban in Afghanistan. It is this that has prompted the mass migrations of Hazaras to Iran which shares close religious affinities with them.
In Iran, a voluntary brigade from amongst the Hazara refugees from Afghanistan was formed, and has now become a division “Fatimiyun” within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Its soldiers, after undergoing special training in the military bases, are then sent to Syria to fight together with the country’s army against the rebels.
The Hazaras have a long history of being targeted by Pashtun tribes, beginning at least since the XVI century. During the reign of Amir Abdullah Rahman (1880-1901), who is considered the founder of modern Afghanistan, a thousand Hazaras were massacred, enslaved and banished. At least half of the total population of the Hazaras relocated to neighbouring Baluchistan, in British India and to the Khorasan province in Iran. Hazaras migrated to Quetta from Afghanistan in 1840. In order to seek revenge for the brutalities they suffered, they joined the British army.
In 1904 the Вritish formed a Hazara infantry unit, called «106 Hazara Pioneers », which comprised refugees from Quetta. Hazaras fought on the side of the British during the Anglo-Afghan wars. Thereafter, they have been carrying a historic baggage, as a result of which the Pushtun of Afghanistan do not like their presence in Pshtun regions. Therefore, by default, the places of contact between the Pushtuns and the Hazaras became a fault line, which is usually ignited by Pushtuns. And as soon as it is ignited, it becomes uncontrollable and unpredictable because of its own dynamics and pace.
Till now, the Hazaras have refrained from organizing any armed struggle against attacking groups. Considering their numbers, Pushtuns have always played a dominant role in the system of state power in Afghanistan for more than two centuries. Today, the Taliban which is trying to reclaim its power in Afghanistan is primarily Pushtun in composition.
Quoting from Afghan researher Muhammad Anwar Numyalai’s book, “Fundamentals of the Pashtun Social History”, the article says: “The Pashtuns are the preservers of the patriarchal feudal traditions of a tribal society. By his very nature a Pashtun Republican will seek to be elected to power and for equality. A Pashtun makes a great friend, but a cruel foe. A Pashtun loves and respects women, but will not allow that anyone else admire her. Therefore he considers it necessary to adhere to the tradition that “A woman’s place is in the house or in the grave.”
In 1918 the Hazaras of Quetta were ruthlessly subjected to violence and destruction, as if their lives did not have any value whatsoever. Earlier too, the Hazaras were subjected to constant persecution, and this has been accepted as the norm. Thus Hazaras can be forcefully unseated from public transport, and killed indiscriminately, irrespective of their gender or age.
Systematic violence against the Hazaras has many aspect to it today: local rivalry (Hazaras are good traders), sectarianism, regional tensions and faultlines, created by Iranain intelligence agents through its consulate in Quetta. As a result, it is the Hazara who takes the knock every time.
Proscribed terror groups, including the liberation army of Baluchistan, Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, and Ahle-Sunnat-Wal Jammat, also help in the killing of Hazaras. Members of the mafia and other criminal elements also participate in the kidnappings and robbery of Hazaras in places where they are concentrated along the borders of Taftan and Quetta, where the trade hub Chamman in located.
As a consequence of the attacks and the full impunity with which the attackers operate, the Hazaras have started taking to the streets to protest against the ruthless killers of their people. The recent protest on the Alamdar Road in Quetta demonstrated the active participation of members of the Hazara community, including women, children and the elderly. A protest, against the recent string of targeted killings in the city, was called off only after a meeting of the leaders of the Shina Hazara community with Pakistan’s Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, who assured the Hazaras that stringent action would be taken against the criminals.
In 46 incidents of killings and bomb blasts in Quetta, from January 2012 through December 2017, 525 people were killed, 734 injured. More than 200 Hazaras were killed in only two suicide attacks.
In spite of the fact that action against terrorists have led to a decline in the number of murders, the targeted killings of Hazaras have not altogether ceased, as Sunday’s bombings prove.
