Dear Sharq Al Awsat Editor And Reporters! By Nass Boladai

I read this section in your news that: “Revolutionary Guard, Baluch rebels clash in eastern Iran “that says that: “two vast and historically important regions of Sistan and Baluchistan. Sistanis are mostly Shi’ite and speak Persian while Baluchs are Sunni and speak the Baluchi language.

Dear Sharq Al -Awsat Editor and reporters!

By Nass Boladai
I read this section in your news piece on the subject of “Revolutionary Guard, Baluch rebels clash in eastern Iran “that says that: “two vast and historically important regions of Sistan and Baluchistan. Sistanis are mostly Shi’ite and speak Persian while Baluchs are Sunni and speak the Baluchi language.
This piece of information is wrong, it is difficult to say that majority of population is Shiite,in Sistan based on the account of the Iranian government propaganda. The Shiite and Sunni population is about the same. Large number perhaps half of the Shiite population in Sistan are Baloch, or originaly Baloch that has been assimilated and speak either Balochi language, or Brahui language, or Sistani dialect of Balochi. one would expect less bias reporting from a respected newspaper like Sharq Al-Alawsat.
This peace of information that Sistan is shiite and speak Persian could not be farther from the truth. it is however truth that Iranian government has assimilated many Baloch particularly those that has been Shiite before or those that Iran has made or forced to become Shiite, has been also assimilated has started speaking Persian. They are and losing their Balochi language and culture.
Historically, Farsi or Persian is not mother language of the majority people in Sistan. Before Reza shah one could say more than 90% were Balochi speaker or a dialect of Balochi known as Sistani later as Zaboli, due to regime change of the name of largest town in Sistan region of Balochistan from Nusrat Abad to Zaboul, and creating Zabul district another Persianisation policy of the Iranian regime.
Sistan like other part of Balochistan is also geographically divided, Sistan is divided between Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan, largest part being in Afghanistan, where it is officially called Nimroos, another old name for Sistan. Nimrooz it is part of larger Baloch region in Afghanistan. In Afghanistan politic of assimilation has not been so effective, more than 90 percent are Sunni Baloch. I hope Sharq Al-awsat correct its reporting about Balochistan.

Nasser Boladai, Spokesperson of Balochistan peoples party.