Balochistan: Iranian state seized 95% of Ancestral Lands of Baloch people
DOZAAP, BALOCHISTAN: Moinuddin Saeedi, the former representative of Chabahar in Iran’s Parliament, has revealed that almost 95% of the ancestral lands of the people in southern part of Iranian Occupied Balochistan have been seized by state authorities and registered as “national lands,” without regard for the historical occupancy and usage of these lands by local communities for generations.
In a statement to the Baloch Activists Campaign on Thursday, Saeedi emphasised the urgent need for the intervention of provincial officials, including the governor, to address this issue.
“During my tenure as a representative, I referred approximately 4,000 cases to the Article 56 Commission for Natural Resources. In some instances, rulings were made in favour of the local population, allowing them to reclaim their lands. These lands are the inherent and historical right of the people, and they must be returned to their rightful owners,” Saeedi said.
The Article 56 Commission is an administrative body created under Iran’s Forest and Rangeland Protection and Utilization Law, tasked with determining land ownership.
However, critics argue that its decisions have often led to the displacement of local communities, as lands traditionally owned and used by generations of Baloch, Kurdish, and other groups are registered in the name of the state. This process has sparked protests across the province, with many locals seeing it as an unjust appropriation of their ancestral land.
Saeedi also spoke out about the Population Growth Law, which was introduced by the government to encourage families to have more children. While the law offers benefits to families who have children, Saeedi highlighted the glaring exclusion of Balochistan from these advantages. “Despite having a fertility rate above 2%, the province’s people remain deprived of these benefits. Instead, non-local applicants continue to fill administrative positions, leaving the local population marginalized,” he explained.
The impact of this exclusion is far-reaching. According to Saeedi, the result of such policies is the continued underdevelopment of Baluchistan. “This discrimination has caused a severe shortage of teachers, doctors, and nurses, leaving schools and healthcare centres understaffed. Meanwhile, non-local employees benefit from the law’s provisions, only to return to their home regions after securing government jobs in the province.”
