Nature and Impact on Perceptive Understanding of Nationalism in the Conflict in Balochistan

Abstract

The conflict in Balochistan and its frequent recurrence is dependent on understanding the concept of nationalism. The study aims to elucidate a general trend towards the notion of ‘nationalism’ among the people of Balochistan. The research is an exploratory attempt to streamline different opinions about nationalism. It uses primary sources of data collection in the form of interviews which were compiled by coding and corroborated by memo-driven analysis. The analysis projected that there exists a general understanding in the population about the idea of ‘nationalism’ as being a political ideology employed for communal gains and struggle. The analysis reveals a strong sense of cooperation by majority of population with the state authorities despite the projected nationalist struggle as populist at different levels.