Shafi Burfat, Chairman of Jeay Sindh Muttahida Mahaz (JSMM), has ia scathing statement denouncing what he described as the “unnatural fascist state of Pakistan” and warning the international community against the “dangerous illusion of democracy” projected by the Pakistani state.
In a statement released from Germany, Burfat said that Pakistan’s parliamentary system is a carefully crafted deception, designed not to empower the people but to serve the interests of a Punjabi-dominated military elite. He alleged that the majority of political forces are sidelined and minority regimes are installed in parliament to act as puppets of the military. Burfat said that the 1973 Constitution of Pakistan is fundamentally a document steeped in injustice, deliberately crafted to subjugate historic nations under the control of a single ethnic group, the Punjabis.
He stated that the foundation of the Pakistani state is grounded not in democracy, but in religious theocracy, deceit, and fraudulent nationalism. He mentioned that a striking illustration of this authoritarian nature was seen in the events of 1971, when the Bengali population, comprising 55% of Pakistan’s demographic at the time, democratically elected Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Instead of respecting the people’s mandate, the Punjabi military launched a brutal crackdown, killing nearly 3 million Bengalis simply because they demanded democratic governance.
Burfat said this massacre exposed the fascist character of the state and its total rejection of democratic values. Today, the same Punjabi group, which still represents around 55% of the population, maintains absolute control over the state apparatus. He claimed that the Pakistani military, 80% of which is Punjabi, monopolises national resources and views the destruction of other historic nations and seizure of their lands, rivers, seas, and political autonomy as vital to ensuring Punjab’s supremacy.
Burfat mentioned that under such a system, the historic nations within Pakistan are faced with a binary choice: either await their political and cultural extinction or rise in a determined, organised struggle to free themselves from the chains of this imposed state. He said that, like the Bengalis, these nations must be prepared to make immense sacrifices that will become lasting symbols of their struggle for justice and liberation.
The global community already recognises the Pakistani military as one of the most corrupt and criminal forces in the world. He claimed it acts as a mercenary for foreign powers, trading national dignity for dollars. Therefore, Burfat said, liberating historic nations from this fascist, unnatural entity is the most urgent democratic task in the region. He urged the international community, civil society, and global intellectuals to stand in solidarity with the national liberation movements struggling for survival and freedom.