As tremors were felt across Pakistan, hundreds of houses in the Maskhail region of Balochistan, 600 kilometres southwest of Quetta, were tumbling down like cards. The official count of the number of dead: 34 and counting. The official toll of the damages: yet to be made. When an earthquake of around 7.8 on the Richter scale with its centre of origin in Iran shook up some of our desks and cutlery, the worst was feared. It became a reality in the already deprived province of Balochistan, where the disenfranchisement of the people and the lack of an effective state apparatus, compound the scale of every natural tragedy. Unlike the 2005 earthquake in Khyber Pakthunkhwa, there is no easy way to access the region, with a drive through the insurgency-hit area likely to take at least two days.

Air drops are the best bet to getting aid and personnel into the region and flying out the injured. The fact that four military helicopters were dispatched on Wednesday morning to evacuate the at least 20 critically injured from Mashkail to Combined Military Hospital, Quetta is a good sign. The abandoned people of the Balochistan province need to be shown that the Pakistani state cares about them. With hundreds of houses completely destroyed by the powerful tremors generated by the quake and several people still buried under the rubble, the continuing aftershocks, coming in at 6.0 on the Richter scale, left the people without any shelter on the street and full of fear on Wednesday. The immediate needs are to be food items, station doctors in the area and provide temporary shelters. There has been no indication of when the National Disaster Management Authority shall dispatch such. Moreover, there is the larger question of when will the affectees be resettled.

The important thing is to realize that resettlement must go ahead without waiting for the US aid. While the US Secretary of State John Kerry has promised that “they stand ready to offer assistance in this difficult time,” it must be remembered that disaster relief contributed to a thaw in relations between the US and Iran, which accepted US personnel following the huge Bam earthquake in 2003. Given the current state of disaffection with the Pakistani state in Balochistan, perhaps this tragedy offers an opportune moment to extend a warm hand towards our Baloch brethren. But again it must be reiterated that it should be less about show, and more about the actual substance of the aid extended. With caretaker Prime Minister Khoso having offered an olive branch to Baloch nationalists in a recent visit to Quetta, it is time that he delivered some substance. The question is: shall the caretaker government realize the need to do more than issue condolences on the suffering of the people of Balochistan?

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April 18, 2013 1


An earthquake occurred on Tuesday afternoon with an epicentre some 82 km below the surface in Iranian Balochistan. While there has been no loss of life in Iran, at least 27 injuries were reported. However, in Pakistan’s Balochistan, dozens of villages on the Mashkhail area of Washuk district were damaged, while 24 people were killed by building collapses, which was measured at 7.8 on the Richter scale. It is noteworthy that the epicenter was in Iran, but the deaths occurred in Pakistan. It was the worst earthquake in Pakistan since the one that struck Azad Kashmir in 2005, and is another indication that the complex of mountains, consisting of the Himalayan Range and the mountain ranges of what amount to its foothills, are now seismically active. Recent trends have shown destructively violent earthquakes to be occurring at increasingly frequently. If human habitation is to continue in the region, it will have to be in accordance with this new reality, and people will have to both accept and implement the new restrictions.

And restrictions there will have to be, mainly in terms of building regulations. As the Azad Kashmir earthquake showed, unrestricted and unrestrained building cannot be permitted, for residential or any other purpose. Not only have certain areas to be excluded, but building plans must be approved, seeing among other things whether the proposed building can withstand the rigours of an earthquake. It is also an inadvertent test of the utility of the caretaker government, with the Balochistan caretaker Chief Minister and the Provincial Disaster Management Authority coming into action. The authority was one of the provincial bodies set up after the Azad Kashmir earthquake, and which so far had been devoting itself to flood relief. Though this particular disaster was not at all a needed reminder, this was the kind of disaster that needed management. It should not be forgotten that Quetta, not all that far from the earthquake-hit area, has been the site, in 1930, of one of the worst earthquakes in history.

If the government does not ensure proper building rules being implemented countrywide, that would only be waiting for a future tragedy to occur.

http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-ne...ons/editorials

A Baloch sardar’s misconceptions

Veengas

Ruling always says, “All is fair in the Power Politics” you can change lit of politics each day and none will ask you what are you doing? Balochistan is burning, no doubt state has been failed to bring any solution for Balochistan. If we peep into politics of Balochistan, power politics is also walking on the land of Baloch; we have rare people who act according to what they believe.

Still I have remembered when I interview Mr. Khair Bux Marri, he himself admitted that Baloch people need to struggle for healthy politics and will never bring any kind of feudal system in Balochistan. Even Khair Bux Marri, had no attention for coding these words for stepping into power politics, his stand on politics is unambiguous whether you agree or disagree but at least he is not changing lit of politics day by day.

When Balochistan’s politics has a man like Khari Bux Marri whose words stand by principles. It seems rare nowadays in current scenario of politics. That’s reason spotlight of media is not on him. While interviewing Khair Bux Marri chose words consciously for personalities of politicians because he knows well what happens in Power Politics…!
On the other hand we have Mengal’s politics in Balochistan and still are listening to voice from Mengal Sardars’. Sardar Atta u allah Mengal, whose name is respectable in politics and no one can deny that he is himself is history but when he gave statement on Late Z.A Bhutto that “whatever Bhutto did with Balochistan that became curse for Bhutto Family.”

First, I personally couldn’t believe at my reading and read twice his statement there after I could ask myself, how is it possible that Attaullah Mengal used these words for a family which suffered lot. And Can Baloch curse anyone? We believe, neither can Baloch do this and nor is our culture.We all have reservation with ZA Bhutto’s policies, it doesn’t mean he was full in power and entire military was following his orders. Balochistan have had been suffering under the feet of operation since 1948s, so it was ZA Bhutto’s fault or orders?

Instead of Attaullah Mengal should have spoken in the light of historical background he aggressively talked on ZA Bhutto and his family. It didn’t suit Attaullah Mengal. Still, Eyes of History are alive and everyone knows well that who is real power-maker in our country. If ZA Bhutto had strong hold in power, he would never have been hanged over on fake-case. People cannot understand that what has happened suddenly with Mengals that they have started to criticize ZA Bhutto.

Not only this but Akhter Mengal came up with six points and showed his strong faith in Courts. It was same Akther Mengal, who interviewed me and said that he has no more faith but comically Akhter Mengal got remembered missing persons when UN WGEID had visited to Balochistan. One of journalist of Balochistan shared his views on his six points that whenever case of Balochistan was coming up on the international-table then Mengal showed his face and tried to divert discussion on real issue.

There are many questions which need to be answered that how Akhter Mengal brought vegetable of six-points? Did he discuss among Balochs? For now Balochs have one point and everybody knows about that one point.

Now issue is how to deal with one point! Akhter Mengal loudly said, if six points had not received justice, it would be worst. And then Akhter Mengal became invisible, he didn’t work on six points, nor had asked that what happened with six points?

It looks as if a person enters in the noiseless Street then cries loudly and finally keeps his finger on lips. If Akhter Mengal was serious on his six points, he must have worked on it while staying in country. Hence, he has not received any result. Usually, Akhter Mengal shows soft anger at judiciary.

Therefore, shall we allow thinking, six points was part of political drama and wanted to make ground for election.

He is looking for take part in election, now his seven points of election, would work in positive sense for Balochistan? Instead, Akhter Mengal should be discussed at his failure result of six points, always trying to criticize at ZA Bhutto. While he claimed that his farther was willing to eliminate Sardari system but it was ZA Bhutto, who didn’t want. For instance, we may listen to his point regarding Sardari System, Mengals were willing, it was Bhutto who forced at them and they were unable to abolish Sardari System. Isn’t it?
If they were so eager why didn’t they start mass movement in Balochistan against Feudal system? Akhter Mengal himself was part of the government, at that time. Did he introduce any bill against it? All critical questions put at another side of table, let us know that why is Mr. Akhter Mengal coding himself as Sardar?

Does Mr. Mengal still add up the fault of Bhutto? People do not hesitate to drag out martyr ZA Bhutto from his grave. It is very easy to paint colour of blame at anyone. Can’t people accept their own weakness? Mengal has empty ground in Balochistan for election campaign then he can make big promises with people that if he got chance to enter in power politics, he would be able to bring missing person and peace for Balochistan.

Hoping, he may do this what he says nowadays because this time he has chosen himself and if he couldn’t fulfill any promise, at least he would accept his faults and will not blame any body else.

Once I read on page of history that if you understand mystery of historical and political consciousness, you would never be able to repeat mistakes. Ahh…may our leaders of power politics have mistakenly read that line and should not repeat mistakes.

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On May 1, 2013, 22,000 troops and 50,000 ‘law enforcers’ entered 12 districts of Balochistan to “conduct a free-and-fair election”. The existing number of troops in the areas shall not be revealed to us, nor the fact that de facto these areas had been no-go areas for the military since the current Baloch insurgency started in 2005. With the entry of troops, the possibility of free-and-fair elections in the province has ended. Rather the Baloch people shall have elections shoved down their throats with a gun to their head.

It does not matter if the Baloch people want to give their stamp of approval to the selection processes of the Pakistani state. Rather, the pretense, or the formality, that ‘the Baloch people’ confirm their stamp of faith in the State, shall be obtained, under the sound of the boots of the fine men in khaki. If it wasn’t quite obvious when the operation was announced, the Balochistan home secretary made it clear the day before the operation: the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), the Balochistan Republican Army (BRA), the Balochistan Liberation Front (BLA), the United Baloch Army (UBA) and the Lashkar-e-Balochistan (LB) would be targeted.

No one seems to recall that the outrage over the kill-and-dump of missing persons – or “kidnapped Baloch” as Muhammad Hanif chose to clarify – by state agencies was about individuals from the same groups. Over 300 bodies of these missing persons had been recovered since 2011 – all the killings blamed on the Pakistani state. The calls for the past three years, since the announcement of the token Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Balochistan package in 2009, had been for the withdrawal of army troops from Balochistan and accountability of the agencies, neither of which could be delivered during the PPP-era.

Back in 2008, President Zardari also issued a token apology to the Baloch people. But with nothing changing on the ground, with one after the other Baloch nationalist being killed-and-dumped, the resentment amongst the Baloch people has grown deeper. Bodies have been returned to each district.

Nothing has also changed about the conception of development being applied to the province. The great hallmark that the 18th amendment was supposed to be was circumvented with imprudence. The control of the Gwadar Port was handed over to China and the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline started in the two month period the Balochistan government had been dissolved earlier this year. The so-called failure of the never existent Balochistan government was in fact that failure (or complicity) of the state apparatus in the spate of Hazara killings – duly stopped the minute the establishment’s aims in the province were achieved.

But the joke about the current military operation in Balochistan runs much deeper. It comes on the back of five years of the PPP-led coalition governments at both the province and centre denying accusations that a military operation was underway in Balochistan. It is a bit strange that the caretaker government has taken it upon itself to take on the mandate of announcing a full-blown military operation in Balochistan.

This is not to say that the fears expressed by government schools teachers are not well-founded. The discontent with the Pakistani state is such that government schools in a number of districts in Balochistan have not been able to display the Pakistani flag for a number of years.

The Balochistan caretaker setup has pointed to security threats to candidates and election officials in Balochistan as reason for announcing the current military operation. But the question is how important are the political parties contesting polls in Balochistan to the Baloch people? Let us name them: the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, the Pakistan Peoples Party, the Jamaat-i-Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl, the National Party and the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M). Only two of these parties have any credentials so to speak of in Balochistan. Of these, the National Party leadership, including Dr Malik and Hasil Bizenjo, spend the bulk of their time in Islamabad, while the BNP-M chief Akhtar Mengal was in self-exile from the country until the interim setup took over. However, the bulk of the nationalist movement has chosen to keep itself outside the trapping of the upcoming polls.

Apart from the dismissed NAP government of the Bhutto era, Balochistan cannot be said to have ever had any semblance of ‘representative government’. Nor does there appear to be any serious resolve on part of the Pakistan establishment to give Balochistan representative government. Sources from within the state say that, as a lesson from the separation of East Pakistan, they now fear any nationalists coming into power through the ballot and presenting something akin to Sheikh Mujib’s Six Points.

This is why there are army men in nine districts, including Dera Bugti, Kohlu, Awaran, Washuk, Khuzdar, Kalat, Mastung, Kharan and Gwadar districts. The question is what will the cleanup operation mean on the ground? “Not a single militant will be spared by May 11” is what the caretaker provincial home minister said. Bullets and arrests have been promised. It is another way of saying: expect more kills-and-dumps, unreported raids on villages and more anger from the Baloch.

When national newspapers continue to express worries that “there is no election excitement in Balochistan”, it appears they are delusional. Elections are a celebration of a belief that participating in the processes of the state can offer deliverance. Barely anyone in Balochistan believes such. If the Baloch people, as a whole, feel disenfranchised from the processes of the state, then why bake up this cosmetic drama of an election in the province?

Let us learn to call a spade a spade: these are not measures to secure the elections, this is a full-blown operation against Baloch nationalists.

For Baloch nationalists, the province was made to join Pakistan at gunpoint. Now, it appears, after a sixth decade long insurgency, it will be made to enter elections at gunpoint. The consequences, it must be said with regret, are fated.

With the military presence in Balochistan, there cannot be a ‘free-and-fair’ election. Let us not subscribe to any such mistaken notions. Another farce is about to be created in Balochistan in the name of representative government. All the efforts at reconciliation of Baloch nationalists should be considered abandoned. Balochistan is being held hostage in the name of the elections. The consequences will not be pretty.

The writer is the general secretary (Lahore) of the Awami Workers Party. He is a journalist and a researcher. Contact: hashimbrashid@gmail.com

- See more at: http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013....64Vrh2m7.dpuf

In 1993, when Pakistan government decided to build a port at Gwadar, it was an unknown fishing town in one of the least developed corners of Pakistan.
Even today, when the Gwadar port has become well known internationally, the town remains obscure and remote. Most of the “experts” on Gwadar have never visited the place, and base their opinions on already published material and hearsay.

The government has made no effort to take the people in confidence, allowing for rumour and fallacy to prevail. A lot is being said about the Gwadar port in the local and international media. While the knowledge about the port is also incomplete and needs some clarifications, this article is about the town of Gwadar and its past, which shall lead to an understanding of its people and its strategic importance.

Gwadar is a small town, located 635 km west of Karachi, on the Makran coast. The area is ideally located connecting four important regions i.e. South Asia, Central Asia, Persia and Arabia (albeit with a little stretch of water in between). Through the length of Pakistan it forms a bridge between China and the energy rich Persian Gulf region and through the Arabian Sea it connects the entire world. Gwadar has remained an important port through the known history and all the empires in the region have tried to gain control of this important outpost.

The history of the region can be traced back to Hazrat Dawood (May God bless Him) when people used to entomb themselves in small cairns to avoid famine. Remains of these cairns, locally known as dambi, can be seen in the Makran area. According to Shahnama-e-Firdousi Makran was part of the Iranian empire and paid allegiance to Persian Kings: Kaus, Khusrau, Lehrasp, Gustasp, Bahman, Huma and Durab. The area remained under a Turanian ruler Afrasiab for a short time before it was taken over by the Iranians again. The long history of Persian rule was interrupted in 325 BC with the invasion of Alexander. The journey of Alexander’s army through Makran, and his fleet along the coast, is perhaps the oldest well-documented account of the area, which was known as Gadrosia at that time. Alexander’s admiral, Nearchus, who sailed parallel to the army, has mentioned the name of Gwadar (along with other ports such as Pasni and Chahbahar) in his accounts. Most of the Alexander’s historians agree that all the hardships his army suffered in Asia are less in comparison to their sufferings on this route. This testifies to the harsh climate and in-hospitability of the terrain, which is a reason why no conquerors or invaders stayed in the area for long. This fact is better elucidated by a Muslim general, who tried to cross Makran centuries later, during the time of Caliph Umar.

The Muslims had their eyes on India for some time; however, they did not feel powerful enough to venture against it until after the conquest of Persia. In the last days of Caliph Umar, an expedition was sent against Sind, under the generalship of Abdullah Bin Abdullah. After a stiff resistance from ruler of Makran, on his way to Sind, the general sent the following message back to the Caliph:

Commander of the faithful, it is a country of which the mountains are mountains indeed, and the plains of which are real mountains; it is a country with so little water that its dates are the worst of dates, and the inhabitants are the most warlike of men. If thou hadst a less numerous army there, it would be annihilated and could do nothing; and if thy army is considerable, it will perish of hunger, because there are no victuals. The country beyond is still worse.

On receipt of this message, the Caliph is said to have dropped the idea of conquering Sind. However, Makran was made a base for the Officer-in-Charge of the Indian frontiers and remained under the Arab rule, not withstanding a few setbacks in between, through to Umayid ruler Abdul Malik (684-705). Sind had to wait for Muhammad Bin Qasim, who arrived by sea, and after the conquest Makran was administratively amalgamated with Sindh. The long Arab rule has undoubtedly, left its mark on the present population of the area.

For the next seven centuries Makran came under attack by various foreigners and changed hands frequently. The foreign dynasties that exercised temporary suzerainty over the region included the Deilamis, the Seljuks, the Ghaznivids, the Ghorids and the Mongols. However, since no invader stayed in this country for long, the local rulers continued to enjoy internal authority, most of whom had by now converted to Islam. The local rulers ascended to power in the following order: Hots, Rinds, Maliks, Buledais and Gichkis. The area also finds a mention in the accounts of famous historians such as Marco Polo, Ibn-e-Batuta and Sidi Ali. In the sixteenth century, the Portuguese captured several places along the Makran coast and as a punishment for offering severe resistance burnt the cities of Gwadar and Pasni in 1581.

In the middle of the eighteenth century, Mir Nasir Khan captured Gwadar and its surrounding areas after defeating the Gichkis and included it in the Kalat Khanate. However, realizing that maintaining control of the area will be difficult without the support of the Gichkis, Mir Nasir entered into an agreement with the local Gichki Chief, which allowed the Gichkis to maintain administrative control of the area, in return for furnishing half the collected revenues to Kalat. This arrangement continued till 1783, when Saiad Sultan fell out with his brother, the ruler of Muscat, and asked for help. Mir Nasir Khan handed over Gwadar, as part of his share of revenues, to Saiad Sultan for his maintenance with the understanding that the area be returned to Kalat, when Saiad Sultan acquires the throne. Saiad Sultan ascended to the throne of Muscat in 1797 but never returned Gwadar enclave to Kalat. The ensuing struggle between the heirs of the Sultan and Khan of Kalat, for possession of Gwadar, allowed the British to intervene. The British after extracting concessions from the Sultan for the use of the area facilitated Muscat to retain Gwadar. Later on, the British tried to twist the history by claiming that the area was permanently gifted to the Sultan by Mir Nasir, however, local accounts and the declassified documents of that time refute this claim.

Gwadar’s importance can be gauged from the fact that the first ever telegraphic link to these areas was established between Karachi and Gwadar, in 1863. Post office was opened in Gwadar in 1894, and Gwadar became a port of call for British steamers and an important base for flying boat operations. There has been, from time immemorial, a great deal of traffic between Gwadar and the other coastal ports of Makran and the Gulf. It appears from different historic accounts that Gwadar was the chief port on the entire Makran coast which handled all the trade of this area.

The Khans of Kalat continued to reiterate their claim on the ‘Gwadar enclave’, however, since the area was under British suzerainty it did not materialize. The documents of the period, declassified by the British government, indicate that before independence the ‘Wazir-e-Azam’ of Kalat again raised the issue of Gwadar and even offered to purchase the area. The British political agent of the time Col Poulton and Sir Geoffrey Prior, his successor and Agent to the Governor General and Chief Commissioner Balochistan, supported the claim and proposed that Gwadar be returned to its rightful owners, Kalat. However, the British government decided against this advice in lieu of their own ‘strategic interests’.

Firstly, the British Admiralty and Air Ministry opposed transfer of Gwadar to Kalat because they thought it is important for both, imperial strategy and Air communications, to retain a “pied a terre” on mainland in case India becomes unfriendly. Secondly, surveys had indicated presence of oil in the area and the British knew that this is going to be an important port in the future. A British-American company India Oil Concessions Ltd was awarded contract for oil exploration in 1939, but due to the breakout of Second World War, the work was suspended. Thirdly, in the assessment of British Foreign Office, independent India was not likely to join the Common Wealth and it was in the interest of His Majesty’s Government to keep the area with Muscat with which they had exclusive agreements. The agreements not only allowed Britain to use Gwadar for military and other purposes, but also restrained the Sultan from selling or leasing the areas under its dominion to any state other than Britain.

Thus even after independence, Pakistan had to approach the UK government for purchase of Gwadar, rather than talking directly with Muscat as two sovereign governments. Britain continued to discourage the deal till August, 1958, when it finally allowed the transfer of Gwadar through a secret agreement. The agreement paved the way for purchase of Gwadar from Sultan for £ 3 million and some obnoxious concessions. According to the agreement, if oil was found in commercial quantities in Gwadar, the government of Pakistan was bound to pay a percentage of total revenues to the Sultan. Other provisions included retention of citizenship of Muscat by the residents of Gwadar without prejudice to any rights enjoyed as citizens of Pakistan; facilitation in recruitment from the area for Sultan’s Armed Forces; training facilities for military personnel in Pakistan’s technical schools; extradition of deserters to Muscat; export of rice to Muscat when required, without restrictions and at normal trade rates etc.

With some of the conditions enumerated above, Gwadar, which should otherwise have been a part of Pakistan, was purchased and handed over to Pakistan through the ‘good offices’ of the British Government on September 8, 1958.

(The writer is a retired naval officer and an independent analyst based in Islamabad. He has researched extensively on Gwadar for his PhD dissertation.

http://www.thefrontierpost.com/category/40/

Baluchistan, a province with a huge area, blessed with abundant natural resources such as gas, copper and gold, and strategically located at Arabian Sea is not doing so good otherwise.
Unfortunately, the province has remained a victim of neglect of federal government, exploitation by tribal leaders and underdevelopment. As much as 47 percent of the population lives under poverty line, and only 26.6 percent of the Baloch people are literate. Resultantly, the Baloch people have deep sense of alienation and deprivation. Marred by unrest, violence, and terrorism, Baluchistan needs serious attention and intensive efforts.
Environment is an important cause of terrorism and unrest. The general environment may be infused with grievances of the people. These grievances can be of social, economic or political nature. In case of Baluchistan, the grievances of the people are deep-seated and rightly so. Development remains poor throughout the province. Due to these grievances, a culture of violence has developed. Culture of violence does not refer to being intrinsically violent but establishment of violence as a norm due to prolonged use of violence in the society. Finding no other way to improve their condition, the Baloch people have resorted to violence. This violence has often been fomented by external hostile forces with the ambition of destabilization of Pakistan. However, no external power can succeed if it does not find the local conditions favourable for exploitation. Socioeconomic miseries give way to negative feelings and violence. Hence, the socioeconomic and political conditions should be improved meticulously.
There is a growing realization by the federal state and its institutions that the grievances of Baloch people are real. During the past five years, there has been a growing consensus that Baluch conundrum needs a political solution. And more significantly, some initiatives have been taken.
One such initiative is ‘Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Baluchistan’ launched in 2009 by the Government of Yousaf Raza Gilani to ease out the pains of the Baloch people. The package was in the right direction but failed to materialize. There is controversy over the achievements of this package. Nevertheless, the interim government has decided to continue with it with a few reforms. The NFC awards also resulted in giving a large share to Baluchistan, rising from 5.11 percent to 9.9 percent.
Pakistan Army has also tried to bring the neglected Baluch youth into the mainstream. During the past few years, the Army has recruited thousands of Balochs into its cadre as soldiers and officers. To be precise, the number stands at 10,082 recruitments in last three years.
General Kiyani announced 10000 for youth in 2009 that were later raised to another five thousand. Pakistan army has also undertaken educational projects in the province; these include not only schools but also professional institutes such as medical college. In the development work, the army has also contributed in development projects across the province in date farming and coalmines etc. This assistance by the army was badly needed.
Gwadar Port is likely to generate affluence for the Baloch province. It will generate jobs for the people and much more. As a common practice, port-cities are much more advanced than other cities. Ports not only facilitate trade but also facilitate exchange of ideas, cultural learning and greater networking among people. In the process socioeconomic changes take place. Thus the hitherto backward area of Gwadar can become a well-connected, dynamic, culturally developed, urbanized and progressive city of Pakistan like Karachi. Think of all the positive developments that may accompany Gwadar Port in the years to come. Tourism also holds great promise for the province conditioned that law and security situation improves. But
Ideally democracy gives voice to the people and let them be the masters of their own destinies. The general elections that are to be held on May 11 will provide a chance to the Baluch people to become masters given they make the right choice and not opt for those who treat them as their subjects. The elections process is already being sabotaged through terrorist acts. A few insurgents have already called for a shutter down strike from May 5 to elections day i.e., May 11.
It is hoped that the new provincial as well as the federal government will be sensitive to the grievances of the Baloch people and will continue with the developmental work in Balochistan. If a nationalist government takes over, more will be expected of them. This time, they must deliver and deliver fast. Though over sixty-five years of wrongs cannot be fixed soon but in order to win the goodwill and confidence of the Baloch people, the Federal government must be high on action than promises.

http://www.thefrontierpost.com/category/40/

Balochistan cauldron

Zahid Hussain


THE latest bloodbath in Quetta is yet another grim reminder of Balochistan’s dangerous slide into anarchy. The gruesome killing of women students and the subsequent siege of the Bolan Medical Complex indicate the growing stridency of the militants and raises serious questions about our counterterrorism efforts.

Beyond any doubt the twin attacks are the work of the same militant nexus responsible for previous massacres of Hazara Shias in Quetta as well as other terrorist violence across the country.

It was a precisely organised and highly coordinated militant attack in the city that has been drenched in blood so often in recent times. The suicide bombings and gunfire inside the hospital were aimed at causing maximum casualties. The target was ostensibly Hazara girls, but an apparent miscalculation led to the militants bombing a bus carrying students belonging to a mix of ethnic groups.

The terrorists had plotted to kill more members of the Hazara community who would have rushed to the hospital to see the victims. Things may not have gone according to plan; nonetheless the bombing and indiscriminate shooting inside the hospital killed many people and a senior government official.

As in the past, Lashkar-i-Jhangvi (LJ) lost no time in claiming responsibility for the carnage, flaunting the brazenness of the terrorist network.

It was the first major incident of violence since the newly elected government has taken charge in the province and had raised hopes of normality being restored.

The Quetta carnage happened hours after the destruction of the Quaid residency in Ziarat by the Balochistan Liberation Army. There appears to be no connection between the two terrorist acts. But both served the same purpose of embarrassing the newly installed provincial government led by Dr Abdul Malik Baloch. Both groups seek to destabilise the democratic process.

That underscores the complexity of Balochistan’s situation and the grave challenge faced by the new nationalist government. The attack on the Ziarat residency was much more symbolic and shows the desperation of the separatists who seem to have lost a lot of ground because of the success of the electoral process in the province.

The separatists sought to disrupt the elections, which they believed would damage their cause for independence. The decision by the nationalist groups to return to the democratic process also dealt a huge blow to the insurgents.

Now with a democratically elected nationalist government seeking a political resolution of the Balochistan crisis, it is certainly not a happy situation for the rejectionists. The bombing of the residency was a clear warning to the provincial as well as federal governments.

It was also meant to sabotage the government’s offer for dialogue with the insurgents. Such terrorist actions may create problems for the nationalists and strengthen the elements within the security agencies advocating the use of brute force to crush the insurgents.

Violent sectarian militancy in Balochistan, however, poses a much greater threat to the stability not only of the province but of the country as well. The massive escalation in sectarian-based terrorist actions in recent years highlights the strengthening nexus between the LJ, the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and elements of the Afghan Taliban who have a huge sanctuary in the province.

What is most disturbing is the impunity with which the militant network continues to operate and carry out terrorist attacks. The way in which the militants carrying explosives and sophisticated firearms entered the hospital indicates the complete collapse of security at important installations. It was certainly not the first such incident when the militants carried out an attack inside a hospital. Countering sectarian terrorism and improving the security system is going to be a serious challenge for the new provincial administration.

While Balochistan, particularly Quetta, has become the main centre of gravity of Sunni sectarian militancy, the latter is certainly not an isolated provincial phenomenon. The problem is much more deeply rooted and has links with the terrorist networks operating in Punjab and other parts of the country.

There is a definite link between the LJ and TTP. The tendency of political parties and security agencies to draw a distinction between the two is disastrous. By offering to talk to the TTP the government would legitimise militancy, thereby providing more space to the sectarian extremists. The policy of appeasement will only increase the militant threat to the country’s unity and integrity.

The issue of sectarian militancy in Balochistan does not have piecemeal solutions. There is a need for a comprehensive national counterterrorism and counter-radicalisation policy to deal with this growing menace. There is also a need to further strengthen anti-terrorism laws. Under existing laws it is impossible to convict any terrorists.

Foreign funding for radical madressahs and sectarian outfits has contributed hugely in fuelling religious extremism in the province. The security agencies too in the past propped up these extremist groups to counter Baloch nationalists groups, with disastrous consequences. It will take a massive effort now to dismantle those networks. But it has to be done to salvage the situation.


http://beta.dawn.com/news/1018923/balochistan-cauldron

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If you tremble with indignation at every injustice then you are a comrade of mine.(Che Guevara)