Grievances of the Baloch people
The people of Balochistan believe their resources have been used to benefit other provinces --
notably Punjab -- rather than the people of Balochistan. Denial of Baloch rights and the five military operations since independence have taken its toll on the population of Balochistan, but it seems no lessons have been learnt as force is still being used to resolve a conflict that is essentially political in nature and primarily concerns the socio-economic rights of the people of the province. [Islamabad Policy Research Institute report on Balochistan 2010]
Demographic graphic balance of Balochistan has been changed due to influx of people from other provinces (mostly from Punjab) known as settlers. Unfortunately, these settlers became a soft target of the Baloch militants. Nearly 1,200 settlers are estimated to have been killed across Balochistan, mostly in what are referred to as hit-and-run incidents and grenade attacks on their businesses and homes. According to Balochistan Punjabi Ittehad, some 200,000 people have fled Balochistan since early 2008 when the violence against various ethnic groups excluding Pashtuns peaked. According to Balochistan Punjabi Ittehad the militants began to target the Punjabi settlers after Nawab Bugti was assassinated by the military in August, 2006. Before that there were occasional incidents in which Punjabis were targeted.
Though an overwhelming majority of elected representatives in Balochistan are pro-Islamabad and the pro-federation political forces outnumber the ones demanding independence, it would be wrong to dismiss the Baloch nationalists and separatists as insignificant, according to Islamabad Policy Research Institute report on Balochistan. They have the capability to keep Balochistan unstable through political means and armed struggle. Acts of sabotage and targeted killings aim at keeping up the pressure on Islamabad to accede to the separatists' demands.
The Indian connection
Pakistan government has accused India of fomenting rebellion in Balochistan which has a long porous border with Afghanistan. According to Islamabad Policy Research Institute, the Indian consulate in Kandahar, a border town, provides a firm base to train, arm and dispatch militants across the border to undertake sabotage activities in Balochistan. Indian companies have been awarded contracts on various projects to link Kabul with Balochistan near Iranian border; and in the bargain it makes the job of RAW easier.
The paramilitary force, the Frontier Corps, fighting militants has seized weapons and equipment that bear Indian marking from the possession of militants killed or captured during action. Adviser to Afghan government, Ehsanullah Aryanzai, in a statement disclosed that India was using Afghan soil to conduct across the border anti-Pakistan activities. [Islamabad Policy Research Institute report on Balochistan 2010]
It is a well-known fact that India played a decisive role in the dismemberment of Pakistan in 1971 by covertly and overtly supporting the separatists in East Pakistan.
In the closing phase of the civil war in East Pakistan, the US Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, is believed to have informed India of Pakistan's willingness to discuss a timetable for the grant of complete provincial autonomy to the eastern wing and in mid-November 1971, a secret five-point peace plan is said to have been given by President General Yahya Khan to the Indian Ambassador in Islamabad. The plan included a provision for a referendum on the issue of East Pakistan's independence. Indian Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi nevertheless declined it and her army, along with Mukti Bahni (the separatists supporting East Pakistan's bid for independence) pressed on until the Pakistani forces were forced to surrender in Dhaka on December 16. [The search for political stability by M. H. Askari, Dawn Aug. 14, 1993]
Many in Pakistan believe that the ruling elite of West Pakistan lost East Pakistan because it was located at a distance of about 1,000 miles from West Pakistan and India supported the separatists openly. However, irrespective of the reports that India or any other power is involved in fomenting the rebellion, it will be wrong to think that the Pakistan army will be able to keep Balochistan under its control through brutal repressive measures.
Time is ripe that the grievances of Balochistan people should be addressed and Balochistan should be given provincial autonomy to ensure peace, harmony and co-operative co-existence in the country. If history has any lesson, the ruling elite in Pakistan should revisit the debacle of East Pakistan. History repeats itself because nobody listens or History repeats itself because the world doesn't learn. The poet and philosopher George Santayana says: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
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