Category — Human Rights

By Dr Farrukh Saleem
The writer is the executive director of the Centre for Research and Security Studies
Over the past seven years, direct overt US aid and military reimbursements to Pakistan stand at a colossal $15.449 billion. Of the total, $10.941 billion was security-related and $4.598 billion economic-related. America’s economic-related assistance has been under the following seven categories:

1. Economic Support Funds (ESF) totalled a massive $3,488 billion under which the US Congress ‘authorised Pakistan to use allocations to cancel a total of about $1.5 billion in concessional debt to the US government’. In 2005, 2006 and 2007, $200 million per year was transferred into Pakistan’s account — in cash — for Pakistan’s budgetary support. 2. Development Assistance (DA) amounting to $286 million. 3. International Disaster Assistance (IDA) amounted to a huge $225 million that –supposedly — went into the 2005 Kashmir Earthquake plus relief for Pakistan’s internally displaced persons. 4. Food Aid of $220 million. 5. Child Survival and Health (CSH) $185 million. 6. Human Rights and Democracy $17 million. 7. Migration and Refugee Assistance (MRA) $17 million.

To begin with, $4.598 billion economic-related assistance converts to Rs360 billion or Rs2,000 for each and every Pakistani man, woman and child alive. Where has all that gone? Can anyone put together a list of just 2,000 Pakistani men who would acknowledge to having been economically benefited from America’s economic-related assistance?

Next, development assistance of $286 million means Rs23 billion — enough to generate 300 MW of electricity. What has America developed? IDA Rs18 billion, that’s huge. The earthquake had left 3.3 million Pakistanis homeless and Rs18 billion means Rs5,500 for each and every homeless. Can anyone collect a mere 5,000 earthquake affected Pakistanis who would admit to American assistance? Next, food aid. Food aid from America is nearly Rs18 billion and that means Rs100 for each and every Pakistan or Rs500 for each and every Pakistani family. There’s a sugar crisis and a wheat crisis. Does anyone see the $220 million making any visible impact on the lives of real Pakistanis desperately seeking sugar and wheat on the streets of Pakistan?

Next, America’s child survival and health spending in Pakistan — a huge $185 million but nothing to show for it. Imagine; the government of Japan gave Islamabad a 230-bed children’s hospital. Imagine; the government of Japan touches the hearts of 400 a day in the outpatient department plus daily average admissions in inpatient department of 30 plus daily average surgical procedures of 15 plus accident and emergency of an additional 100 per day. Where is Uncle Sam?

At the foothills of Margalla, there is a Japanese park. Then there is Argentine park right next to Federal Government Services Hospital that caters to some 7,000 patients per day. The Chinese built the Karakoram, from Hasan Abdal to Kashgar. But, the Americans have always remained confined to their embassy complex. For the record, 80 million Pakistanis are “unable to secure an adequate nutritional intake” and 80 million are illiterate. Imagine; a mere two per cent of American aid has gone into education. Imagine; a wholesome $4.598 billion has been spent over the past seven years but there’s absolutely nothing to show for it.

Now that America firmed up its resolve to touch the hearts of poor Pakistanis — through the Kerry-Lugar Aid Package — the elites are feeling left-off. For the first time, in the 60-year history of US-Pakistan relations America wants to build hospitals and schools. For the first time, in the 60-year history of US-Pakistan relations America wants to give to Pakistan’s civil society. And, the civil-military elite are feeling left-off. America’s direct overt aid remains invisible, concealed, covert and unseen — all in one. Is this the great American failure in Pakistan — did America fail to plan in Pakistan or did it plan to fail? http://www.thenews.com.pk/editorial_detail.asp?id=202682

By Malik Siraj Akbar
QUETTA: Balochistan Chief Minister Nawab Aslam Raisani on Saturday relieved the provincial minister for parliamentary affairs, Rubina Irfan, of her duties, reportedly because of “objectionable activities” that were undermining the stability of the provincial coalition government.

The female minister belongs to the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid and is the wife of Agha Irfan Karim, former minister for Zakat and Ushr, who earlier tendered his resignation to express solidarity with PPP minister Ali Madad Jattak. “Rubina’s portfolio has been given to Shama Perveen Magsi, the minister for Information Technology [and wife of Balochistan Governor Nawab Zulfiqar Ali Magsi],” a senior official at the Chief Minister’s Secretariat confirmed. “Rubina will retain the status of a provincial minister, but without a portfolio,” he added. http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009\10\11\story_11-10-2009_pg7_15

By Malik Siraj Akbar in The Daily Times, Oct 10
QUETTA: Several civil society organisations have decided to launch a countrywide signature campaign to express solidarity with the people of Balochistan.
Sungi Development Foundation Director (programmes) Asad Rehman announced this at a seminar, Proposed Balochistan Package and the NFC award. Rehman said Pakistan would disintegrate if the federating units were not treated equally and respectfully. People had realised that Balochistan had been brought to the verge of disintegration due to the erroneous and repressive policies of successive governments, he said. “The government should make arrangements for the return of the internally displaced persons of Dera Bugti and Kohlu to their hometowns. The Hindus should be compensated for the damage caused to their houses during the military operation. Nawab Akbar Bugti’s body must be handed over to his family,” he added.
Balochistan National Party (BNP) President Dr Jahanzeb Jamaldini said, “We reject all kinds of packages. We want ownership of our natural resources. It is impossible to run the country on the basis of ad hocism,” he commented.
National Party President Dr Abdul Hayee Baloch said the government had not consulted the Baloch parties on the proposed package. The ruling party, he said, was treading in the footsteps of former military ruler Gen (r) Pervez Musharraf.
BNP Secretary General Habib Jalib said the military government had promoted around 6,000 seminaries in the province. http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009\10\10\story_10-10-2009_pg7_26

The Balochistan High Court’s order to book former president General (r) Pervez Musharraf, his PM Shaukat Aziz and others for killing Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti is the first substantial move to open up contentious issues which the present PPP government has hitherto avoided. The court’s order may force Musharraf, now in self-exile, to consider hard whether to return to Pakistan, but it also has the potential to pitch the newly assertive judiciary against the civil and military establishment. Parts of the political spectrum, including the opposition parties, will welcome the order, yet it may seem easy for a judge to order Musharraf’s trial for murder, but it would be harder for the government to comply.

If the judiciary persists with the pressure and forces the executive to act, an unfortunate situation of confrontation may develop. But to correct the massive distortions in our political and judicial systems, such bitter pills have to be swallowed. Somewhere, someday, somebody will have to start the process. Though it may appear impractical now, the FIR against Musharraf and others must be registered and action must be initiated, to the extent possible. If the PPP government drags its feet, governments to come later can pick up the thread. But the process must begin. Musharraf must be booked and tried. http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=202108

By Amanullah Kasi in The Dawn, Oct 8
QUETTA, Oct 7: The Balochistan High Court has ordered the SHO of Dera Bugti police station to register an FIR against former president Pervez Musharraf and others in the murder case of Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Bugti.
On a petition by Nawab Bugti’s son Nawabzada Jamil Akbar Bugti, a bench headed by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa ordered on Wednesday registration of a case against the respondents, except NWFP Governor Owais Ghani.
The petitioner had nominated Gen (retd) Musharraf, former prime minister Shaukat Aziz, former governor of Balochistan Owais Ghani, former chief minister Jam Mohammad Yousuf, former interior minister Aftab Ahmed Sherpao and former home minister Shoaib Nausherwani.
The court accepted the submission of the petitioner, but excluded the name of Mr Ghani who being governor of the NWFP holds a constitutional position.
Mr Sherpao’s counsel Barrister Masoor Shah pleaded that he had no role in the killing. He said that forces which had killed the Baloch leader during a military operation were not under his command and he had not been consulted or informed about the action.
Mir Nausherwani said that three lawyers contacted by him had not yet responded to his request to represent him.
He denied having played any role in the killing of Nawab Bugti and said he had not been consulted on military actions in Dera Bugti.
He said the killing of the Baloch leader was a sad incident and morally he felt guilty for having failed to resign after the incident.
Deputy Attorney General Afzal Jami said the issue was a provincial matter and the federation had nothing to do with it.
Balochistan Prosecutor General Malik Zahoor Ahmed Shahwani said he had no objection to registration of the FIR.
The petitioner had challenged on Sept 8 the rejection by the Sibi sessions court of his application for registration of the report.
The chief justice had issued notices on Sept 11 to the respondents, except Mr Ghani, but neither the ex-president, the former prime minister and chief minister nor their counsel appeared before the court.
Nawab Bugti was killed on Aug 26, 2006.
APP adds: Interior Minister Rehman Malik told journalists in Islamabad that the federal government respected all judicial orders, including that of the BHC regarding Gen (retd) Musharraf. He expressed full support for the court order.
He said the former president did not have immunity from Interpol’s red warrants.
“We will extend maximum cooperation to the provincial government whenever required,” he added. http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/registration-of-bugti-case-against-musharraf-ordered-809

By Maqbool Malik
ISLAMABAD – Iranian Baloch human smugglers played a key role in ferrying many hardcore Al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters to various Gulf Arab countries in 2002 when they fled Afghanistan to evade US-led military offensive, TheNation has reliably learnt.
Background interviews and discussions with senior security officials, diplomats and Taliban in FATA suggest these fleeing fighters along with some of their family members had paid handsome money to the smugglers to ferry them.
“Sea-route was the most feasible option they had used while fleeing from Pakistan and Iran”, a knowledgeable source said while speaking on condition of anonymity.
They hired the services of human smugglers using high speed boats owned and operated by Iranian Baloch, sources said, adding that most of the fugitives were Arabs and Afghans and used Jiwani, a Pakistani fishing town on Pak-Iran border.
Sources said some of them were living with different names in different Gulf Arab countries as well as Iran, Somalia, Iraq and southeast countries including Indonesia.
They were of the view that the fleeing Al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters from Afghanistan managed to enter Pakistan and Iran, where some of them were arrested or killed while many still managed to slip away and reached different Gulf Arab countries.
These people, who fled to evade the US-led terror war in Afghanistan, launched in the backdrop of 9/11 terrorist attacks, had carried with them passports of various countries, mostly the Gulf Arab states.
“Some of them, particularly the Arab fighters of Al-Qaeda, later went to Iraq to join hands with the forces which were resisting the US-led invasion in early 2003”, another knowledgeable source said, adding “who knows how many of them had managed to enter even the European countries”.
They were of the view that those who fled Afghanistan in the first instance managed to reach Quetta and from there they sneaked into coastal areas with the help of their Pakistani supporters and sympathisers. While some of them, including a son of Al-Qaeda Chief Osama bin Ladin, tried to flee through Iran but were arrested. Later, sources said, Iran handed a few of them to Saudi Arabia.
Sources said this starling clue came to light when Pakistani authorities launched concerted efforts to check and verify presence of Taliban chief Mullah Omer and his key associates in Quetta on the request of US and Afghan authorities.
The US authorities later placed Pakistan on the list of those countries with a dismal record in curbing human trafficking and human smuggling.
They said Pakistan, after thorough investigation, had told the US and Afghan governments that there were no signs of Mullah Omar and his key commanders in Quetta city as alleged by their respective intelligence sleuths.
The Chief spokesman of Pakistan military, Major General Athar Abbas, refused to give details of the intelligence exchanges shared by security forces of Pakistan, USA and Afghanistan through their Tripartite Commission.
“These are intelligence exchanges and not made public”, he told TheNation in response to a query whether US military commanders in Afghanistan had ever requested Pakistan to check and verify their intelligence reports about the alleged presence of Mullah Omar and his key commanders in Quetta.
Meanwhile, a US Embassy spokesman insisted that Mullah Omar and some of his key commanders were in Quetta and they keep on moving from one place to another. “I have nothing more to offer than the statements already issued by our ambassador and the deputy head of mission”, Embassy spokesman Rick Snelsire told TheNation.
Taliban sources from FATA regarded the US threat to launch drone attacks on Quetta as a mere trick to pressurise Pakistan to launch its offensive against hideouts of terror networks of late Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud in Waziristan.
Some Taliban sources also claimed that Osama bin Ladin was killed during the US bombers’ B-52 strikes over Tora Bora with daisycutter bombs which destroyed Al-Qaeda’s famous mountain hideout.
They quoted some Al-Qaeda and Taliban who offered special prayer for the departed soul of Osama when they gathered for pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia the very next year.

http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online//Politics/06-Oct-2009/Hardcore-QaedaTaliban-fighters-smuggled-out

By Bari Baloch
QUETTA – Chief Minister Balochistan has started efforts to soothe those ministers in his Cabinet who were angry for not having portfolios or their departments were not attractive enough after sacking of PPP Minister Ali Madad Jattak from the Cabinet.
Ali Madad Jattak was devoted worker of PPP and he was elected as member of Balochistan Assembly for the first time in the general elections of 2008.
His success became possible because of boycott of elections by nationalist forces of Balochistan.
He was amongst the most loyal people to Chief Minister of Balochistan Nawab Muhammad Aslam Khan Raisani and his brother Senator Nawabzada Lashkari Raisani who is also the President of PPP Balochistan.
Formation of coalition govt under the leadership of PPP was the top priority of central leadership of party therefore all important and lucrative departments were given to JUI (F), Balochistan National Party (Awami) and the independent group because they had assured their support to Nawab Muhammad Aslam Khan Raisani for formation of the govt.
This is why PML(Q) could not form govt in Balochistan despite being the largest party in the Provincial Assembly.
PML(Q) not only failed to form govt but after failure its all members supported Nawab Muhammad Aslam Khan Raisani for the office of Chief Ministership except Sardar Yar Muhammad Rind who had a feud with Raisani tribe.
Because of this situation, PPP Ministers got less important Ministries while some of them were Ministers without portfolios causing anger amongst them. However Ali Madad Jattak was allocated the Department of Food which was better as compared to the departments of some other Ministers of party.
It may be recalled that Food Department is amongst the allegedly notorious departments in Balochistan like Communication and Works. Annually around 600 million to 1000 million rupees are allocated for subsidy of wheat but a major portion of this amount goes in the pockets of officers of the department.
Though parliamentary leader of PPP in Provincial Assembly Muhammad Sadiq Umrani and some other Ministers of PPP were not happy and they were alleging that Chief Minister was not giving due importance to ministers of PPP as compared to ministers of other parties.
Majority of PML(Q) ministers were also making the same complaint.
However, Ali Madad Jattak joined the camp of critics of Chief Minister and his brother when provincial President of party Nawabzada Lashkari Raisani tendered his resignation from his office as he had not only made the central leadership of party subject of criticism but he had also said that Ministers of PPP in Balochistan were not solving problems of the workers.
He had also levelled charges of corruption on some of his party ministers.
Ali Madad Jattak caused rebellion and became the leader of that group which doesn’t want to see Senator Nawabzada Lashkari Raisani as provincial President of the party following the statement of latter.
Few months back Jattak visited Islamabad alongwith Agha Irfan Karim who tendered his resignation as a protest against dismissal of the former from the Cabinet.
Following these meetings some reports appeared in local Press that central leadership of party was considering change of entire provincial leadership because there were serious differences between Nawabzada Lashkari Raisani and party’s provincial General Secretary Bismillah Khan Kakar.
Alongwith these reports this was talk of the town that Ali Madad Jattak would be given an important position in the party following change of provincial leadership.
Besides meetings with central leadership, Ali Madad Jattak had also met some PML(Q) leaders including PML Parliamentary leader Sheikh Jafar Khan Mandokhel in Quetta.
Some reliable sources said that these moves had annoyed Chief Minister Balochistan. He changed Secretary of Food during Eid holidays.
Following this step Ali Madad Jattak issued a statement that he had support of 28 members of Balochistan Assembly and they would make a protest in the next session of Balochistan for interference of junior officers of CM secretariat in the departments of PPP ministers.
Chief Minister dismissed him from Cabinet with a charge that Ali Madad was creating distrust between PPP and provincial government and his moves were tantamount to destablising the provincial government.
After his dismissal Chief Minister is making efforts to compensate other PPP and PML ministers who were without portfolios or their departments and were not lucrative.
He allocated Food Department to PPP Minister Asfandyar Kakar and the Excise and Taxation Department to other PPP Minister Baboo Muhammad Amin Umrani. While Zakat and Ushar Department was taken from Agha Irfan Karim and was allotted to PML (Q) Minister Salim Khosa who had earlier a less important department.
Political observers are of the view that so far there was no big threat to govt of Nawab Aslam Khan Raisani ,however, he would have to face a difficult situation as a large number of his Ministers are not satisfied with their portfolios.
He has to also face another difficult situation because a large number of Balochistan Assembly members have announced to move a no-trust motion against Speaker of Balochistan Assembly Muhammad Aslam Bhootani.
Some political observers also believe that the rise of sudden differences by the PPP leaders with their own CM heralds an attempt between the establishment to pave the way for mid-term elections in Balochistan. http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online//Politics/27-Sep-2009/Political-situation-heats-up-in-Balochistan

ISLAMABAD: It was a shameful Wednesday for Pakistan, first for being dubbed as one of the most corrupt nations by the Transparency International and then on the same day to be put on the State Department watch list for failing to curb human smuggling.

The government’s failure to provide the required information to the State Department on the former’s efforts to curb human trafficking has led to the Islamabad’s inclusion in the State Department’s Tier 2 Watch List.

Much to the embarrassment of President Zardari, the State Department report said parents in Pakistan sell their daughters into domestic servitude, prostitution, or forced marriages, and women are traded between tribal groups to settle disputes or as payment for debts whereas NGOs contend that Pakistani girls are trafficked to the Middle East for sexual exploitation.

The State Department in its report said, “The government of Pakistan does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so.

Despite these significant overall efforts, including the prosecution of some trafficking offences and the launch of public awareness programme, the government did not show evidence of progress in addressing the serious issues of bonded labour, forced child labour, and the trafficking of migrant workers by fraudulent labour recruiters; therefore, Pakistan is placed on Tier 2 Watch List.

Sources in the FIA said on the ground Pakistan did well during the recent years to continue to be in the category of Tier 2 countries but despite all its efforts it is downgraded and placed in Tier 2 Watch List only because the interior ministry under Rehman Malik failed to provide details of what Islamabad did in this area of global concern.

It was Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who had made the State Department’s annual report on human trafficking public several weeks back. The report contained a chapter on Pakistan and places it amongst the countries on the Tier 2 Watch List. In case, Pakistan does not improve it may further downgraded to the worse available category — Tier 3.

Because of Eid holidays no one was available either in the FIA or in the interior ministry to explain as to who is responsible for this great embarrassment to Pakistan. Interior Minister Rehman Malik was also contacted on his mobile number but that, too, was not responding. The ring tone of Malik’s mobile showed as if he is abroad.

Sources said the FIA has presently engaged a team of its officials to prepare details to be provided to the State Department to get back to amongst the countries of category Tier 2. However, no one is sure if the State Department would change its findings about Pakistan after the belated awakening of the latter. A source in the FIA said the incumbent FIA director-general is required to pay more attention to this issue instead of zeroing in on the post of member executive committee of the Interpol for which he is presently campaigning.

Tier 2 Watch List is the category of countries whose governments do not fully comply with Trafficking Victims Protection Acts (TVPA) and where a) the absolute number of victims of severe forms of trafficking is very significant or is significantly increasing; or b) there is a failure to provide evidence of increasing efforts to combat severe forms of trafficking in persons from the previous year; or c) the determination that a country is making significant efforts to bring themselves into compliance with minimum standards was based on commitments by the country to take additional future steps over the next year.

In its report, the State Department noted Pakistan is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for purposes of forced labour and sexual exploitation.

The country’s largest human trafficking problem is that of bonded labour, which is concentrated in Sindh and Punjab provinces, particularly in brick kilns, carpet-making, agriculture, fishing, mining, leather tanning, and production of glass bangles; estimates of Pakistani victims of bonded labour, including men, women, and children, vary widely but are likely over one million.

The report said parents in Pakistan sell their daughters into domestic servitude, prostitution or forced marriages, and women are traded between tribal groups to settle disputes or as payment for debts. Moreover, NGOs contend that Pakistani girls are trafficked to the Middle East for sexual exploitation. Pakistan is also a destination for women and children from Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, India, Iran, and Nepal trafficked primarily for forced labour. Women from Bangladesh and Nepal are trafficked through Pakistan to the Gulf.

Convictions of trafficking offenders decreased during the reporting period, the report said, adding the government continued to punish victims of sex trafficking and did not provide protection services for victims of forced labour, including bonded labour. The report recommends a significant increase in the law-enforcement activities, including adequate criminal punishment against bonded labour, forced child labour and fraudulent labour recruiting for purposes of trafficking; continue to vigorously investigate, prosecute, and punish acts of government complicity in trafficking at all levels; and expand victim protection services for victims of forced labour and sex trafficking.

It said the government of Pakistan made insufficient law-enforcement efforts to address trafficking in 2008, particularly in regard to labour trafficking, and noted the FIA did not provide data on the number of law-enforcement officials that received training. It said government officials at all levels have been implicated in human trafficking and there were reports of bribery of government and law-enforcement officials during the reporting period.

The report also said the government’s efforts to protect victims of trafficking were inadequate during the reporting period. “Pakistan did not report any programs to identify and protect victims of forced labour — the largest sectors of Pakistan’s trafficking victims — particularly bonded labour and forced child labour in informal industries such as domestic work,” the report said, adding foreign victims of trafficking also did not receive government protection services. www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=24666

By Tahir Niaz
ISLAMABAD: The law and order situation is the foremost factor that has hampered the exploration of gas and production activity in Balochistan over the last few years, according to the recently-released ‘Balochistan Economic Report’.

The report – a copy of which is available with Daily Times – said over three-fifths of the 657 terrorist attacks in 2006, nearly one-third of deaths in such attacks and almost half the injuries were reported in Balochistan. The report said the security situation in Balochistan worsened in 2006 compared to the previous year. It said the number of terrorist attacks in 2006 was almost twice as high as the period between 2002 and 2005. According to the report, the gas fields of Sui, Uch, Pirkoh and Loti are all located in Dera Bugti, which is at the heart of a violent conflict. The report identifies the principal reason for the deteriorating security situation as “a violent conflict between security forces and the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and Bugti tribesmen”.

It said the BLA, the Balochistan Liberation Front and Bugti militiamen launched 403 terrorist attacks in the province during 2006, killing 277 people and injuring 676 others. It said gas pipelines, security checkpoints and camps, government offices, rail tracks and bridges were targeted in these attacks. According to statistics compiled by the Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS), Dera Bugti accounted for two-fifths of the 136 terrorist attacks reported in Balochistan between January 2006 and July 2006. The attacks killed 137 people and injured 315 others. According to the Balochistan Economic Report, Kohlu district – a stronghold of the BLA—along with Quetta and Sibi represent over a quarter of the terrorist attacks.

The report said Balochistan accounted for three-fifths of all terrorist attacks in Pakistan during 2006, and most of them took place in or around Dera Bugti. It said the precarious security situation in Dera Bugti was the main reason behind the decline in gas output – with the financial impact felt throughout the province. According to the study, the security situation in Balochistan was “highly unsatisfactory” during 2007, as terrorists continued attacking state installations and security apparatus.

The report said with gas fields exhausting, security worsening, fiscal receipts declining and community support in doubt, Balochistan’s gas economy was in urgent need of reforms. http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009\09\21\story_21-9-2009_pg7_10

IN a series of recent TV interviews, Shah Zain Bugti, the grandson of the late Nawab Akbar Bugti, has spoken eloquently on what needs to be done to end the insurgency in Balochistan.

The crux of his argument is that Balochistan minus the Baloch is a grossly flawed policy — one that Islamabad has been pursuing all these years. The young Jamhoori Watan Party leader has restricted his demands to three points: the trial of Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf, the provision of gas royalty arrears to Balochistan and provincial autonomy. As the aggrieved heir to the slain Baloch leader, he has all the right to ask for the general’s trial.

It was almost pitiful to watch the Baloch leader being repeatedly grilled by anchors on the conduct of Baloch sardars, that too in response to his overtures when he emphasised that he sought a solution to the Balochistan predicament within the ambit of the 1973 constitution. The sardars’ anti-people policies, tyranny and support for terrorist attacks on vital installations in the province kept coming up. The construction of the coastal highway and the Gwadar port were also cited as development projects which have been opposed tooth and nail by Baloch nationalists.

There may be some merit in such counterpoints raised by self-righteous journalists. But what one fails to understand is why are the Baloch singled out for this harsh treatment. The Pakhtuns, too, have a tribal system which is taken as basic law by many communities. Clans in Sindh and biradaris in Punjab also practise tribal customs, some of them truly despicable.

Likewise, cult politics continues to be the norm within the country’s so-called democratic parties, whose ‘representative’ leaders often bury their heads in the sand when even a gross violation of the law takes place. In a country full of historical injustices and abuse such as that of Mukhtaran Mai, the burning of Christian homes in Gojra, Karachi’s May 12, 2007 street violence, to name a few, how can any objective observer single out Baloch sardars for censure?

The Baloch are not half as well integrated with the rest of Pakistan as, say, those hailing from Sindh. Their elected leaders at the centre and in the province do not enjoy the same representative status as do leaders from other provinces. The reason is that when the 2008 elections took place, Balochistan was in the grip of turmoil and Baloch nationalists had boycotted the polls.

As for the building of Gwadar port and the coastal highway by the Musharraf regime, nationalists allege, with some weight in their argument, that these projects have largely bypassed local communities. Sliding law and order has kept the Baloch at bay from job opportunities created at the port and the labour employed at the port is mostly from Sindh. The transporters whose vehicles ply the coastal highway are Pathan; the law enforcers operating across Balochistan are all Pathan and Punjabi.

If a Baloch villager is found carrying a few cans of unauthorised Iranian petrol in order to sell it to make a living, he is harshly punished and without due process; even his vehicle is impounded. He has to bribe his way out. This despite the fact that most of the petrol sold in Balochistan comes illegally from Iran, transported by petrol barons for whom the law enforcers conveniently look the other way. The same goes for the smuggling of ration provisions, liquor and other contrabands by non-Baloch smugglers.

The grievances of the Baloch are real and not imaginary. In his own homeland an average Baloch is treated like a man colonised by the many arms of the state which only know how to twist his arm. Little wonder then, that nationalist leaders, mainly highhanded sardars, should find resonance for their own causes with the Baloch people.

The Makran region comprising the coastal belt and areas bordering Iran, where much of the wrongdoing goes on and smugglers make millions a day, has no sardari system. The socioeconomic system in this Baloch-majority region is cooperative rather than competitive. No cruel, depraved sardars exist here. But there is widespread resentment and frustration among the people, hence their support for the sardars as their sole spokesmen.

Whenever in the past the sardars struck deals with Islamabad, not a drop of honeydew coming their way trickled down to these utterly impoverished Baloch. If Gen Musharraf, and rulers before him and those that have followed him, had established a somewhat equitable distribution of the wealth generated by this region, the situation today would be very different. But the people have been left at the mercy of the highhanded state machinery on the one hand and Baloch sardars, who now claim to be their messiahs, on the other.

What Shah Zain Bugti has been saying makes much sense. Even under these extremely extraordinary circumstances, he is not demanding extraordinary measures for Balochistan but pleading for provincial autonomy, which will benefit the other federating units equally. It’s the myriad government agencies operating in Balochistan which have no Baloch representation and which routinely break the law when it comes to penalising the Baloch that are the biggest hurdle in the way of resolving the crisis.

The Baloch must be given due representation in state institutions; in the vast security apparatus as well as development projects that, emanating from Balochistan, continue to benefit everyone but the Baloch. Couple this with provincial autonomy and subject the operations of law-enforcement agencies to scrutiny and the crisis will be over. All it takes is will in Islamabad to survey reality and move to correct the many wrongs done to the Baloch in their own homeland. (this article first appeared in The Dawn, Karachi on Sept 10, 2009)