The Baloch issue: edit in The Dawn, Sept 9

THE government seems to have realised that only substantive measures in Balochistan can address the insurgency in the province. Chief Minister Aslam Raisani has said that the prime minister will shortly announce the first measure: to stop work on the new cantonments under construction in Dera Bugti and Kohlu. Hopefully, this should be among the first genuine moves to start the reconciliation process. This was a major Baloch demand that was endorsed by a parliamentary committee some years ago, and the government’s attempt to meet it should go a long way towards reassuring the people of the province that Islamabad is serious about looking into their grievances. The government must implement the decision in good faith. The Baloch are sensitive to the militarisation of their province. The military is seen as the source of oppression and tyranny by them and a means to stifle their demand for provincial autonomy.

Considering the number of issues that have plagued relations between Islamabad and Quetta, it is clear that stopping work on the cantonments alone would not resolve the Balochistan problem. The federal government is fully aware of this. Four committees in the last few years — the latest being the Raza Rabbani committee that made its recommendations a few months ago — have studied the grievances of the Baloch and made sensible recommendations. Action is needed on the missing persons, the Gwadar port and fiscal matters that have been raised at the NFC forum. These together with other issues have led to a sense of deprivation in the troubled province. Unfortunately, the government has not been able to decide how to start a dialogue with the nationalists and party leaders without whose cooperation no agreement can be worked out. Dialogue is absolutely essential if there is to be good faith between the two parties. Perhaps that is why Raza Rabbani suggested the release of political prisoners, the recovery of missing people and a judicial enquiry into the murder of some Baloch leaders. These would essentially serve as confidence-building measures and ensure a good start to the dialogue process.

It is a pity that the government is still mulling over the format to be adopted for negotiations. It sometimes hints that a jirga might be held to announce the measures. On other occasions there is talk of an all-parties conference. Now we are being told that the prime minister will unilaterally announce a special package for Balochistan. What needs to be understood is that no plan can succeed without the active participation of all stakeholders which include the Baloch representatives. http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/editorial/the-baloch-issue-999