Baloch people demand ownership of Gwadar land: Mengal

BNP chief announces APC in Islamabad to discuss reservations on Gwadar-Kashgar highway

QUETTA: The Balochistan National Party (BNP) will convene a multiparty conference (APC) in Islamabad in the coming days to discuss the reservations of Baloch people on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) with all political groupings, party chief Sardar Akhtar Jan Mengal said on Sunday.

Mengal, the former chief minister of Balochistan, made this announcement during a news conference at his residence in Quetta on Sunday. “The federal government ignores members of the National Assembly and provincial assembly members elected from Gwadar, while taking crucial decisions regarding the CPEC and building the port city,” he told the newsmen.



“BNP held its council session last month and the newly elected leaders have thoroughly discussed the agreements and memorandums of understanding pertaining to CPEC and found out that the interests of the local people have been ignored and even the local representatives have not been taken on board.”



He was accompanied by Senator Jehanzeb Jamaldini and office bearers of BNP during the news conference. Mengal said he will soon announce the date for the multiparty conference.

The BNP lawmakers and the Balochistan Assembly members from Gwadar and the party leadership accused the federal government of breaking the promises it made regarding the CPEC. “The western or eastern route is not the issue of Baloch people. The Baloch people want ownership of their resources and the coast, that’s all we want, which is our legitimate right and the Constitution of Pakistan allows us to demand this,” he told reporters.



Mengal said his party is not against development, especially in Gwadar, but it will oppose, even resist, moves taken against the wishes of the Baloch people.

“We are going to Islamabad where all the political parties will be invited to thoroughly discuss the reservations and concerns of Baloch people and even evaluate that these reservations and demands are legitimate or not?” he said.

Mengal admitted that his party colleagues had attended the APC chaired by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Quetta and said that the PM did not keep his word.

“China has announced plans to invest Rs46 billion, but the government has yet to share the details of how it plans to spend it,” he said. “We are told that around Rs6 billion will be spent on infrastructure, while Rs40 billion will be used for private investment…however we are not given the details nor we are told where they are developing the economic or industrial zones?”



Sardar Akhtar Mengal said it is beyond comprehension why there is so much secrecy surrounding the agreements and MoUs. “The people of Balochistan are, after all, the owners of this land and coast. They should know and be told each and everything,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 7^th,  2015.