Local Voices: Glossing over Balochistan’s home truths

Gilani says his government is paying special attention to the development of Balochistan.

Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, while meeting with Federal Minister Changez Jamali, said his government is paying special attention to the development of Balochistan and that all available resources were being utilised for the purpose.

The premier referred to the much-hyped Aghaz-e-Huqooq-e-Balochistan package, the representation of the province in the federal cabinet and the efforts made for the rehabilitation of the flood victims in Balochistan.

He also announced that his government would soon set up higher educational institutions in different parts of the province in order to improve the quality of education. On the contrary, however, the ground reality is completely different from the claims made by the prime minister.

Even government representatives have been expressing dissatisfaction over the grim situation in Balochistan, demanding immediate steps to resolve issues whether they pertain to socio-economic development or the law and order situation of the province.

For instance, a few days earlier, Chief Minister Balochistan Nawab Mohammad Aslam Raisani lodged a complaint about development work at the Gwadar Deep-Sea Port being stopped which he added is still not fully functional.

He also criticised the poor performance of the National Highway Authority in the province and said it should shut down its office if it was not receiving funds for the completion of under-construction portions of the highway. Lawmakers in the Senate also expressed serious concerns over Balochistan’s situation and demanded that the government take immediate steps to normalise the state of affairs there.

The ground reality in Balochistan is that decomposed and mutilated bodies are being recovered on an almost daily basis. Incidents of kidnapping for ransom and targeted killings are on the rise. A sense of insecurity is visibly prevalent among individuals while the government quietly sits back and watches. Hence, the rulers need to accept what’s happening in the province.

People had great expectations from the democratic government but so far they have been disappointed.

Providing a few young people with jobs, accepting the province’s stance on the NFC Award, abolishing the concurrent list through the 18th Amendment and awarding maximum resources to the province is in no way enough.

The major issue confronting the province is the non-recovery of Baloch missing persons. Almost three years have passed and the situation has only gone from bad to worse. The government needs to take immediate action in terms of this humanitarian issue which could possibly lead the way for negotiations with the disgruntled Baloch.

THE EDITORIAL, SELECTED AND TRANSLATED BY SHEHZAD BALOCH, WAS FIRST PUBLISHED IN QUETTA’S URDU-LANGUAGE DAILY INTEKHAB ON APRIL 4, 2011.



Published in The Express Tribune, April 8^th, 2011.