Balochistan condundrum: Face to face with a son of the soil

Even though his father and brothers are in open rebellion, Jangayz Marri walks a different path.

ISLAMABAD:

While his father and two brothers are leading separatist movements in Balochistan, Nawabzada Jangayz Marri is vying for the chief ministership of that very province, and is determined to counter all efforts to separate it from Pakistan.

‘’For years, I have been defending Pakistan and its interests against all those who are trying to break it, said Jangayz, the elder son of the top separatist Baloch leader Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri . ‘’I will continue my campaign of defending this country,” he declared in an exclusive interview with The Express Tribune, while also saying that Balochistan is an integral part of Pakistan and it will always remain a part of the federation.

Jangayz, 53, has been elected to the Balochistan assembly as a nominee of the PML-N from his ancestral constituency of Kohlu, a place that has been the hub of fighting between Marri militants and the security forces. “I believe in parliamentary democracy as our political and economic issues can only be solved through the democratic process,” he declared with conviction.

His father Nawab Marri was once part of that very process, as a legislator in the national assembly in the early 1970’s. He turned to militancy after then Prime Minister Z.A Bhutto dismissed his party’s (the  National Awami Party) government in Balochistan and launched a military operation against those who were protesting that act. Jangayz feels it is now time to turn back the clock.

‘’ I want all the militants to go back to their old ways and rejoin the democratic process for the betterment of the Baloch people and Balochistan ‘’ Jangayz said.

Nawab Marri is still leading his fighting tribesmen in Kohlu while two of his exiled sons, Nawabzada Hyrbyar Marri and Nawabzada Zumran Marri alias Mehran Marri are heading the proscribed militant outfits, Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and United Baloch Army (UBA).One of his sons, Nawabzada Balach Marri, who was also one of the leaders of the BLA, was killed in Afghanistan.

‘’The so-called agenda of the independence of Balochistan is nothing but a ploy to add to the miseries of the Baloch people ‘’ Jangayz said while rejecting militancy. ‘’I fail to understand what kind of independence these militants are taking about,” he said, adding ‘’The Baloch people are already living in an independent state: Pakistan.

Jangayz criticized the militants for not having the “common sense” to understand that the fighting was adding to the miseries of the Baloch people, who he says have already suffered enough.  “We are engaged in killing each other for petty political gains. In this discord and bloodshed we are not willing to recognize any one person as our unanimous leader, so what will be the fate of our people even if we get this so-called independence?” he asked, before answering his own question: ‘’Nothing but more and more destruction for the Baloch people.  Enough is enough, let us now live and let live,” he said.

‘’I will talk to all militants for the restoration of peace and stability in the province,” he said while unveiling his plans for the solution of Balochistan issue. He cautions that it will not be an easy process, and will require a comprehensive strategy of dialogue and deterrence. ‘’ I had lengthy discussions with Marri fighters on their main grievances and found that over 90 percent of the people in the province only want a peaceful life and economic prosperity.”

‘’All the stake holders and state institutions need to address the main issues, which include the restoration of the government’s writ , ending militancy, job creation and good governance,” he urged, emphasising that all these issue must be addressed fairly and within constitutional bounds.  And he clearly knows who the best man for the job is.

‘’Except for Nawaz Sharif, no national politician is sincerely interested in resolving the Balochistan issue,” says Jangayz who joined the PML -N in 1995. ‘’It is high time to initiate serious and sincere efforts to bring peace and tranquility in the province so that the poor and neglected Baloch people can also enjoy the fruits of democracy,” he concluded.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 18^th, 2013.