Discouraging contraception

The new plan discouraging family planning and the use of contraceptives in Balochistan makes one question the rationality of those at the helm of affairs in the province. While the issue of population control is a pressing one all over Pakistan, the Balochistan government is going in the opposite direction, aiming to increase the province’s population. Instead of improving living conditions, authorities seem to think that increasing Balochistan’s population is the answer to the woes that it faces. This begs the question as to whether the Balochistan government is capable of long-term planning, as currently it seems to be offering only short-term nonsensical solutions to serious problems. If the provincial government feels that it is important to increase population, the best way to do this is by providing better healthcare facilities. This is especially necessary for Balochistan, as this province fares the worst in the country when it comes to statistics on mother and child mortality. Encouraging couples to have more children simply puts more lives at risk with the current state of health facilities in the province.

Furthermore, improving the quality of living for the province’s citizens, addressing the issues of employment and education, and enhancing security would bode much better for Balochistan’s progress instead of interfering in personal family planning matters and encouraging couples to have more children. Before this plan is implemented, the Balochistan government must explain why it feels that increasing the province’s population is important. Surely, no province in Pakistan, let alone Balochistan, is equipped to handle an increase in its population. It is futile and in some ways inhumane to actively work towards enhancing the population of a province stricken with poverty and security problems. Unfortunately, it is characteristic of our governments to only seek short-term solutions. This mistake will surely catch up with the Balochistan authorities in the near future.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 3^rd,  2015.

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