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| New Delhi lacks knowledge on Balochistan | | Islamabad can't be faulted for its anti-Delhi diatribe | | B L KAK
NEW DELHI: The Congress-led coalition government at the Centre--the Ministry of External Affairs, to be precise--has unnecessarily commented on the situation in Pakistan's Balochistan province following the killing of Nawab Akbar Bugti. Had India's Foreign Office done proper home work before issuing a statement, Islamabad would then have taken a different stand. Clearly, New Delhi's lack of knowledge on how Bugti operated in his territory forced Pakistan's Foreign Office to tell India to mind its own business and focus on putting its own house in order.
Islamabad's loud and clear message to New Delhi ran thus: "India should focus on putt5ing its own house in order rather than commenting on the internal affairs of other countries". Sadly, Indian's External Affairs Ministry failed to anticipate Islamabad's reply at the time of issuing the unwanted statement on the situation in Balochistan. In a strong rebuttal to the statement of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesman, Pakistan Foreign Office said: “The statement is not only against the well-established norms of inter-state relations but also a blatant interference in the internal affairs of a neighbouring country.”
And Islamabad canot be faulted for the manner in which it sought to remind India of its own festering internal problems. Pakistan's Foreign Office placed itself on record by saying: “India’s purported concern for the peoples of other countries is ill-advised especially when India remains afflicted with several insurgencies including in Arunchal Paradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, Bundel Khand, Gorkhaland, Bodoland and Khaplang, which are being suppressed by force.” Pakistan’s advice to the government of India was: “Instead of oppression and use of force, India should politically address grievances and aspirations of the peoples of these areas".
The widespread protests in Balochistan and elsewhere in Pakistan over the killing of Nawab Akbar Bugti should come as no surprise to anyone. While the situation in Sindh may calm down after some time, it is difficult to predict what shape things will take in Balochistan, which evidently has been given a martyr of its own by the military government. Here is fact number one for the Indian government: The late Bugti chieftain was a controversial figure. He had more enemies in his home province and even in his own ‘dera’ than elsewhere. His persecution of thousands of dissident Bugti tribesmen testified to the feudal and authoritarian traits of his character in spite of a modern education.
Fact number two: Never known for consistency, Nawab Akbar Bugti sometimes collaborated with federal governments if that gave him an advantage over his political or tribal rivals. He kept his cards close to his chest, and that is one reason why even those who knew him closely never had an inkling of what the Bugti sardar had up his sleeve. No wonder, many of those who shared some of his passions and wanted a united Baloch front for pressing their demands kept away from him because of differences over the tactics he invariably chose to adopt.
Fact number four: With his killing, Nawab Bugti has acquired an image he never enjoyed in real life. In the light of the resort to brute force by the government, even the moderates who disagreed with his style of politics will now probably find it difficult to resist the temptation to switch over to a more hawkish and militant line.
In the wake of the Bugti tragedy, it is obvious that all parties will try to make political capital out of it, no matter what their attitude towards Akbar Bugti was when he and the tribesmen under him were on the war path, blowing up rail tracks and gas and power installations. The MMA, for instance, is in the forefront of the anti-government agitation in Balochistan and Sindh, even though it never really supported the JWP chief, except for record’s sake. Fact number five: Elections are due next year, and it is very obvious that the MMA will attempt to capitalise on the Baloch people’s anti-government sentiments by trying to win over even those voters who otherwise have little sympathy for the MMA’s obscurantist philosophy. Also denouncing the government action is PPP chief Makhdoom Amin Fahim, forgetting that his own party launched a military crackdown in Balochistan after the Bhutto government dismissed the elected Mengal government.
In view of the wave of anger now sweeping Balochistan, the Parvez Musharraf establishment has no choice but to deal with the explosive situation politically. While the law enforcement agencies must protect citizens’ lives and property, the mindless use of force, as evidence worldwide shows, will prove counter-productive. The basic issue still remains Balochistan’s socio-economic underdevelopment and the removal of the Baloch people’s grievances, especially their demand for a fresh look at the quantum of provincial autonomy enshrined in the Constitution. Akbar Bugti’s death has not solved any of these problems. They remain there and could possibly worsen and grow in intensity to provide a rallying point for all political elements, especially the younger generation, which has been denied the fruits of modern life. His killing has hurt the Baloch pride and honour, which count a great deal in the feudal-dominated society that Balochistan by and large is.
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