Army's withdrawal from Sui

In a clearly marked departure from the norm, the Chief of Army Staff, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, on Monday walked an extra mile to refurbish the image of the Pak Army in Balochistan. Not only did he jettison the Musharraf legacy of the military operation in Sui that had caused the death of veteran Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Bugti, by announcing to close down the under-expansion Sui cantonment but also made clear that the Pak Army and the Frontier Corps, that of late has earned lot of ire for its not-so-lawful operations, are two different entities.
No military operation was in progress anywhere in Balochistan, and no new cantonment would be established in the province against the wishes of the people and the idea of building four new cantonments had been dropped, he added.
General Kayani said that the decision to abandon work on more cantonments was aimed at 'making the people believe that being a national institution, the army respected their opinion'. His was a heart-to-heart talk with the people of Balochistan, as he spoke most of it extempore - quite uncharacteristic of General Kayani.
The Army Chief made it abundantly clear that the maintenance of law and order was the responsibility of the provincial administration with the help of the police or that it could requisition the services of the Frontier Corps (FC) that falls under the command of the Interior Ministry.
He wanted these two players to get their act together in dealing with security issues of the province, which he indicated in no unmistakable terms as unsatisfactory. 'Over the past few months there was growing talk among the military's top brass about the LEAs' eroding capacity and their politicisation', he said, urging the FC Inspector General 'to work for gaining the confidence of the people'.
It seems that the GHQ is increasingly disturbed at the Pak Army attracting unnecessary flak of the people's resentment and anger for the failures of the provincial authorities and the Frontier Corps in Balochistan. He was trying to reach out to the people of Balochistan by asserting that the armed forces want to be part of the progress of the people of Balochistan, for "Pakistan will be much stronger with a strong Balochistan".
At a time when the Pakistan military tends to envisage a parting of ways with the anti-terrorism international coalition, General Kayani's emphasis on evolving a unified national outlook on threats lurking around our borders is not entirely misplaced. Popular support for military's actions throughout the country, he said, "is the real strength for the army".
In both the speeches - first at Gwadar Institute of Technology and then at Sui Military College - the Chief of Army Staff sharply focused on the socio-economic development of the people of Balochistan to mainstream them in the national milieu. He was of the view that Pakistan should not only be well-defended but also economically, politically and socially secure internally.
Then he made a telling reference to the demise of the Soviet Union, which had crumbled under the weight of its failing economy; a warning to our own government of as we seem to be heading towards an apocalypse of an economic meltdown. Being a national institute, the armed forces are a partner in the development of Balochistan, especially in areas like mineralogy and natural resources.
But, essentially, he was speaking to the angry sections of the Baloch population, who blame the consistent failures of the provincial administration on the military presence. This the Army Chief said is going to be drastically pared down, as the soldiers will not be visible beyond the walls of their barracks.