AIRLINK 75.60 Increased By ▲ 0.35 (0.47%)
BOP 5.15 Increased By ▲ 0.04 (0.78%)
CNERGY 4.52 Decreased By ▼ -0.08 (-1.74%)
DFML 34.51 Increased By ▲ 1.98 (6.09%)
DGKC 90.74 Increased By ▲ 0.39 (0.43%)
FCCL 22.93 Decreased By ▼ -0.05 (-0.22%)
FFBL 33.25 Decreased By ▼ -0.32 (-0.95%)
FFL 9.95 Decreased By ▼ -0.09 (-0.9%)
GGL 11.21 Increased By ▲ 0.16 (1.45%)
HBL 115.45 Increased By ▲ 0.55 (0.48%)
HUBC 136.50 Decreased By ▼ -0.84 (-0.61%)
HUMNL 10.10 Increased By ▲ 0.57 (5.98%)
KEL 4.67 Increased By ▲ 0.01 (0.21%)
KOSM 4.74 Increased By ▲ 0.04 (0.85%)
MLCF 40.48 Decreased By ▼ -0.06 (-0.15%)
OGDC 141.20 Increased By ▲ 1.45 (1.04%)
PAEL 27.65 No Change ▼ 0.00 (0%)
PIAA 25.15 Increased By ▲ 0.75 (3.07%)
PIBTL 6.84 Decreased By ▼ -0.08 (-1.16%)
PPL 124.40 Decreased By ▼ -0.90 (-0.72%)
PRL 27.45 Decreased By ▼ -0.10 (-0.36%)
PTC 14.15 No Change ▼ 0.00 (0%)
SEARL 62.80 Increased By ▲ 0.95 (1.54%)
SNGP 72.50 Decreased By ▼ -0.48 (-0.66%)
SSGC 10.50 Decreased By ▼ -0.09 (-0.85%)
TELE 8.77 Decreased By ▼ -0.01 (-0.11%)
TPLP 11.50 Decreased By ▼ -0.23 (-1.96%)
TRG 66.50 Decreased By ▼ -0.10 (-0.15%)
UNITY 25.76 Increased By ▲ 0.61 (2.43%)
WTL 1.40 Decreased By ▼ -0.04 (-2.78%)
BR100 7,846 Increased By 43.3 (0.55%)
BR30 25,828 Increased By 12.4 (0.05%)
KSE100 74,834 Increased By 302.8 (0.41%)
KSE30 24,104 Increased By 149.1 (0.62%)

A unanimous approach of all 'stakeholders' to bring back the angry Baloch youth into the national mainstream is paying dividends. For the past several months, insurgents from different groups have been surrendering arms before the provincial government. At a special ceremony on Thursday two commanders of the banned Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) along with 23 others handed their arms to Nawab Jangez Khan Marri, the chief of the Marri tribe who is also a member of the provincial cabinet. According to Nawab Marri, "about 80 percent of the militants based in the mountains are in touch with me and want to talk to us for surrender." The problem, he said, is that the surrender process is lengthy and difficult, hence too slow.
Thanks to the efforts of Chief Minister Abdul Malik Baloch, backed by the federal government as well as the military establishment, to bring insurgent groups to the negotiations table and participate in a peaceful struggle for Baloch rights within the framework of the federation, there has been a steady stream of arms surrender events. One of the key militant leaders, chief of the Balochistan Republican Party, Brahamdagh Bugti, has shown a willingness to talk. The Khan of Kalat, who left the country to live in self-exile in London following the murder of Nawab Akbar Bugti, has also been responding positively to requests to return home and play his role in the restoration of peace. Only the BLA chief, Harbyar Marri, remains recalcitrant. The laying down of arms by his men therefore comes as a significant sign of success for the new approach. As a result, there is a considerable reduction in the incidents of terrorism and sabotage.
This though is only one part of what needs to be done. An equally important challenge for the federation is to address the Baloch people's deep-seated sense of deprivation and injustice. Greater provincial autonomy under the 18th Amendment helps take care of some of their grievances. But as the least-developed part of the country, Balochistan deserves special attention to make up for the past neglect. The Prime Minister has been saying the people of Balochistan will be the main beneficiaries of the CPEC projects and the rail and road connections linking Gwadar Port with Central Asian States. That will take time. Besides, in order to benefit from these projects, the local people have to be provided with necessary facilities like education, healthcare, clean drinking water and roads so they can acquire necessary qualifications to take up jobs that are to become available when these projects are fully functional. Earlier this year, the federal government sanctioned Rs 35 billion for development projects, which is a lot less than necessary. Hopefully, all the stakeholders will direct sustained efforts at alleviating lingering Baloch grievances that have periodically been erupting into insurgency.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2015

Comments

Comments are closed.