TURBAT: An organisation which was set up to counter the insurgency in Balochistan has become the reason for increasing disorder in the province, Chief Minister Dr Abdul Malik Baloch said in an interview with Dawn.
When asked whether the growing violence can be contained, he said: “There are multiple factors at play in Balochistan. One of them is the ongoing insurgency. The main trouble spots, in terms of insurgency, are Kech district and Panjgur. Then there is the issue of tribal and personal conflicts. Lastly, an organisation formed by the government back in the day known as Musallah Difayi Tanzeem in Khuzdar, to counter the insurgency, is also adding to the problems of law and order in the province.
“But overall, the situation is getting better. There was a time when the High Court observed in its remarks that MPAs and ministers are involved in kidnapping for ransom. But that is not the case today as things are improving. Our main problem still remains the two districts that I mentioned. And the issue of missing persons is not shaping up the way I wanted it to.”
On April 16, a long line of visitors including ministers, National Party members and labourers made their way towards Commissionery Road adjacent to Turbat’s main bazaar. The destination was the residence of the chief minister as he was on an official visit to Turbat.
The law and order situation in Balochistan still remains bad, many explanations to the contrary given by the provincial government notwithstanding. A day before the CM’s arrival in Turbat, a body was dumped on the outskirts of the town.
Speaking about it, he says: “I received a message about the body they found a day before my arrival as well. But as of now we don’t know who this person was. If it turns out that he was a political activist, then it is surely part of the ‘kill and dump’ process that used to be prevalent in the province.”
When it comes to the ongoing “kill and dump” in the province, Nasrullah Baloch, heading the Voice of Missing Baloch Persons, says “the agencies have changed their tactics”. He explains that “earlier they used to put a chit inside a pocket containing the basic information about the men they dumped. But they stopped doing it so that it finds no mention in media and, second, to create confusion about the identity and affiliation of the men being killed.”
Similar to it is the recovery of mass graves in Khuzdar. As provincial government hastily put together a tribunal headed by Justice Noor Mohammad Meskanzai in February to investigate the issue, the findings of the report are still awaited. CM Malik said he won’t speak much about it as the tribunal has not revealed anything yet. “At present, DNA samples are awaited. As it is, the process of getting the DNA samples is quite limp. We have made a high court tribunal on the issue under the leadership of Justice Noor Mohammad Meskanzai and until they come up with something, I won’t comment on it.”
Turbat, located in southern Balochistan, apart from being the centre of the ongoing insurgency, is also a known route for petrol and oil smuggling. Recently, as many as 35 people burned to death, as a bus carrying smuggled oil from Balochistan was caught in an accident near Hub. Explaining, Dr Malik says, “We can’t curb it completely as our economy depends on the oil that comes from Iran. I am speaking about the legal oil that is traded from Iran-Balochistan border near Taftan. We are looking for a legal trade with Iran to put a curb on the smuggling which results in such unfortunate incidents.”
Speaking of Iran, the recent skirmishes on Iran-Balochistan border got intense in the past few months. While the people in Kech district are a witness and subsequent victim to the conflict, it has however not elicited a proper response from the provincial government. Nodding his head, Dr Malik remains non-committal in his response, and says, “What we need to do as a country is to revisit our foreign policy. We can’t afford to be in a situation of war with our neighbours. Whatever the conflict might be on the Iran-Balochistan border, it can be solved amicably. And it can’t be a one-sided effort; Iran needs to come forward as well.”
Chairing a federal cabinet meeting recently, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said the Gwadar Port project is a priority for the government. Is the project profitable for the people, as much as it would be for the government? Sitting straighter, as the men surrounding him, mostly labourers and transporters also waited for his response, he said, “We will not support a project—whether it is backed by the European or the Chinese—if it is not in the interest of the people of Balochistan. Nonetheless, we are hopeful that the project will bring economic prosperity for the people of the province. It is still in its initial stages and let’s see what our people get after its completion.”