Balochistan

[Malghani]

I know that this topic has been discussed under a different thread, but I sincerely believe that the rebellion taking place in Balochistan cannot be categorized as terrorism. There are legitamite greivances. That need to be dealt peacefully not by warplanes that the current government is adopting. I paste the following words of a great contemporary journalist who also happens to be a Punjabi..... wise words indeed.

source: http://www.thefridaytimes
by Najam Sethi


For several years we have read stray reports of tensions in Sui between the Bugti tribes led by Nawab Akbar Bugti and the federal government over issues of employment, job security, compensation, etc., relating to work conditions in the gas generating and distribution companies that pump Sui gas to the rest of the country. But that was presumed to be a local affair. The federal governments of Benazir Bhutto, Nawaz Sharif and General Pervez Musharraf were convinced that Nawab Bugti was extorting money from Islamabad ostensibly on behalf of the Bugti tribesmen who work the gas plants but actually for himself by nudging his fiercely loyal Bugti tribesmen to rocket the pipelines whenever the negotiations get bogged down against his liking. In this political seesaw, Mr Bugti was wont to bandy about terms like ‘gas royalties’, ‘provincial autonomy’, ‘constitutional rights’ etc while portraying himself as the great and patriotic Baloch nationalist fighting for the rights of his province rather than for his tribe. The federal government, on the other hand, seemed falsely obsessed about “the need to open up Balochistan for economic development” and was constantly carping about the “evil and exploitative Sardari system” in the province that kept the tribesmen in chains and acted as a “brake on progress” Unfortunately for the stability and security of Pakistan, the truth is different on both counts. A brief recapitulation may be in order.

When the nominal ruler of Balochistan, the Khan of Kalat, dragged his feet in the early 1950s over signing the Balochistan accession document to Pakistan, the impatient federal government threw diplomacy and negotiation overboard and hastily sent a couple of PAF jets to strafe his palace and make him change his mind. When One Unit was declared by General Ayub Khan in the 1960s, Sher Mohammad Marri, a tribal wadera, protested the usurpation of ‘provincial rights’, fled to the hills with a band of loyal tribesmen and started taking potshots at the ‘occupying Punjabi army’ The seeds of Baloch provincial awakening gave rise to Baloch nationalism in the aftermath of national elections, the eruption of Bengali separatism and the creation of Bangladesh in 1971. If Mr Bhutto’s PPP won Sindh and Punjab and Sheikh Mujibur Rehman’s Awami League swept East Pakistan, the fact also was that the National Awami Party led by “nationalists” Ghaus Bux Bizenjo, Ataullah Mengal, Khair Bux Marri, Akbar Bugti and Khan Wali Khan dominated Balochistan and the NWFP. At the time, even the Jamiat i Ulema i Islam of Maulana Mufti Mahmud (father of Maulana Fazlur Rehman) thought fit to join hands with the nationalists to espouse the provincial cause.

Emboldened by the stand taken by Sheikh Mujib, the Baloch and Pashtun nationalists demanded their ‘provincial rights’ from Mr Bhutto in exchange for approving the 1973 constitution consensually. But while Mr Bhutto conceded the NWFP and Balochistan to a NAP-JUI coalition, he refused to play ball with the provincial governments led by chief minister Ataullah Mengal in Quetta and Mufti Mahmud in Peshawar. Tensions erupted. Within six months, the federal government had sacked the two provincial governments, arrested the two chief ministers, two governors and forty-four MNAs and MPAs, obtained an order from the Supreme Court banning the NAP and charged everyone with high treason to be tried by a specially constituted Hyderabad Tribunal of handpicked judges. In time, a nationalist insurgency erupted and sucked the army into the province, pitting the Baloch tribal middle classes against the Sindhi-Punjabi oligarchy ruling Islamabad.

The 1970s revolt of the Baloch, which manifested itself in the form of an armed struggle against the Pakistan army in Balochistan, was provoked by federal impatience, high handedness and undemocratic constitutional deviation. It was the effect of unjust federal policies and not the cause of them. The irony was that Nawab Akbar Bugti served as an agent of the federal government when he was appointed as governor of Balochistan by Mr Bhutto throughout the time of the insurgency and spoke not a word in favour of Baloch rights or provincial autonomy!The greater irony was that the insurgency came to an end following the army coup of General Zia ul Haq against the civilian government of Mr Bhutto.

Soon thereafter, Gen Zia unfolded plans to desensitise the alienated Baloch and Pashtun leadership by a multi-faceted strategy aimed at co-opting the leaders into office while providing jobs and funds in the federal government to the alienated and insecure tribal middle classes. More significantly, he created maximum political space for the mullah parties in the NWFP and Balochistan so that they could be galvanised in the jihad against the USSR in neighbouring Afghanistan. Divided, fatigued and shorn of ideological moorings or avowed enemies like ZA Bhutto, the Baloch “movement” melted into memory over the next two decades. Nawab Akbar Bugti was consigned to negotiating rights and concessions only for his Bugti tribesmen in Sui. And the various civilian federal governments that came and went were content to accede to his local pecuniary demands. In the event, what has changed under General Pervez Musharraf to compel the Bugti and Marri tribes to join hands? What has transpired in the last five years to lead to a reinvention of the “Baloch middle class nationalist struggle for provincial rights”?

The single most critical macro factor is the social and electoral engineering initiated by the military regime in the last five years. By sidelining the mainstream PPP and PMLN parties and their natural “progressive” allies like the ANP, BNP and others in favour of the mullahs of the Jama’at i Islami and Jamiat i Ulema i Islam, General Musharraf has alienated the old non-religious tribal leadership as well as the new secular urban middle classes of Balochistan who see no economic or political space for themselves in the new military-mullah dispensation. Similarly, by undermining the cause of provincial autonomy at the altar of local and federal government, the military regime has threatened the very roots of the constitutional consensus of 1973 enshrined in the Baloch consciousness. If the federal government had also delivered the great “development” paradigm and provided jobs and office, it might have avoided this sense of deprivation and resentment among the political and economic have-nots of the province. But it hasn’t. Balochistan remains a backwater province, infested by Taliban-type mullahs and corrupt, opportunist politicians, all beholden to the military regime in Islamabad.

We now have an unfortunate situation in which a “Baloch Liberation Army” comprising a few armed bands under tribal and middle class command is conducting military operations against the “agents and outposts of Islamabad” in Balochistan. Gwadar is an obvious target. It is a federal project without provincial approval or participation in which the non-Baloch civil-military elites are grabbing land for a song. The military cantonments planned at Gwadar, Dera Bugti and Kohlu (the capital of the Marri tribal lands) are viewed as outposts of repression and control, not development. The corrupt Frontier Corps is thoroughly hated and despised as a federal instrument of oppression. With the mad mullahs rampaging in much of Balochistan and defying the writ of the government, the rise of incipient armed nationalism poses a grave challenge to the stability and security of Pakistan.

Ten days ago, army helicopters strafed and bombed a strip of land between Turbat and Gwadar in Makran district where Baloch insurgents who had rocketed Gwadar earlier were thought to be holed in. In retaliation, an army truck was ambushed in Khuzdar last week, leaving five soldiers dead. Later the puppet chief minister of the province, Jam Yusuf, narrowly escaped an assassination attempt on his life. Two days ago, the government retaliated by registering cases of murder against 12 people including a former chief minister of the province, Sardar Akhtar Mengal s/o Sardar Ataullah Mengal (also a former chief minister who was sacked and arrested in his time), and the secretary general of his Balochistan Nationalist Party. And now the federal interior minister, Mr Faisal Saleh Hayat, has warned the agitating Baloch tribesmen that the government is poised to launch a ‘crash programme’ against ‘subversive elements’ in the province.

A hastily formed four-party Baloch alliance, led by the Bugti and Mengal groups in Quetta, has condemned the spate of arrests of Baloch nationalists in Turbat, Gwadar, Kalat, Dera Bugti, Kohlu and Nushki. They have been joined by the ‘oppressed nations movement’ (PONM). Together they are accusing Islamabad of having launched an ‘unannounced military operation’ in Balochistan in which over 200 activists of the various nationalist parties have been unjustly detained.

Suddenly, we have a situation in which all the old “grievances” are being trotted out – Sui gas has never benefited the people of Balochistan; Gwadar is in the clutches of a land-grab mafia from Punjab; the federal government earns billions from gas in the province but gives only a fraction of that back to it for development; provincial autonomy promised in the 1973 constitution is non-existent, etc. Are things coming to a head?

The fact is that Balochistan remains a neglected backwater of Pakistan. Its politics has been ideologised and factionalised by federal interference and meddling in pursuit of dubious strategic regional interests. Its drought-stricken pastoral economy cannot even provide for its small population. This state of affairs has lasted fifty-seven years. No federal government has ever thought of bringing development to Balochistan and talk of tribal chiefs obstructing progress is nonsense. Past neglect has now strengthened the ranks of the nationalists and increased their clout.

The danger in Balochistan is two-fold. The nascent but alienated middle class in the few towns of Balochistan is now rallying behind the nationalists and accepts the ‘sardars’ spearheading PONM as ‘genuine leaders’ At the same time, the developmental lag in the province is sufficient to substantiate the anti-centre stance of PONM. That is why any military action in the province will completely lack local support. The other destabilising factor relates to the ongoing battle against the Taliban-Al Qaeda combine. The Pashtuns in Balochistan also have serious problems with the federal government’s policy on the Pak-Afghan frontier. This could be troublesome since Pashtun nationalism has also been responsible for the internationally reported presence of the Taliban in the province.

Therefore there is need to tread very carefully in Balochistan. The national interest demands that patience, negotiation and compromise should be the hallmark of federal policy rather than knee-jerk army operations and detentions. At the same time, the federal government should make serious efforts to clinch the new development conditions of resource sharing with local tribes and regions. The future of the oil and gas pipelines that are being planned across the mountains and deserts and coasts of Balochistan for the prosperity and stability of Pakistan hinges on a sensible and inclusionary approach to Balochistan.

[Abbas]

I am sick and tired of this "provincial rights" BS! What are these rights? Every Pakistani has equal rights under the law, why do these jerks expect special treatment?
Resources found in a province are not the property of the province, they are the wealth of the entire nation. If these nationalist idiots want to assert provincial proprietary rights over resources in their province, then fine let Punjab keep all the water because that is the resource found in Punjab. I'd like to see how the other provinces fare without a drop in their rivers and canals. If the Balochi nationalists think that the gas is entirely theirs, then fine let them keep it and I'd like to see how they get their royalty when nobody is consuming it, and how they attract the investment to exploit it. What is the percentage of taxes that Balochistan contributes to the national exchequer? The least of all the provinces; while the national investment that has gone into developing and exploiting the Balochi gas fields has mostly come from taxes contributed by other provinces, and foreign capital contributed on the basis of Pakistani sovereignty - not Balochi nationalism.

Pakistanis need to understand that each and everyone of them is a Balochi, Sindhi, Pathan, Punjabi, Kashmiri, etc. And if you are not prepared to be that, then pack your bags and go some place else becuase the future is going to be miserable for you in Pakistan.

I don't care how legitimate your grievances are, if you are going to use violence to address your issues then you deserve the worst. Those who want to live by the gun, better be prepared to die by the gun. The Pakistan government needs to hammer this message in real well, not only to the nationalists but to everyone who resorts to violence. Faliure to do so up till now has led to Pakistani society being decimated by senseless death and destruction.

NavBaby.

[FarazA]

I don't care how legitimate your grievances are, if you are going to use violence to address your issues then you deserve the worst. Those who want to live by the gun, better be prepared to die by the gun. The Pakistan government needs to hammer this message in real well, not only to the nationalists but to everyone who resorts to violence. Faliure to do so up till now has led to Pakistani society being decimated by senseless death and destruction.

NavBaby.

Couldn't agree more. Great post. All I want to say that who ever wants to settle their disputes with violence should have know better the end results. Agree again that provisional resources are Simply Country's resources if any one tries to show their right over them then they should be forced to withdraw. It may sound extreme but it is the only way. There is a local goverment to deal and regulate all that, not the individuals.

By the way what hell does Punjabi have to do with his writing?

*contemporary journalist who also happens to be a Punjabi..... wise words indeed.*

please point out any significance of mentioning some one's race? you could have simply said pakistani.

[Aziz]

I can't help but see the correlation between the winning of the ar in Afgahanistan by the Northern Alliance subsequently folowed by massive Indian involvement in Afghanistan with the new 'nationalism' in Balouchistan.

Aziz

[H Khan]

Quetta—Balochistan Chief Minister Jam Mohammad Yousaf has said that elements opposing development process are trying to disrupt peace in the province, but pledged that development activities would continue despite their opposition.

Speaking as chief guest at the 53rd Passing Out parade of Police and Levies officials and recruits here at Police Training College (PTC) on Saturday, he said these elements have never accepted Pakistan from core of their heart.

“They are trying to create unrest and chaos in the province to affect the development projects and disturb peaceful environment of Balochistan”, he observed.

He expressed wonder that the same elements were demanding construction of coastal highway and implementation of Mirani Dam project when they were in power, but now when they are out of power they are opposing these projects.

The Chief Minister, however, expressed satisfaction over the fact that people of the province have rejected the politics of personal interest being promoted by these elements. “Balochistan people are patriotic and progressive and would not become a party in the conspiracies being hatched against the province”, he assured.

Referring to law and order situation, Jam Yousaf said the government has chalked out an effective strategy to cope with law breakers, terrorists and anti-social elements which is being implemented in the province.

“The federal government has also started introduction of gradual reforms in Police department that would also help improve its performance”, he informed.

The responsibilities of Police, Levies and other law enforcement agencies have increased manifold due to recent acts of terrorism committed in the province, he said, and expressed the hope that all would display their best possible performance to maintain peace and curb terrorism in the province.

He expressed satisfaction over the performance of Police and appreciated its work in detecting the culprits involved in heinous terrorist acts in the province in the near past.

Jam Yousaf stressed upon Police and Levies recruits to serve the nation with full devotion and honesty. He also appreciated the Provincial Police Officer (PPO), Commandant PTS and its instructors for imparting the best training to recruits.

He assured provision of all necessary facilities to Police Training College to improve its performance and said that the training center in Kalat would also be re-activated.

He also announced 40% increase in allowances of PTC staff and Anti Terrorist Force personnel, enhancement of ration allowance of police officials from Rs 390 to Rs 780 and Rs 0.3 million for Bara Khana of the police.

Earlier, PPO Chaudary Mohammad Yaqub while presenting the reception address informed that during the four and a half months training course over 1800 police and levies official including women were provided training in the college.

Later, the Chief Minister accorded the flag to Umar Company for displaying the best performance during training and distributed certificates and prizes among the trainees.—APP

[Malghani]

"Resources found in a province are not the property of the province, they are the wealth of the entire nation. "

Abbass Gee,

Read the constitution first. Provincial resources are the property of the province in a federal system such as ours. And Balochistan joined the union based on certain rights gauranteed by the federal government.

And Did you folks read the entire article. Does anybody here know the history of the whole insurgency. Does anybody know the all the political parties of Balochistan. Can you folks tell me the employment rate of Balochis in the federal government run corporations in the province. All the lucrative jobs are given to non-Balochis. Don't tell me that Balochistan doesn't produce enough of the good workers to take over few of the Branches that exist in the province.

No need to get all emotional if Balochis ask for their own rights in Balochistan. They are not coming over to somebody in Lahore or Karachi asking for a fair chance at a job there, they are demanding a fair chance at the jobs in Balochistan. And if they keep seeing these jobs going to someone being brought in from Karachi or Punjab obviously they are going to be frustrated. These things have been happening in Balochistan for decades. And so has the insurgency existed as long as the federal government has tried to rubber stamp its writ over balochistan.

I recommend that you folks read the article in full. You'll find some wisdom in it.

[osman]

The thing is that if the balochies start seeing outside their narrow vision of tribes and loyalty to their sardars and join the main stream they will realize that there are no obstacles in their way to get jobs in the federal gov and main stream job industry. Its zime for all pakistanis not just balochies start thinking beyond tribisim, bradri or whatever you may call and start thinking more on a national level.
As for the problems in balochistan, the gov should see to it that the royalties dont up in the hands of the bughti, mengal or the others sardars but reach the folks, only then will the balochies be really free

[Malghani]

Osman,

You have a valid point that the Boloch and the rest of Pakistani should overcome the tribal culture that promotes favoritism. But, in Balochistan's case that is just one of the factors igniting the problem there.
I don't think the favoritism on Balochi side is keeping them backward. Its the favoritism of majority ethnicities that have monopoly on the the state run corporations that perpetuates the feeling among the Baloch that outsiders are taking away their resources and jobs.

And now a rebuttal to Abbass's earlier comments.

Abbas wrote "Pakistanis need to understand that each and everyone of them is a Balochi, Sindhi, Pathan, Punjabi, Kashmiri, etc. And if you are not prepared to be that, then pack your bags and go some place else becuase the future is going to be miserable for you in Pakistan."
So are you suggesting that Balochis seperate from Pakistan....

Abbas wrote "then fine let Punjab keep all the water because that is the resource found in Punjab. I'd like to see how the other provinces fare without a drop in their rivers and canals."
The rivers flow through Punjab, and Punjab is not the sole owner over them. From your argument it seems that you would be on Indian side in the current Baghliar Dam contention between India and Pakistan. Since India is upstream from Pakistan from your point of view it should have the entire rights to the waters of those rivers.

Abbas wrote "If the Balochi nationalists think that the gas is entirely theirs, then fine let them keep it and I'd like to see how they get their royalty when nobody is consuming it, and how they attract the investment to exploit it. What is the percentage of taxes that Balochistan contributes to the national exchequer? The least of all the provinces;"

Hey if the Balochis kept the natural gas for themselves do you realise the trade gap Pakistan is going to face. Investment in gas sector is easy to comeby. If Balochistan had the choice to export it energy resources to a third country such as US they'd be more than willing to setup plants to have it exported. And your point with regard to taxes, well Balochistan does have only 7 to 8 million people living there. That's about 15 percent population of Pakistan if Pakistan's population is 150 million. And if they are paying 1 percent of the tax but lets also look at the subsidies given to Pakistani industry because of gas and other minerals coming from Balochistan would number much higher the tax proportion that Balochis would face.

[Abbas]

Malgahni try not to attribute your twisted interpretations to my posts, you are completely missing the point with your immature approach, and I am not going to respond to your nonsense in the last post.

As to your earlier post, perhaps it would be best if you read the Pakistani Constitution rather than telling others to do so. The Constitution is silent as to natural resources ownership on land, however it does state that minerals and everything of value within the continental shelf and in the territorial waters and ocean floor of Pakistan will belong to the Federal Government. The Constitution only gives provinces rights over ownerless property, which is landed property and not natural resources. See Constitution Part VI, Chapter 3, Article 172. Concerning natural gas specifically, provincial rights are only of preferential use. The province within which the well-head of the gas - not the underground gas reservoir - is located gets priority over its use, before rest of Pakistan. This is not ownership. See Constitution Part V, Chapter 3, Article 158.

Concerning the article, why are you treating its contents as the truth? N. Sethi has always been a pot stirer, and that is what he is doing here. Rather than reading Sethi's unsubstatiated rantings, make an effort to read Ayub Bakhsh Awan's "Baluchistan: Historical and Political Processes," it will tell you all about Baluchistan since the arrival of Arabs in South Asia till late 20th century.

The point you are missing is that the protectionist idea that jobs/resources/etc. in a province should be reserved for ethnic people of that province is what is sabotaging the entire concept of Pakistani nationhood. Do you see this practice in a developed country? Do Texans demand that U.S. federal jobs in Texas should be reserved for them? Or that oil produced in Texas is the exclusive resource of Texas, and the Federal government cannot tax/regulate/etc. the oil? As long as Pakistanis keep thinking in terms of ethnic quotas, welfare state, etc. Pakistan will continue to remain a weak and underdeveloped country.

The other point you are missing is that of violence. There is absolutely no excuse for blowing up gas pipelines, killing Chinese workers building Gwadar port, etc. Such acts do nothing for Balochistan. Rather they retard what development is taking place there, lack of which is the justification nationalists give for their unhappiness. More generally, if anyone decides to use violence to settle their problems, then they should have no expectation of anything except violent retalitaion from the state. Like I said before: if you live by the gun, you better be prepared to die by the gun.

Lastly, please don't bother answering this post if you are unable to do it in a grown up fashion. I am too freakin' old to get into arguments with infants.

NavBaby.

[SyedA]

malghani

sorry to say but, your arguments are so childish and illogical that I wont even waste time to argue with it, and I would suggest the same to Abbas

[Malghani]

Would you care to point what is my immaturish approach and nonsense.

Is it my argument with regard to the Baghliar dam. Because India built the dam basically on the same argument that you are proposing right.

Or was it that Balochistan is not obliged to sell gas to other provinces it could sell it on the international market. And now that I read my article I mistyped.. Balochistan only accounts for 5 percent of population not 15. And their contribution to the nation is much greater.

Abbas read what you wrote, "Concerning natural gas specifically, provincial rights are only of preferential use. The province within which the well-head of the gas - not the underground gas reservoir - is located gets priority over its use, before rest of Pakistan. This is not ownership."

So If Natural Gas from Sui can be pumped from Sindh or Punjab it sure would be there property. But who in there right mind is going to dig 50 - 75 mile underground well to reach Sui reserves from those provinces. And the same goes for the minerals. If the mine is located in Balochistan than the production of that mine is going to be regarded as Balochi production.

And............
United states are no t divided based on ethnicity as is the case in Pakistan. Where there are differences in Ethnicities. Such as black and Whites issues. There we see in the US that the affirmative action provides due shares in admissions and jobs to minorities. So your argument that Balochistan should cough up its jobs to non Balochis doesn't stand.

Please don't talk about Balochis using violence when Pakistan army is being sent in with helicopters to quell any disent.

And Finally Syed seriously if you have a counter argument go ahead and say it. Don't call my arguments childish illogical.

[Maisum Ali]

I don't know a great deal about the situation. But from what I know from the news and reading up on it, I'll say I have to agree with Malghani with a few reservations.

Bugtis should be delt with, with an iron fist.

There should be no talk of seperation.

Seems like a lot of elements always blackmail the government with these.

I do believe though, that the Baluchis have gotten the short end of the stick. BIGTIME. It's about freaking time we realize that. The most national resources rich area in Pakistan is the most backward.

Only now there is some development, because of Gawadar and that would never have happened if Gawadar wasn't part of Pakistan's Security and Financial policy.

This is how it goes in terms of development

Punjab
Sindh
Sarhad
Baluchistan

It doesn't make sense. Even here in Canada, Alberta (who produces most of the oil) talks about provincial rights and they debate it in Parliament.

There is nothing wrong with asking for provincial rights. This is part of the democratic sytem.

What is wrong is to threaten with seperation.

Pakistan also needs to increase Sarhad's and Baluchistan's share in the NFC.

[Usman S.]

A sardar too many

Horatio Hornblower Kidglove

When the chief executive of a province and the provincial police chief make contradictory statements, something has to be amiss. The Chief Minister has stated that no criminal case has been registered against Akhtar Mengal. On the other hand, a statement was issued by Yaqub Chaudhry, the Inspector General of Police of Balochistan, that criminal charges have indeed been filed against the former chief minister. The rest is for us to conjecture, just as we have been guessing about the supposedly written statement executed by the Shareef Brothers with the Government of Pakistan prior to their banishment to Saudi Arabia.

However, rest assured that one of them is on the way out soon. We must of course pray that Yaqub is not the one going somewhere. Yaqub is a good man, a great police officer, perhaps as solid as his predecessor who was appointed inspector general and later promoted despite being co-accused in a murder case. That is precisely what is wrong with this country. Shoaib Suddle headed the provincial police force for more than two years and yet the state did not have the courage to acquit him of this bizarre slaying.

I don’t particularly like policemen and yet I am encouraged by the Inspector General’s emphatic clarification. It tells me something. An operation in Balochistan is on the cards, if it is not already underway. There are more Taliban and al-Qaeda holed out in this over-sized province than in the tribal agencies of the North West Frontier Province. In fact one of the reasons for Jamali’s ouster was his polite refusal to be associated with such an operation and the army’s intention of moving against frontline Balochi sardars. Jamali was simply not up to dealing with his peers, very much like all our politicians who hold their own personal political agendas way above and ahead of national interest.

Terrorist elements are not the only bane in this backward province. Balochistan has a history of suffering both under the sardars as well as minor players plucked from the chorus line whenever it is considered expedient to keep mainstream politicians on the sidelines. Balochistan has often pointed a finger at Islamabad, accusing the federation of interference with the course of provincial politics. However, the fact remains that whether it is a Mengal or a Magsi or a Jam or a Jamali running the province, it has rarely functioned as a viable entity. Successive elected governments have surpassed earlier governments in corruption and inefficiency and yet more or less the same people keep on coming back to power in different disguises.

Balochistan has a history of the spoils system. The provincial government is usually a coalition of disparate factions desperate to make hay while the sun shines. There have been many occasions when the provincial cabinet was almost as large as the provincial assembly and yet remained the most unstable government in the country. Most chief ministers, such as Magsi, Taj and Jan Jamali and the present chief minister, exercise little authority and are for the most held to ransom by not only the ministers and members of the provincial assembly but also by carpetbaggers sitting outside the assembly. Almost all former chief ministers have been subjects of investigation by the National Accountability Bureau, including even the former prime minister. Akhtar Mengal survived the rather short arm of the law by fleeing to his village, which was apparently out of bounds for law enforcement agencies, when Zulifqar Magsi was hauled in by NAB.

That Balochistan has vast untapped resources and that the rest of the country has been living off this province is an argument we have endured forever. This is a frivolous claim since Balochistan could not have survived without subsidies from the federal government and food imported from Sindh and the Punjab. Funnily enough, the sardars argue that the natural endowments of the province belong neither to the federation nor to the province, and are rather the property of the sardars. It is an irony that God has given us enough oil and gas and has then put it where the Marris, Mengals and Bugtis of this world not only reign supreme but actually run amok. Concession-holders have for years tried unsuccessfully to start drilling for oil in Balochistan and yet the three sardars, who dream of becoming oil sheikhs before even one drop of oil is extracted, have driven all the oil companies out.

There is no doubt there is oil in the Marri area, and oil and gas elsewhere in the Bugti and Mengal fiefdoms. It was decided after the army takeover in 1999 to drill for oil in Kohlu, under army patronage, taking advantage of the fact that Nawab Marri happened to be in jail for the murder of a high court judge. And yet it came to nought, as everyone except the army authorities had anticipated. The province is full of mineral wealth. There is chromite in Pishin and Zhob, coal all over the province, marble, copper and gold in Chagai, and a huge reservoir of iron ore in Kalat. The only problem is that the sardars have never allowed development of infrastructure, with the result that it is not economically viable to transport minerals to the market. Most significantly, the sardars expect a sizable share out of the profits as a matter of right. Similarly, plans to build oil and gas pipelines from Iran and the Central Asian Republics through the province have time and again been put on the backburner for fear of sabotage by local sardars who view it as an intrusion over their sovereignty and also demand unimaginable royalties for right of way.

Trouble has been brewing in the province for quite some time. Subversion of natural gas installations in Bugti Agency is nothing new and takes place whenever Nawab Bugti wishes to extort additional money from the federal government to allow PPL to operate in his area. Rocket attacks against WAPDA installations are also a frequent event. However, assassination of Chinese engineers and technicians in Gawadar and the recent attack against a contingent of the Pakistan Army are of a more ominous nature and justify coercive measures by the federal government.

The federal government has consistently avoided an armed operation against insurgencies in the province, mainly to protect national integration and due to lessons learnt from the army action ordered by Bhutto in the seventies. Unfortunately, it is quite evident that matters have somewhat come to a head. There is increasing pressure from the Americans that a Wana-like operation is absolutely essential in Balochistan. Perhaps if a few Americans rather than Chinese had died in the province there would be a massive operation underway in the province. Having said that, muscle-flexing by Mengals and Bugtis should be viewed as divine providence and it is finally time to end the sardari menace once and for all. If there is indeed a plan to establish a cantonment in Dera Bugti, it would be an effective mechanism to keep a check on the region. There should be cantonments elsewhere too, so that the common man in Balochistan is finally rid of the sardars. The fear of god has not been driven into the minds of these sardars so let us see whether the fear of the army can do the trick.

The writer is a freelance columnist
hhkidglove@yahoo.co.uk

http://www.jang.com.pk/thenews/index.html

[nasim]

The biggest fear of these sardars is not federal intrusion, federal presence or federal muscle flexing. They fear development to the point where the impoverished population may just have a chance to end there dependence on sardar "protection" and join the mainstream economy of pakistan. So long as gawadar is connected with the rest of pakistan sufficiently enough, it will only be a matter of time before the increasing trade volume of pakistan is funneled away from karachi and towards gawadar. Once there is a major economic driver in the region, private development will have a chance to capitalize on this national project and jobs will be created.

If you look at the factors present in balochistan and compare tham with the surrounding region, it is not different than the middle east. Parched desert encompassing the majority of land with lots of mineral resources spawning mega projects that drive the economy. The resources fund the industrial processing and transportation sectors which in turn employ the majority of people and provide for the government.

If things are done right and this feudal system of population dependance on a few chieftains ends, then you will see a balochistan with 8+ out of 10 citizens living in major urban areas like quetta and gawadar in high density, highly built up cities with international linkages through the national economy. No different than the major ports sprinkled throughout the arab world.

PS: The thuggery that we see is not different than the stories coming out of arabia before the oil development turned gave them the economic engine to develop the high density, relatively wealthy socities they have today.

I dont care what ethnicity you think you are, given the choice between living on subsistence under a sardar who sits in a palace on a hill while you toil away daily or a chance at a job and shot at pulling yourself up in society, you will choose independence and sulf sufficiency. Development will give all of balochistan a shot at that and will benefit all of pakistan as it contributes to the development of the nation as a whole.

[SSAAD]

Although I support a careful, surgical operation in Baluchistan against the troublemakers (chiefly the sardars), a similar operation in Sind and Punjab against the landed aristocracy would help immensly as well. These three provinces are being held back because of bonded labor/agriculture etc.

If the Fed govt starts something in Baluchistan, the logical conclusion should be elimination of the entire feudal system throughout the country...wishful thinking on my part, I know!

[UmroAyyar]

I agree, feudals need to be packed whether they are Baloch Sardars, Pashtun Khans, Sindhi Waderas, Punjabi Choudhrys, Maliks .. however these can be described. I went to install computers at a private hospital in Khuzdar Balochistan (second largest city there). The doctors there told me that until few years back the local Sardars didn't let electricity installed in the suburbs telling people that if you have light, other people will see you doing things in your homes. Similar reasons I heard in Sindh at times. If Pakistan has to progress and it will, feudalism has to go.

[Ali Mian]

AoA,

I agree with the notion that we need to eliminate all the wadera's, sardars etc regardless of which province they are in. In the case of Baluchistan, this so called uprising we are seeing is not the result of the general population deciding to rise up and fight for some sort of rights, its the local sardar's and thugs who see their influence and power diminshing. One cannot deny that there is poverty in Baluchistan, and the province is backwards compared to the rest of the country. However, that is no more poverty and backwardness that exist in some part of all provinces.

The problem in Baluchistan is that until recently the waderas were doing as they pleased when they pleased. With the recent operations against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda in Balochistan and the army coming in to provide social assistance to people such as building roads, schools, hospitals etc, the waderas see themselves losing control and influence over the people. That is what this thing is all about, chors and badmaashes wanting to maintain their badmaashi. With increased development projects like Gwadar and others in the pipeline, the influence of these waderas will diminish further. The government wants to resolve the issue through negotiations, I think that the Wadera's should think long and hard about that. Violence serves no one and it is the innocent who are made to suffer. Lets hope that the situation gets resolved soon and those responsible are brought to task.

Wasalaam
Ali

[Sultan]

Although I support a careful, surgical operation in Baluchistan against the troublemakers (chiefly the sardars), a similar operation in Sind and Punjab against the landed aristocracy would help immensly as well. These three provinces are being held back because of bonded labor/agriculture etc.

Actually even if the federal or provincial government does little to rid our society of the feudal system market forces will see the extinction of such scum, albeit a lot longer than if a bill was to be 'presented' in the legislative.

This so called Baloch Nationalist uprising manifested by those hell bent on preserving their title as "slave master" has marked the beginning of the end for them. To take on the federal govt. without a popular mandate on a head on collision is suicidal. But we all know what Allah the Almighty has in store for those blinded by arrogance and ignorance. I say good riddance to the slave masters!!

[AhmadBilal]

i totally agree lekin the other side has a point as well...

only 3% of the profits from the gas and other ore reach the people... its plain injustice... that figure should atleast be 20-40%... and money ought to be given to the locals not the sardaars... a way to do that is to invest in the infrastructure of the area...

[SSAAD]

i totally agree lekin the other side has a point as well...

only 3% of the profits from the gas and other ore reach the people... its plain injustice... that figure should atleast be 20-40%... and money ought to be given to the locals not the sardaars... a way to do that is to invest in the infrastructure of the area...

I think it should be two-pronged strategy...take out the tribal leaders and pump massive funding into public infrastructure (as was and is being done in FAT and NWFP in general).

[nasim]

Taking out people only leads to beneficiaries of those people putting bombs under trains.

Build the contonments, display the resolve of the government by establishing security on the roads and in the cities and continue on with the work of development. Should a direct challenge come through attacks then you respond but the only way to take these people out is not through counter attacks alone.

Destroy their sources of reveune and give the people who listen to them an alternative way of life that can provide and these idiots will go by the wayside faster then making martyrs out of a few of them.

The patient attitude of government is a good thing in this case. You cannot win every fight with one knock out blow. I am happy to see a long, well thought out, appropriately funded and SUSTAINED effort to drag this region into and hopefully the rest of pakistan into better development.

[Usman S.]

No military operation in Balochistan, says Owais

Balochistan new economic frontier of Pakistan; Cantonments being built to safeguard country’s interests; Politicians and Sardars to get rightful place

Abu Talha

Islamabad—There is no military operation in Balochistan and all mega projects and other development activities are progressing well in the province with the support of the people.

This was stated by Owais Ahmed Ghani, Governor of Balochistan during a panel interview with Pakistan Observer in Balochistan House here. The panel comprised Faisal Zahid Malik, Abu Talha, Aroosa Alam, Ashraf Ansari and Mahmood Hussain.

During course of the interview, the Balochistan Governor touched on several issues including law and order situation with special reference to security concerns of Pakistan, terrorists’ activities, development works, building of three cantonments and process of negotiations with sardars and politicians.

The Governor said “nobody has shown any deadbody, any injured or destroyed house.” What sort of this military operation is, he counter posed question. He said when he read news about launch of military operation, he rang up corps commander and asked about the matter, he replied in a light vein “there is no such operation, and my Jawans are taking breakfast.”

The Governor said the fact of the matter is that some groups and gangs of outlaws and a small number of terrorists are conducting negative activities and they have fired some rockets on Gwadar, Mairani dam and gas pipelines which are being tackled effectively by the government and that is all. Such activities are taking place in less than eight per cent area of Balochistan only, while rest of the province is normal. Unfortunately, he said, the coverage of terrorist activities does find place but development activities initiated since October 99 remain in the background.

Giving details of terrorist activities, he categorised them into sectarian terrorism and general type of terrorism targeting development projects. Referring to sectarianism, he said Balochistan which had never witnessed such activities, suddenly started facing this in the recent past. A police van was struck killing policemen of Hazara Shia community. Attacks on Imam Bargah and Ashura procession killing several dozen persons and injuring more than hundred. As retaliation 400 shops were burnt down... The intelligence agencies identified the planners and executors as belonging to Lashkare-e-Jhangvi. This gang was busted and after that there was no sectarian incident in the province. Referring to second type of terrorism, he said three Chinese were killed, rockets were fired on Gwadar, Mairani dam and other projects. The government have arrested some persons in different areas and investigation is going on. This is a complicated issue and several factors are responsible for such activities.

Elaborating his point, he said Pakistan is coalition partner in international war on terrorism and Balochistan is being targeted being a soft belly, the Afghan factor from where all the armaments used in terrorism were smuggled, the large poppy cultivation in Afghanistan and Balochistan being made its conduit for smuggling of narcotics, large drug money generates criminal activities, presence of a number of Indian consulates in Afghanistan and some local and international vested interests opposed to mega projects in Balochistan. All these factors have its affects on Balochistan but the determined governor said it will meet its fate as people of Balochistan are all-out for development and they are supporting them as they want amenities of life.

When the governor was pressed to ask that since Afghanistan is being controlled by the United States, the government should have protested with the United States on Afghan factor responsible for troubles in Balochistan, he said he took up this matter with US ambassador Nancy Powell when she visited Quetta. This matter was thoroughly discussed with her, he maintained.

When asked about development of three cantonments in Balochistan, he said this is not a new factor in Balochistan as this province already has cantonments in other areas. The cantonments are meant for defence of strategic development projects and coastal areas. Similarly, cantonments have been built in other areas of Pakistan for safeguarding interests of Pakistan. He said land has been acquired and legal formalities have been completed for these cantonments. He said the government has initiated process of dialogue with those who are opposing building of cantonments and other development projects. The governor said he has also met Nawab Akbar Bugti, and leaders of Marri and Mengal tribes. Rauf Mengal also met him in Quetta. Similarly, Secretary National Security Council was also tasked to meet such leaders and he met Nawab Akbar Bugti. He said the government strongly believes in process of negotiations and hoped the matter will be resolved.

The Governor said the development projects launched by the government were recommended by those who are opposing it now. Owais Ghani said development activities are going on in all areas of the province. Oil drilling is taking place in Zhob, Qala Saifullah and Khuzdar etc. Mineral wealth is emerging and iron ore is being supplied to Pakistan Steel Mills in Karachi. Saindak project with Chinese support is producing copper blister. An Australian firm is working on a project to produce copper. The most important is Gwadar deep sea port which will prove to be a transit port where big ships will anchor and unload their luggage for onward shipment to Gulf ports through small ships. A big town in this place will emerge.

The people are very happy for this development as they want jobs and progress. He said most of the sardars are supporting these development activities. But some of the opposing elements are being convinced. The world has changed. Balochistan is emerging as new economic frontier of Pakistan. He said Balochistan has entered into agreements with private sector for payment of royalty and even sharing profits with the firms which are carrying out development work. The funds will be used for providing amenities to the people. The governor said President Pervez Musharraf also met all the representatives in Quetta and he assured them that Balochistan will not be lagging behind now in development activities. “Balochistan was ignored in the past. He cannot change the past now but this province will be priority area for him,” he said. The governor said another border development plan will be started with the help of international donor agencies under which roads will be built and other activities will be launched. To another question, he said Ziarat residency will be preserved on priority basis.

http://www.pakobserver.net/200408/25/view/?page=1&id=3

[SSAAD]

When I say take out the leaders, I mean isolate them and remove them from a position of influence.


Taking out people only leads to beneficiaries of those people putting bombs under trains.

Build the contonments, display the resolve of the government by establishing security on the roads and in the cities and continue on with the work of development. Should a direct challenge come through attacks then you respond but the only way to take these people out is not through counter attacks alone.

Destroy their sources of reveune and give the people who listen to them an alternative way of life that can provide and these idiots will go by the wayside faster then making martyrs out of a few of them.

The patient attitude of government is a good thing in this case. You cannot win every fight with one knock out blow. I am happy to see a long, well thought out, appropriately funded and SUSTAINED effort to drag this region into and hopefully the rest of pakistan into better development.

[UmroAyyar]

There are genuine grievances as well, Balochistan has been left behind, I would say Rural Areas in all the provinces have been left on the 'aasra' of these feudals. All these stories about atrocities perpetuated by these feudals to these people, these victims have no where to go. Day to day life insecurities cannot be eliminated even after sustained efforts of 5-10 years. Wherever I went, all the provinces in rural areas, all these people have one supreme dream, getting their children educated and live in the city. The government is right on track investing in infrastructure, needs to do more on projects which directly affect these hapless people. Education, local infrastructure projects, roads, trains etc. This is what these feudals are fighting against, they are going to lose this, but not easily. Govt. is right on establishing cantonments and development projects.

[MohammedA]

Wapda seeks army's help to protect Rs31bn canal


By Ihtasham ul Haque

ISLAMABAD, Oct 6: The Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) has sought the support of the army to protect its Rs31.2 billion Kachhi Canal project said to be facing subversion threat.

According to informed sources, the Commandant of the Border Military Police has assured Wapda to arrange personnel of the Engineering Corps (Army) for clearing mines, laid in alignment of Kachhi Canal KC-5 by subversive elements in the Mazari tribal area of District Rajanpur.

Wapda officials have complained that Baloch Regiment police (BRP) platoon deployed by the Balochistan government for security of Wapda staff have no logistics. The sources said that Wapda was of the view that unless the security of the staff of the organization was ensured and mines laid by subversive elements removed, it would be difficult for Wapda to complete the project by June, 2008.

The project is located in Rajanpur, Punjab, and Dera Bugti, Niasirabad, Bolan, Jhal Magsi District of Balochistan. The sources said that Wapda officials also wanted uninterrupted funds for the project but they were more concerned about the security of the project and the staff working there.

Recent attacks on gas installations have reportedly forced Wapda officials to seek more active support specially from the army for its various projects located in Punjab and Balochistan.

So far 4 per cent and 4.03 per cent physical progress and financial progress, respectively, has been reported to the higher authorities about the Kachhi Canal Project. Under the programme, 713,000 acres of land will be irrigated and Balochistan will get the Indus water through an independent canal from Taunsa Barrage.

Regulators have been installed at Taunsa Barrage having the main canal about 500 kilometres (300km lined canal in Punjab and 200 km unlined in Balochistan). The project will have 2000-kilometre-long distribution system.

In its latest report, Wapda has informed the President's Secretariat that three major surface water schemes - Chotiari Reservoir Project, Chashma Right Bank Irrigation Project and Pehru High Level Canal Project - have been completed.

The Ghazi Brotha Hydropower Project with a generation capacity of 1450MW of electricity is functioning and its all five units are in operation now. Likewise, 18 million acres of land has been reclaimed from water logging and salinity in the four provinces for which 15,000 tube wells have been installed and 12,000 kilometres of surface and 13,000 kilometres of tiled drains have been constructed in the waterlogged areas.

[afridi]

Malghani:

The problem is the idea of the right of the province itself. Having had a very lengthy debate with a nationalist on the issue of the ownership of resources I listened to his long-winded and often rhetorical argument about how resources should belong to the people.

At the end of it all, I asked a simple question, define the "people".

He went onto to say that the people in this case were the people of the province, only that province in particular. So, I accepted his argument, something you seem to subscribe to as well.
Having done so I asked him to take an example, Sui with Gas or Tarbela with Electricity, and explain to me where and how to define the people. He seemed confused, his answer was, obviously NWFP for Tarbela and Baluchistan for Sui.
I asked him to explain it to me, explain the "right" that is so obvious to him.
He went on to say that the constitution defines the province and that the province is the legal representative of the area in particular. I stopped him there. I am afraid what most people tend not to understand is that the constitution does not give that right to the province, it does so to the division and to the district in particular. So, people of the Sibi and of Hazara have the constitutional right to challenge the Federal government, on behalf of the people of the two districts involved. Any proceeds do not belong to the province, or to any of the other districts either. They belong to the people of that district.

Now, you can see how that is not beneficial for any of the politicians apart from the regional councillors, who are not MNAs or MPAs.

THAT IS WHY NO ONE TAKES TEH FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO COURT.

The people who spend hours and hours on national television/radio and blacken so many pages of the press with "provincial rights" interviews that insight such "us vs them" attitude and provincialism, never challenge the federal government on the legal issue, as they will not gain anything.

Unfortunately, even the so-called educated people from each province tend not to delve into the matter further, but they simply join the bandwagon.

In the constitution, the province is in the same boat as the rest of the provinces. Constitutionally, (as so many people use the constitution to base their argument) Quetta, Kalat, Makran Nasirabad & Zhob are in the same situation and have perfectly identical rights to Sui as Kohat, Malakand, Faisalabad, Sargodha, Sukkhur, Larkana or NA.

That is an "eye opener" is it not ?????

So, if the idea is to highlight "provincial rights" maybe some one should be bold enough to change the constitution.....or at least start reading it. Najam Sethi has been a devout anti-establishment journalist. Unfortunately, the onus of "argument", "investigation" and "reporting" seem to take a back seat to the time honoured tradition of "junking the government"......irrespective of which the government might be.


At least, WE can use our own resources to discuss things without occupational baggage and need of financial gain ?

[Uzair]

And to further Afridi’s excellent point, the "people" as defined by many of these sardars and feudalists basically means the people of their tribe, clan, family, or area of influence, not the entire population of the district, let alone the province. And even among their own tribe, people refers to the elite males, while the rest are merely property.

I very much believe in the provincial right to bring together these feudal lords and hang them.

[Asma]

Afridi, you are spot on. This is exactly the reply one gets when you try to argue with most of the nationalists. I have a fair idea having had Baluch class fellows at the university. However, I would still say that the Baluchis have been sandwiched between their tribal leaders and the various governments over the years. They have been exploited by their own people, no doubt but sadly the government hasn't done much to alleviate their suffering or listen to their grievances. I understand that they lean towards their tribal cheifs without realizing that these people have a fair share in keeping them underdeveloped; and take anything that comes from the centre as an effront or an attempt to grab their resources. This attitude has not helped them at all but I would still say that if the people of Baluchistan aren't happy about the establishment of contonement areas and are apprehensive about the development work, then they should be heard if we really subscribe to the provision that we are a federation. I don't think anyone would appreciate the government doing another Wana like act in Baluchistan, without exhausting other options.
Regardless of how much some of us here support the army and have a confidence in it as a reliable institution, we need to take off our red glasses and see things in a positive light.

Interestingly, I had a chance to attend a seminar, the details of which are reported here, http://www.dawn.com/2004/10/16/local3.htm that took place yesterday in Karachi and it dealt with the problem in Baluchistan, the issue concerning the control of resources and the rights of the smaller provinces.

[afridi]

Asma:

I understand your point and agree with it too. In essence, I do not want federal control over any resources. That is a system that always breeds inefficiency and abuse of power. What worries me even more so is that such systems destroy the benefits that might arise from localised concentration of industry and expertise.

The constitution of this country is not one written to make the country either progressive or more entwined to buckle its waist and march forward. The constitution was written and is fashioned to ensure that power, industry and revenue is siphoned from the lowest base. That in itself is not something that should be discouraged. I would argue that this is the prime reason by which civilisation funds its development. My contention is the second half of the picture.
The constitution allows no form of repatriation or investment of power, industry or revenue into the common base again.

This is why we falter again and again.

Within a time span of 50 odd years we have seen more "directed growth" and comparative prosperity when we were being ruled by either "Basic Democracy (BD)" or the "local Body System-Federal" junction used by Musharraf in the first half of his tenure.

In both situations, elected representative were in charge of the dissemination of revenue and policy direction came from a non-elected cabinet that featured technocrats. Before everyone starts crying "but they are not elected", well, with the exception of the Bristish Parliamentary system, every other democratic model follows that principle. Many blame the collapse of the Bristish Industry specifically on the lack of "technocratic foresight" displayed by a series of "elected ministers" who were unable to control or direct their respective civil servants. Many political analysts argue that this form of government has led to a decline of UK stature compared to its continental counterparts. History proves them to be right. Though the reason is not as general as that, my main aim is to show that what most people/politicians consider to be democracy in Pakistan, is simply a mimic theatre for a system that has failed the very country that propagated it.

Elected representatives are supposed to "provide checks and balances"....."decision making" is not their forte. That should be left to technocrats as they have shown throughout our history to be far more effective when a comparison is made.

Now, what you might ask, has that to do with Baluchistan or NWFP ?

Well, to put it simply, the divisions within these provinces should operate under a federal cabinet without the intermediary of the province. In essence, the province hinders the development of regions, it does not facilitate it. Our provinces are too diverse and far too large administratively to be of any effect. The elected divisional Council of Sibi should operate under the Federal cabinet and should provide royalty "to" the federal government. Not the other way round. Most successful economies work on this principle, rather than the top-down royalty system, which suits, only developed nations. Pakistan needs growth in its industrial base.
Areas such as Sibi should control the major chunk of the percentage from the revenue while the federal government would be paid a royalty of say about 33%. This would make the facilities and the expertise of the federal ministries available to the division. Over a period of time, in order to sustain a revenue stream, the division will have to invest into the industry in question. Sibi will "HAVE TO" invest in Geological and Hydrocarbon industries in order to earn a large chunk of the revenue within its boundaries. Companies, colleges, recruitment agencies and the hydrocarbon industry as a whole would "have to" stream to Sibi in order to gain any real benefit from the steady stream of cash flow.
And so on and so forth.........

Lets look at who benefits:


The local government of Sui and the Divisional government of Sibi.

Increased insudtrial growth = recruitment and employment opportunities for locals.

District government will "HAVE TO" invest in local education otherwise they risk loosing a chunk of the cash flow to other districts and divisions by way of employee salaries.

Hydrocarbon industry of Pakistan as the above scenario forces a concentration of such industry and related academic know-how to be concentrated within the sphere of the district in question.

Federal Ministry, as the reduction of redundant/duplicated effort in the division, province and centre.
The federal ministry becomes more goal oriented and more like powerful consultants to a locally elected government, which is directly answerable (comparative to any national or provincial elected assembly or ministry).

Universities become the mainstay for research and academic consultation by the federal ministry, which now requires the myriad of research available by way of university administration and students. (Something completely ignored in Pakistan at the moment). This raises the profile of the universities and also allows for a comparatively "learned" database of individuals that liaison with the federal ministry rather than the present party worker/member/official method.
Students will, in time, understand that the key to a successful career at the federal level of government is through academic and research excellence and not through student body politics, which limits them to a divisional level only.

Civil service becomes untangled from the present minefield of political affinities/friendships/loyalties and concentrates on a technical performance system to ensure that they progress up the ranks. Corruption and nepotism will still remain but will be centred upon academic manipulation and personality cults (aka EU, China, Hazrat Umar etc) rather than the political trading of civil service as of now.

The system will also generate flaws. Firstly, in order to have a hope in hell of becoming anyone important at the federal level, you will have to become technically proven/established/recognised in the field you wish to progress in (Mohammad Shoaib, Shaukat Aziiz, Dawood, S Zaffar, Atta-ur-Rehman). Therefore, the emphasis would be excel academically for federal positions while join local political affinities for the maximum threshold of divisional level politics.

The elected national assembly becomes a relegated body of lawmakers........ I can imagine how many people would want to become MNAs then ?

Ironically, the very people who would benefit the most from such a system would oppose it without thinking about why the politicians want to stop any such morphisis.

The people who gain the most are local, regional leaders like the Sardars (Bugti, Mehar) the tribal elders, fringe parties (MQM, BNP, ANP), religious pockets (Qazi, Pal-e-rehman, Noorani), the industrialists and the landed individuals, However, the system forces them to "develop" their regions if they want to an important part of the country and sustain their own regional leadership, otherwise, in time, they will become the leaders of the smallest district in revenue generation and industrial growth.....soon, the big guns from the others districts will simply out spend, out develop and out pace you.

most of all.......no province becomes the platform or megaphone used simply to confront the central government and relay political demands { Punjab (Nawaz & Co) vs Centre (Benazir), Sindh (PPP-MQM) vs Centre (Nawaz), MQM vs (anyone in power not willing to heed their demands.....religious parties ..vs ...everyone else apart from them ).....

No division will be strong enough to challenge the centre's role while the elected governments of the divisions will be too "close" to their roots to be completely ignored by the centre.


What we need is a change of the way we think....so that we can change the way we operate.

57 years of trying to get someone else's feeble system to work should make it clear to us that a rethink is needed ...?