Bugti's death: 1971 revisited?

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly” — Martin Luther King, Jr.

The news of Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti’s killing in a military operation sent a chill down my spine as I started to think of all the repercussions this tragedy could unfold. Switching on my television set and watching images of Akbar Bugti flash as news of his death was being broadcast, tears filled my eyes. Although I was sad about Bugti’s death, these tears were not for him solely; they were more for Pakistan’s future. These were not just tears of mourning; they were tears of outrage, as well – outrage at the so-called leaders who have not learned any lessons from the 1971 debacle and are bent on repeating the same mistakes again and again. Worse, they blame ‘foreign hands’ when they themselves are responsible for each and every fiasco in the history of Pakistan.

R.J. Rummel writes this about the military operation carried out by the Pakistani military in then-East wing of Pakistan in Death by Government (p. 331), “The human death toll over only 267 days was incredible. Just to give for five out of the eighteen districts some incomplete statistics published in Bangladesh newspapers or by an Inquiry Committee, the Pakistani army killed 100,000 Bengalis in Dacca, 150,000 in Khulna, 75,000 in Jessore, 95,000 in Comilla, and 100,000 in Chittagong. For eighteen districts the total is 1,247,000 killed…” The situation in Balochistan is no different. The military operation has killed thousands of Balochs till date. Last year, General Musharraf warned the Balochs, “Don’t push us. It is not the 1970s when you can hit and run and hide in the mountains. This time you won't even know what hit you.” This comment further aggravated the tensions in the province.

Despite Balochistan’s gas fields, which are a major source of revenue, the Centre’s refusal to give the provincial administration an adequate payment of royalty for the gas supplied to the other parts of Pakistan, is causing unrest in the province. The construction of Gwadar port without Balochistan’s provincial authorities being part of the decision-making process, the contracts of all mega projects in Balochistan being awarded to non-Baloch, mostly Punjabis, and the military operation being carried out against the Baloch are enough reasons to give rise to a nationalist sentiment. These are the major reasons why the Baloch have been fighting for their rights over the decades. They are also fighting for the autonomy of the province, something that is their constitutional right. But what they have got in return are the labels of ‘terrorists’, ‘miscreants’, etc. Such is the justice our establishment bestows upon its citizens.

Akbar Bugti was no rebel and was not even remotely associated with the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA). He has been an establishment man throughout his life. The clashes between the Bugti tribe and the establishment started when Dr. Shazia Khalid was raped by an army officer in January 2005 at the Sui gas plant in Balochistan, and the Bugti tribesmen protested against the rape by blowing up gas installations at Sui and disrupting gas supply to Punjab and other parts of the country for several weeks. This started armed clashes between the Bugti tribesmen and the security forces, which resulted in scores of deaths. It all ended after both sides agreed to pull back from their positions and the assurance given by then interim Prime Minister Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain to have a political dialogue by setting up three parliamentary sub-committees on the situation in Balochistan. Although one of the sub-committees headed by Mushahid Hussain submitted its report, the establishment has let it rot in the dustbin. The clashes between the Bugtis and the military started again after the security forces launched an attack on Dera Bugti, following the rockets fired by rebels, which landed some hundred yards from President Musharraf while he was visiting the nearby town of Kohlu. Akbar Bugti had to flee into the mountains. It was reported that he was still looking for a deal with the establishment, but the ego of our establishment hindered the path of a deal with Bugti. Not only that, the same ego has been the main obstacle in the dialogue between Baloch nationalists and the government.

Time and again, the government has claimed that the insurgency in Balochistan has been due to “foreign hands”, but it keeps forgetting that it is the establishment’s own fault if any outsider wants to exploit this situation. The government has dug a grave for itself by treating the people of Balochistan as second class citizens, consequently alienating them. The way to resolving any conflict is through peaceful dialogue. But this military-dominated establishment has resorted to violence. When force is used against anyone, it is bound to give rise to resistance and militancy. Little wonder then that the Baloch nationalists feel that the only way to fight back is through militancy in the face of the ruthless military operation being carried out in Balochistan. The Baloch people want to be treated as humans and equal citizens. If there is any way to avoid another Bangladesh, it is through dialogue with the Baloch nationalists, but this government is not capable of it.

In order to resolve the issue of Balochistan, President Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz should hold free and fair elections in the country. This way the Baloch nationalists would be able to participate in the elections and have a stake in the assemblies. It would give them a chance to get Balochistan its due rights. But given the track record of this government [the Pakistan Steel Mills scam, sugar and cement crisis, the Stock Exchange scandal, etc.], there is little chance that it will take the right decision. Chances are that they will continue to rule while the country burns.

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