Last Thursday's tragic incident near Dera Bugti that claimed the lives of several Bugti tribesmen and eight personnel of the Frontier Corps has sent alarm bells ringing all over the country as members of combined Opposition in the National Assembly have been pointing accusatory finger at the government. Meanwhile, both the government and the Bugtis have different accounts to give on the number of casualties as well as who fired the first shot. Official sources say that the firing started when a convoy of the Frontier Corps, comprising six vehicles, was intercepted by armed men who opened fire on it without any provocation, injuring five of its personnel.
According to the Bugtis, it was a pre-planned operation. Whatever the truth, it is obvious that neither side trusts the other, which points to the possibility that what happened on Thursday was the outcome of nervousness with which they view one another. And the cost of this mistrust has been an immense loss, both in terms of precious human lives and the Federation's relations with Balochistan.
The two sides since have called a cease-fire, which, of course, is a matter of satisfaction. Also, the government has responded to the charges against it in a wise manner. It has invited prominent members of the combined Opposition to visit Dera Bugti to ascertain the exact death toll, and to determine whether the clashes were the outcome of military operation that many accuse it of having launched in the restive region of Balochistan.
The President of the PML-Q and the head of the parliamentary committee on Balochistan, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, pointedly stated on Friday that the mission, to leave for Dera Bugti, would comprise only members of the Opposition parties. Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad also informed the House that he was making arrangements for a group of national and international media to accompany the fact-finding team.
This response indicates that the government indeed has nothing to hide, and that the truth may actually be in consonance with its version of the bloody clashes.
While the Opposition members find out the answers as to the actual cause of the clashes and the extent of the casualties, it is more than clear that the government needs to address Baloch grievances with a sense of urgency and sensitivity towards the sentiments of that province's people. During the recent months, as head of the parliamentary committee on Balochistan, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain has been issuing a number of reassuring statements, especially with regard to the Baloch demand for greater autonomy.
However, his committee is yet to complete its report and recommendations, which are to serve as the basis of a new governmental policy on the issue. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz asked Shujaat on Friday to finalise, as soon as possible, the recommendations that, he said, are to have a direct impact on the people of Balochistan, so that the needed measures could be initiated immediately.
That surely would help. But, as the unfortunate incident near Dera Bugti has shown, the government must also undertake immediate measures that will create confidence in the Baloch people's mind regarding its sincerity in addressing their long-standing grievances.
In this respect, not all their expectations may be reasonable, such as that the government must pull out all its troops protecting vital installations in the Bugti area as well as those in Gwadar. For, army garrisons and cantonments are present in almost all big and small cities of the other provinces, including the much-blamed Punjab. The difference though is lack of trust. The government must do all it needs to do to create this elusive commodity in Balochistan.
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