The government's reconciliation efforts in Balochistan suffered a serious setback on Friday with the resignation of Senator Sanaullah Baloch of Balochistan National Party (BNP-Mengal), which prompted the treasury and opposition benches in the Senate to tender apology for whatever had bben done to the province in the past.
Discussion on Sana's resignation dominated the Senate session that echoed with strong reservations of Balochistan nationalist leaders that nothing had changed on the ground in the province despite the fact that the country has a new government as a result of February 18 vote. The Baloch senators were almost unanimous that Baloch majority in the province was being turned into minority.
The senator went ahead with his resignation despite calls from the treasury benches that things had changed after February 18 polls and he should reconsider his resignation. "If the apology tendered by our party is not enough to console the Baloch people, I, here, once again apologise to them," said leader of the house Raza Rabbani, while trying to persuade Sana to reconsider his resignation. He asked him to reconsider his resignation because the February 18 vote was clear verdict that 'Musharraf is no more needed'.
The matter remained restricted to the treasury benches, as Sana's resignation prompted PML-Q secretary general Senator Mushahid Hussain to say: "We as a nation owe apology to Balochistan. We should apologise to the people of the largest province as nation."
He said the mindset of establishment regarding Balochistan had been negative. This very factor had deprived the parliamentary committee on Balochistan, formed by the previous government from giving the desired results, he said.
"Initially, President Musharraf toed our line, but later he followed what was coming out from Rawalpindi," said the senator who remained an active member of the Parliamentary Committee. He admitted on the floor of the house that Akbar Bugti, who was killed in military operation that was allegedly ordered by Musharraf, was a great patriot. "Our efforts were sabotaged by hawks in establishment," Mushahid said.
Minutes before he tendered his resignation, Sana said that the real problem was lack of trust between the powerful establishment and the Baloch nationalist forces. This problem, he said, was growing bigger and was threatening the integrity of the country.
Balochistan nationalists are capable as anybody else claims to be in this country. "The establishment will have to trust us. If you don't trust, the Baloch will not trust you either," he said.
The present Balochistan assembly is not the representative of the Baloch people, he said. The nationalist leaders were in jails during election and they could not participate in them. There should be a mechanism to ensure that provincial legislature becomes representative of the Baloch people, he urged.
He said that more than 90 percent of Balochistan problems needed only administrative measures to be resolved. "The government need not go for a lengthy process of amendment in the constitution," he said.
The Baloch are deprived of their rights even today as they were yesterday. Bugti was suffering from cancer and he had very little time to live. Still the establishment was out to kill him, he said. Sana was in self-exile due to which he could not resign.
Sanaullah said that out of 70,000 strong FC Balochistan, only 43,000 men are from Balochistan. He said that only tendering apologies and forming committees would not be enough. Now is the time of taking practical steps, he urged. Recently, Akhtar Mangal was stopped from addressing a public meeting in Balochistan. "Is he (Akhtar Mangal) a terrorist? Is this the way, the government wants to deal with Balochistan?" he asked.
Abdul Ghafoor Haidri of the JUI-F said that this was the country that had come into being in the name of Islam and democracy. These two ideals could not take root in the country. "It is always the generals, colonels government in the country," he said.
Azam Swati of the JUI-F, Ilyas Bilour, Muhammad Adeel of ANP, Abdur Rahim Mandokhel, Kamran Murtaza and others voiced their concern over the deprivations of Balochistan people.
Kamran warned that time was coming nearer and nearer that Balochistan legislators would resign from the parliament. He urged the PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari to speed up the process of reconciliation. Zardari should come forward personally. He warned the government once again that recently Bangladeshis visited this house as a foreign delegation. There is likelihood that Balochistan delegation will see the same house in the same capacity if the government maintained the status quo.