That Balochistan is in turmoil is a reality; broad day light killing of innocent human beings (mostly non-Baloch) is a daily affair, be it in the cities, on highways, in tribal territories, or at the Pak-Iran border. It is high time this turmoil was contained and writ of the law restored.
The failure of the state in containing rising poverty and feeling of neglect is being projected as segregationist and grossly unjust to cause a secessionist 'spring'. The claimed 4,000 (in reality only 450) cases of 'missing' persons are meant to escalate tensions.
While the aspects under scrutiny are abductions and (only Baloch) 'missing' persons, investigating targeted killing of other ethnic groups (Hazara, Pashtun, Punjabis and security personnel) isn't a high priority. Logic: law enforcers, not the politicians, must be blamed for every state blunder.
There is no reference to pervasive poverty that reflects six decades of wrong priorities - enriching the Sardars, not empowering the Baloch - nor the fact, that territories not under the Sardars' writ - Mekran, Kharan and Nushki - too weren't developed, which again is a tribute to the clout of the Sardars.
Sardar Akhtar Mengal is focused on 'missing' persons to target the law enforcers, not on the real disease ailing Balochistan (unemployment, poverty, rising rich-poor gap, absence of essential services) exposing the anti-Pakistan forces whose line he is towing.
He is silent over targeted killings, but while hearing a petition of the Balochistan High Court Bar Association about 'missing' persons, the Supreme Court wasn't dismissive of the issue. Hopefully, the Chief Justice (hailing from Balochistan) will take a holistic view of the scenario.
But Sardar Akhtar Mengal has different plans; he thinks "it is better to part our ways peacefully after having a warm hug." Accompanied by Nawaz Sharif, saying so and offering a 6-point formula for virtual 'independence' of Balochistan, he seemed the re-incarnation of Sh. Mujib-ur-Rehman.
That charter includes (i) immediate suspension of all covert and overt military operations against the Baloch; (ii) production of all missing persons from Balochistan before a court of law; (iii) disbanding of all death squad operations supervised by the ISI and the MI; (iv) resumption of Baloch political parties' activities without any interference by intelligence agencies; and (v) bringing all those responsible for inhuman torture, killing and dumping of dead bodies of the Baloch political leaders and activists to justice.
This (5, not 6-point) charter focuses exclusively on Balochis exposing the partiality of Akhtar Mengal who claims the leadership of Balochistan as a whole. He calls his charter a "6-point agenda" to sound as threatening (and externally-backed) as was Sheikh Mujib. His charter envisages an administration that assumes zero crime in Balochistan, and hence no role for the law enforcers, because he claims zero foreign interference in Balochistan. Are there any 'takers' of this view even in Balochistan, let alone the rest of Pakistan?
Sardar Akhtar Mengal is re-writing history by saying that right from 1947, Balochis (to him, only Mengals, Marris and Bugtis) didn't want to join Pakistan; consent to accede was obtained from 'artificially' created Sardars (by Muslim League under Jinnah), but Khan of Qallat finds no mention in his disclosures.
Baloch leaders never liked doing things themselves. Others had to labour to earn the wealth, enjoying whose benefit was the Sardars' right because it was the fruit of Balochistan's natural resources. Ask the Ministry of Finance, Sui Gas Transmission Co, PPL and Ogra, and they will confirm it.
The Sardars have no ambitions in life except thriving on resources squeezed out of the Federation. Yet, you can't find a single primary or secondary school, vocational training centre, college, basic health centre, or hospital built in Balochistan by the Sardars. Given the way the Sardars ensured that their subjects remained un-educated and sealed within their tribal belts (to prevent them from entering the 21st century), Balochistan cannot become self-sustaining and truly independent despite its natural resources.
The entities interested in gaining a foothold (and blocking China's entry) in Balochistan - Western oil and mining corporations - know this. But West-supported freedom is a delusion, and as in the past, Sardars alone will benefit from it at the expense of the Balochis. The West never cared for the Third World resource-rich states; it only maximised its own benefits. Look at the current state of the former European colonies from where Europeans were eventually pushed out - Libya, the Sudan, Egypt, Congo, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Viet Nam, Nigeria, etc.
The imperial powers stole their resources for decades, and then left after inciting long-lasting civil war. The ongoing recession (that actually began in 2001 after the fraud about 'silicon valley' was exposed) is forcing a bankrupt West to again colonize these resource-rich states.
Baloch Sardars (out of power after their break-up with the federation following the Sardar Akbar Bugti affair), are said to be using their private armies to disrupt life in Balochistan courtesy the backing of "the powers that be" that are bent upon dismembering Pakistan by 2015.
Rumour is that the outfit being supported by the West is the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA); it resembles Kosovo Liberation Army which, according to Professor Michel Chossudovsky of the University of Ottawa, was financed by the drug trade, the CIA and Germany's Bundes Nachrichten Dienst.
It is sad that the Baloch don't realise that their self-styled freedom fighters have no love for them; what doesn't bother the likes of BLA, are the benefits of exploring and mining Balochistan's natural resources. Instead, they frighten exploration companies out of Balochistan.
Over the centuries, Balochis have reconciled to living on the meagre handouts doled out by their Sardars. They remain pro-Sardar without questioning the ways of their Sardar although, had their Sardars been blessed with vision, by now Balochistan would be the most prosperous province.
The Balochis would make the mistake of the century by following their Sardars in a conflict with the federation. What they need is stability to concentrate on productive efforts to lift them well above the poverty line. Balochistan's natural resource sector has the potential to create massive employment opportunities.
A true Baloch nationalist would encourage 'Pakistani' investors (waiting in Pakistan and abroad) to explore and mine Balochistan's natural resources, and more than fairly share the benefits with the Balochis. What is needed is an investor-friendly environment that is fair to Balochistan.
Balochis need skills (that their Sardars didn't allow them to acquire) for self-sufficiency in mining and exploration to optimise the benefits of their resources; for that they must now attract entities that can set-up scores of vocational training centers. That's how they could maximise their well-deserved benefits; turning Balochistan into a war-zone isn't the solution.