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BALOCH FREEDOM FIGHT : UNDERSTANDING
PAKISTAN IS CRUCIAL FOR A KNOCK OUT BLOW
04.07.2006
By Sunaina Baloch .Phd
Zurich
SUMMARY
After six years since Rober Kaplan published his article , a reality check
proves that he is absolutely correct in his judgement about Pakistan that
it is an artificial state on the verge of collapse . It is for Baloch
nationalists to invigorate their spirit and fight Punjabi looters and see
to that our resources are secured for our future generation.
Lesson learned from past
freedom struggle is , freedom fight has two dimensions ,one diplomatic and
another Military ,world citizens see and listen to it when they converge.
In the past we lacked diplomatic muscle power , now we have , so let's use
it to the hilt and beat the sh*t out of
Punjabis (Excuse me for this language) .
ANALYSIS
Pakistan today is at a historical cross-road, a self-created political and
military mess could drift into a repeat of its 1971 misadventure of east
Pakistan. Pakistan is now a state on the verge of collapse. Problem of
Balochistan started many decades ago, Baloch nationalists fought Punjabis
for freedom in 1948, 1958-59, 1962-63 and 1973-77— all of which the army
suppressed. In the 1970s, the Baloch nationalists were ousted from power
by the Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto government, upon which they launched an armed
struggle to reclaim power. In the 1980s and 1990s, they were part of the
democratic landscape under the governments of Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz
Sharif. However, since the 1999 military takeover, they have been excluded
from power in the province. The subsequent standoff between the government
and Baloch nationalists has broken into warfare from time to time. What
has sparked off the recent crisis is the contention of the Balochs that
the province is being militarised, cantonments are being set up in the
name of development, and that the real motive is to completely take over
the natural resources of Balochistan,
particularly in Kohlu and Dera Bugti.
In an interview Pakistan's Human Rights leader Ms.Asma Jahangir said to a
question whether the Indian government reaction is justifiable .She said
"Human rights issues are universal. When our government takes up the issue
like that of the massacre in Gujarat, not only our government but all
governments of the world should make India accountable. Therefore, it's
just right that when systematic human rights violations are taking place
in Balochistan, the world community pays attention to it. India is part of
the world community, part of the region as well. I hope that not only
India but other countries do pay attention. We expect India and Pakistan
to take notice of what
happened in Myanmar and Nepal. So what is happening in Balochistan is
grave enough to take notice of." This is a clear signal from saner
elements of Pakistan to India to take notice of events in Pakistan rather
being mum .
WHAT IS PAKISTAN MADE UP OF:
To put in the words of Robert Kaplan , of Atlantic Online , "PAKISTAN
covers the desert frontier of the Subcontinent. British civil
administration extended only to Lahore, in the fertile Punjab, near
Pakistan's eastern border with India; its Mogul architecture, gardens, and
rich bazaars give Lahore a closer resemblance to the Indian cities of New
Delhi and Calcutta than to any other place in Pakistan. But the rest of
Pakistan — the rugged Afghan-border regions of Baluchistan and the
North-West Frontier Province, the alkaline wasteland of Sind, and the
Hindu Kush and Karakoram Mountains embracing Kashmir — has never been
subdued by the British or anyone else." One Indian
expert says "It is a small chunk of India latched on to a huge and hostile
border region. It is a total
mismatch."
Dr.N S Rajaram a famous Mathematician and History expert said in 2000 in
an article that "The State of Pakistan is being overwhelmed by forces of
history and geography. A state with less than a tenth the resources of
India, Pakistan is forced to fight insurgencies on its frontiers perhaps
ten times as great as in Kashmir. It is only a matter of time before the
institutions of the state totally breakdown. And this is because of the
fundamental irrationality of Pakistan, which is less a state than a
turbulent frontier that a small Punjabi elite is attempting to hold
together. This is the picture that emerges from a masterly study of the
state of Pakistan written by Robert Kaplan, probably the world’s leading
reporter on the region (‘The Lawless Frontier’, The Atlantic Monthly,
September 2000)."
This has set the state of Pakistan on a course of irreversible
dissolution. Here is the crux of the problem in Kaplan’s words: "Osama bin
Laden, and the fighting in Kashmir obscure the core issue of South Asia:
the institutional meltdown of Pakistan…" And this is due to the
"accumulation of disorder and irrationality" that is yet to be understood.
And the jihad in Kashmir is a consequence of this fear of a crumbling
state — in the hope of providing a unifying theme to unite forces of the
frontier that are implacably hostile to the Punjabi ruling establishment.
“Punjab-centric” Priorities shattered
Pakistan
Pakistan’s western frontiers commence from the Gwadur Bay on the
Iran-Pakistan border on the Arabian Sea.The frontier runs initially
northwards towards Saindak, than briefly takes an eastern delineation,
till short of Quetta. It then swings in a north-easterly direction towards
Chitral and Gilgit (Northern Areas). Beginning from the South, Baluchistan
shares borders with Iran and Afghanistan; the NWFP shares borders with
Afghanistan; and Gilgit shares borders with Afghanistan and China. Chitral
and Gilgit provide the Southern base of the Wakhan Corridor.
Historically, neither Baluchistan nor NWFP opted for Pakistan, when it
emerged as a separate state in 1947. Use of military force by Pakistan in
the former and last minute political machinations by the British Governor
in the latter, led to their emergence as the western peripheral regions of
Pakistan. Gilgit and its surrounding regions were annexed for Pakistan by
the British officers of Gilgit Scouts, a frontier militia.
As a result of the above these three regions have remained in active
turbulence since 1947. Today, Baluchistan freedom struggle is in a fifth
stage of armed rebellion. In NWFP, the Waziristan Region in which are
located the sanctuaries of the Al Qaeda and Taliban, is in a
“semi-independent state” with Pakistan Army’s entry prevented by armed
resistance. In the general area of Gilgit and its surroundings, the
Balwaristan freedom movement is active. In NWFP there has been a running
demand for an independent state of Greater Pakhtunistan.
These important geo-strategic regions of Pakistan’s western frontier have
remained grossly under-developed. The major reason being the
“Punjab-centric” priorities of successive Pakistani Governments, a
condescending disdain for the fiercely independent tribes which inhabit
these regions and Pakistan getting away with all this, because these
regions had a strategic utility for United States military needs in the
region; and hence a permissive American attitude to Pakistan’s
high-handedness towards these regions.
OPTIONS FOR PUNJABIS
Further the same expert suggests Punjabis to rejoin India and give away
the frontier province to be safe and secure . "The only way for Punjab to
survive is to let the frontier be frontier and rejoin India— its natural
home. But is the Punjabi ruling elite capable of such vision? As one
Pakistani (Punjabi) journalist told Kaplan, "We have never defined
ourselves in our own right — only in relation to India. That is our
tragedy." This attitude represents a historic truth: Punjab is India or it
is happy hunting ground for the frontier tribes. If the Punjabis do not
cure themselves of their hatred, it may soon lead to an even greater
tragedy — of Afghanistan consuming Pakistan itself. " "Punjabis
should see for themselves that Pakistan is a fantasy that died the day
Bangladesh broke away. They should also recognize that the Punjabis never
asked for Pakistan; the people who planted that poison seed remained in
India. And the same people — of the Deoband School of Lucknow — planted
also the poison seed that grew to be Taliban."
The choice for the Punjabis of Pakistan is clear. Forces of history and
geography are against them. They can return to their natural home in India
as the proud citizens of a great power or continue their sordid existence
as a client state that can be hired by a patron whenever a dirty job needs
to be done. But even this is precarious and short-lived existence. For all
its bombast, Pakistan — its Punjabi core at least — is today little more
than a buffer state between India and the violent frontier. Once they
become part of India, they will have a great power to defend them against
the
hordes. One hopes they recognize the inexorability of the logic: it is
India or oblivion, there is no middle ground.
SUMMARY
On the whole after six years, Rober Kaplan and Rajaram proved to be
absolutely correct in their judgements about Pakistan . It is for Baloch
nationalists to invigorate their spirt and fight Punjabi looters and see
to that our resources are secured for our future generation. Lesson
learned from past freedom struggle is freedom fight has two dimensions
,one diplomatic and another Military ,world citizens see and listen to it
when they converge . In the past we lacked diplomatic muscle power , now
we have , so let's use it to the hilt and beat the shit out of Punjabis .
http://www.balochunity.org/
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