One of the bloodiest attacks took place in Pakistan’s Balochistan province on August 26, in which more than 70 people, including Pakistan Army soldiers, were killed allegedly by separatist group Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA). The date was significant for Balochistan as it was the 18th death anniversary of Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Bugti, who was killed by the Pakistan Army in 2006.
The Majeed Brigade, a suicide squad of the BLA, carried out coordinated attacks in various parts of Balochistan. The attacks blew up infrastructure such as railway tracks and bridges and resulted in the death of migrant labourers from Punjab.
The Baloch insurgency in Pakistan stems from both historical and contemporary resentments, which have implications for stability in India and the wider region. Balochistan has a long history of political unrest, economic oppression, anti-Punjabi sentiment, enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. These issues have reignited the fight for Baloch nationalism. For the past two decades, the mineral-rich province has experienced a low-level insurgency against Pakistan’s central government, accompanied by brutal reprisals.
Pakistan has described the recent attacks as “a nefarious plot backed by external rivals to undermine its development ties with Beijing”.
The BLA is believed to be Balochistan’s largest armed group, with thousands of members. It works closely with the Baloch Liberation Front (BLF), another major separatist militant group advocating Baloch self-determination. Both groups have been labelled “terrorist organisations” by Pakistan.
1999 coup
Many Baloch believe they were forced to join Pakistan in 1948. The princely state of Kalat, now part of Balochistan, enjoyed independence for a while before being ‘forced’ to merge with Pakistan. Apart from initial resistance, there were uprisings in 1958 and 1977 demanding independence or greater autonomy.
Pervez Musharraf’s military coup in 1999 further alienated the Baloch from Pakistan. Mistrust of the dominance of Punjabis in the Pakistani military and bureaucracy, as well as the lack of Baloch representation, has been a persistent issue. In one of Musharraf’s counterterrorism operations, Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Bugti was assassinated in 2006. Pakistan has not made significant efforts to integrate the region or address the local issues of its inhabitants.
“The Pakistani government has alienated the Baloch since the country’s founding. This alienation has only gotten worse over the past two decades, as Pakistan has abandoned any meaningful reflection and has subjected Baloch activists to enforced disappearances, torture, and murder,” says Malik Siraj Akbar, a Washington DC-based political analyst.
What is the situation today?
Balochistan is Pakistan’s largest province by area, but it is one of its poorest regions. Years of poverty, neglect and abuse by the central government have fueled public anger, which separatists have exploited. Revenue from Balochistan’s rich natural resources has been used to develop other parts of Pakistan, including Punjab and Sindh, which are more prosperous. Balochistan contributes only 4% to Pakistan’s economy.
The province also lags behind in social development indices, with the highest infant and maternal mortality rates, the highest poverty rate, and the lowest literacy rate in Pakistan.
There is no platform for dissent, as thousands of Baloch are being forcibly disappeared. Political parties in Balochistan, which previously formed most of the provincial governments, lost power in controversial elections. Later, Islamabad supported puppet leaders, which further worsened the situation.
“Pakistan may appear to be a democratic country, but the real power lies with its military and intelligence agencies, which are largely blamed for the violence in Balochistan,” says Akbar. “Unless the military stops its illegal operations and is held accountable, any confidence-building measures and dialogue with the Baloch are unlikely,” he says.
In addition to using brutal force and repression, the Pakistani establishment has also failed to engage with civil rights movements in Balochistan. Resentment is so great that in the current insurgency, the Baloch nationalist movement has received support from women, children and families of missing persons, with some even joining suicide bombers.
Baloch separatists are also opposing the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which passes through Balochistan and is seen as an example of exploitation. They have targeted Chinese workers as part of their resistance. Balochistan is a key location in China’s multi-billion dollar CPEC, which is part of President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). In January, insurgents attacked government offices in Gwadar, a major hub of Chinese investment in energy and infrastructure. The BLA also targeted Pakistan’s largest naval air force base.
The current insurgency is fueled by the construction of Gwadar, a Chinese-financed project announced in 2001 that aims to transform the small village into a Dubai-like port city. The Pakistani government has excluded the Baloch from the development process, hiring Chinese engineers and non-Baloch Pakistani workers, fueling xenophobia and violence. The Taliban’s takeover of neighboring Afghanistan has also increased the capabilities of armed groups in the region, including Baloch separatists.
Pakistan should stop blaming others
Pakistan has accused India of providing arms, training and financial support to insurgent groups in Balochistan. India has denied these allegations and urged Pakistan to investigate its own support for terrorism. In 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s comments highlighting Pakistan’s atrocities and repression of the Baloch people sparked controversy in Islamabad.
India is closely monitoring the situation in Balochistan and has expressed concern over the increasing attacks in both Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan since the Taliban returned to Kabul. Pakistan should abandon its policy of rewarding those who attack Baloch nationalists and stop promoting conspiracy theories that India, Iran and Afghanistan are behind all the unrest in Balochistan.
“Pakistan has mastered the art of shifting responsibility for problems of its own making. Unable to address the two-decade-long insurgency in Balochistan despite using the same brutal tactics it used in East Pakistan in 1971, Pakistan has intermittently blamed India for its troubles,” says Tilak Devashar, a member of India’s National Security Advisory Board. “However, it has failed to produce any evidence to substantiate its claims. As a result, its claims are not taken seriously by the international community,” says Devashar.
Pakistan must show political will to resolve the Balochistan issue by engaging with civil rights groups, involving the Baloch in the development process, and alleviating their poverty and suffering. Meanwhile, India is closely monitoring the situation.
(Bharti Mishra Nath is an associate editor at NDTV)
Disclaimer: These are the personal views of the author