Baluchistan: The Story of Another Pakistan Military Genocide

Raghavendra · Post by **Raghavendra** » 12 Aug 2010 13:12

In the shadow of bayonets, Balochistan observes its independence day separately from Pakistan http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-6316 ... m-Pakistan

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 14 Aug 2010 21:49

16 Killed in 2 Baloch Rebel Attacks

Rony · Post by **Rony** » 14 Aug 2010 22:30

Raghavendra wrote:In the shadow of bayonets, Balochistan observes its independence day separately from Pakistan http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-6316 ... m-Pakistan

I liked the quote at the end of the video. Hope its get true one day !

"Pakistani faugio ka kabristan
Baluchistan Baluchistan"

arun · Post by **arun** » 17 Aug 2010 07:28

More oppression by the Pakistani State targeting the Baloch minority. Flood waters diverted to submerge Balochistan:

Jamali demands Suo moto notice over diversion of flood water towards Balochistan

krisna · Post by **krisna** » 02 Sep 2010 19:00

Balochistan: Amnesty official - Violations Belong Alongside Those In Iraq, Afghanistan And Gaza

Human rights violations by Pakistan remain some of the world’s worst and are the ‘least reported’ says official.

n addition to Gaza, there are many occupied territories, including Balochistan which is under Pakistani occupation, Iraq and Afghanistan which are under U.S. occupation, and Goering was asked if there is a formula to say which place is the worst in terms of human rights violations.

Though the issues of Iraq, Afghanistan and Gaza are internationally well-known, the struggle in Balochistan is the least reported in the Western world.

Pakistan is allegedly engaged in worst forms of human rights violations including extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests and detentions, alleged use of chemical weapons, torture, massive human displacements, firing on peaceful demonstrations and enforced disappearances in Texas-sized Balochistan. Their occupied homeland was also used for nuclear tests, Baloch nationalists bitterly complain.

However, Islamabad views westerners in Balochistan with grave suspicions and is presently opposing the setting up of consulates of the United States and United Kingdom in capital Quetta as a “security risk.”

Curt Goering, who is senior deputy executive director of Amnesty International USA (AIUSA), and currently works at the organization’s national section headquarters in New York City, said this at an Iftar gathering organized by the Amnesty International at its Washington DC headquarters Tuesday.

krisna · Post by **krisna** » 02 Sep 2010 19:27

Flood-hit ~~Pakistanis~~ Balochis, Afghans may cross to Iran-UNHCR

Dismal conditions in flood-hit areas in southwest Pakistan(baluchistan) could force thousands of Pakistanis and Afghan refugees to cross the border into Iran, the U.N. refugee agency warned on Thursday.

Baluchistan province was the first to be hit by the country's worst floods,(wasn't it north west pakistan ) initially displaced some 200,000 people. But the region has been largely ignored after more menacing waters raged in other parts of Pakistan.
Separatist nationalist militants have waged a low-scale insurgency for decades in Baluchistan, Pakistan's biggest but poorest province.

The number of displaced people there is close to one million, and lack of assistance could make them head to neighbouring Iran, said Mengesha Kebede, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) representative in Pakistan.
"This has not happened yet ... but definitely everybody is aware of significant movement that is taking place," Kebede said, adding contingency plans there were underway.

Starting over a month ago, floods have killed at least 1,600 people, affected more than 18 million and inflicted nearly $43 billion worth of damage to infrastructure and agriculture, the mainstay of the economy.

madrassa maths on display.

Hundreds of people have been killed in assassinations and bomb attacks in Baluchistan in recent years but there has been a relative lull in the thinly populated province of mountains and deserts in recent months.
Kebede called for scaled up relief activity in Baluchistan to prevent a major humanitarian disaster there.
"I feel it would be tragic if because of the lack of assistance, Pakistanis, Afghan refugees were to cross the border, seeking help and assistance in Iran," he said. "We need to ensure that Baluchistan is not forgotten."

hope something is done for balochis and help them form a separate nation.

Dilbu · Post by **Dilbu** » 08 Sep 2010 12:40

x-post from TSP thread
Malik says govt will use brute force

Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Tuesday warned that the government would take tougher action and use brute force if necessary to control the escalating violence and unrest in Balochistan.

“The Baloch Liberation Army and Baloch Student Organisation have replaced political parties and so the law enforcement agencies need to take an action against them,” he added.
Malik said that the prime minister has asked him to revive peace in Balochistan, just as “peace has been revived in Karachi.” He said that Lashkar-i-Jhangvi is behind the attacks that have taken place in Quetta and Lahore. “We have to break up the triangle of Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan and al Qaeda. Peace cannot be restored otherwise,” he said.

Dilbu · Post by **Dilbu** » 09 Sep 2010 15:34

Balochistan says ‘No!’

QUETTA: A key directive by Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Wednesday that all police powers will be transferred for three months to the Frontier Corps (FC) in Balochistan was rejected by the provincial government in a drastic turn of events.

However, a spokesman of the Balochistan government later rejected all of Malik’s decisions announced at a news conference at the CM Secretariat on Wednesday.
An official handout categorically stated that the announcements made at the news conference by Rehman Malik were his personal views and the government of Balochistan had nothing to do with them.

“I have recorded my protest with Indian Foreign Minister Chidambaram and Afghan President Ahmad Karzai and also with America, about their alleged involvement in Balochistan,” he said, adding that he has informed the Afghan government that Brahamdagh Bugti is in Kabul and commanding insurgency in Balochistan. “I told the Americans that you people are watching the militants through satellite but we are watching them with our naked eyes,” he said.

rkirankr · Post by **rkirankr** » 09 Sep 2010 16:16

^^ What satellites can do Rehman Malik can do with naked eyes. That is why Pakroachestan has not spent money on useless space technology unlike their kufr neighbour.
Take that Yindoo Yindia we are better than you.
Sorry for OT

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 09 Sep 2010 21:42

Pardon if posted before.

Government bans five Baloch groups: Daily Times

The banned groups are: the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), the Baloch Republican Army (BRA), the Baloch Liberation United Front (BLUF), the Baloch Liberation Front (BLF) and the Baloch Mussalah Diffah Tanzim (BMDT). “They (banned groups) will not be allowed to undertake any activity, their offices will be closed and action will be taken against their office bearers,” Malik said, adding that their bank accounts had also been seized.

He said that any group whose name included words such as liberation, army and lashkar would be banned.

Why is Baloch Mussalah Diffah Tanzim banned? No liberation, army and lashkar in its name!!!

arun · Post by **arun** » 21 Sep 2010 07:15

Dr. Jumma Khan Marri, President of the Baloch Unity Organisation, on the Islamic Republic of Pakistan’s neglect of fellow Muslim flood victims who have the misfortune of belonging to the Baloch ethnic minority:

The shocking neglect of Baloch flood victims

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 23 Sep 2010 17:51

Published on Sept. 23, 2010
No difference between Zardari, Musharraf govts, says Brahamdagh: Daily Times

Exiled Baloch leader Brahamdagh Bugti on Wednesday said that although the tactics of the incumbent government led by President Asif Ali Zardari are different from those adopted by former president Pervez Musharraf, the aim of both governments remains the same. Speaking to Daily Times, the exiled leader said that the current government is worse for Balochistan than the previous one. “During the previous government, the government conducted operation against Balochs at a specific area, but now it has spread out to all of Balochistan. Now our political leaders, intellectuals and activists are targeted too. Let’s not talk about Zardari too much because he has no authority. The politicians don’t have any control,” he said.

Kukreja · Post by **Kukreja** » 23 Sep 2010 21:32

^theres a longer version of the interview referenced in the link you posted

http://tinyurl.com/26pm8he

Q. What do you think of the current government’s initiative with regards to Balochistan since President Zardari is himself a Baloch.

BB: The tactics are different from Musharraf’s era, but the aim is absolutely the same. The current government is worse than the previous government for Balochistan. During the previous government, the government conducted operation against Balochs at a specific area, but now it has spread out to all of Balochistan. Now our political leaders, intellectuals and activists are targeted too. Let’s not talk about Zardari too much because he has no authority. The politicians don’t have any control. The Punjabi lobby doesn’t want to solve our problems because there is a vested interest. Balochistan feeds Punjab and unless there is a change in the Punjabi psyche, nothing will change.

Q. Recently, some of the Baloch militant organisations had been banned by Rehman Malik and the Interior Ministry.

BB: The Baloch Republican Army (BRA) or Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), they are fighting for the indigenous right of Balochis fighting inside our land. I along with the whole of the Baloch people fully support them and anyone who wants to fight for the rights of our land. I am just the political face who doesn’t have any authority over these organisations. I am again a political face. Let me also ask why the BLA, BRA is considered a problem? They are not fighting in Punjab, but in Balochistan, on their own lands, defending their own rights. They are not aggressors or terrorists... they are fighting for their rights. Well, Pakistan could ban us, suppress us and frankly, no one cares if they ban us... we have been banned, jailed, suppressed for the last sixty three years.

Q. What is the way forward?

BB: That would only be that there has to be an absolute withdrawal of the Pakistan Army and all security forces from our land to at least give a sense of security to the people of Balochistan and that some form of independence and respect given to us. There also has to be some sort of acceptance by the state for carrying out genocide of Balochs in Balochistan and an apology to the Baloch people. Let me be also clear that the Baloch want freedom and nothing more.

Q. When you say Baloch, do you represent all of Balochistan. There’s a question as to what kind of support you enjoy. There had been claims that you don’t represent all of the Baloch people?

BB: Claims by who? You see there have been many people on agencies’ payroll and with the ban on the media to report the reality in Balochistan, what do you expect? As for the Baloch, I think they have a right to self-determination. We have been free people and we will be free people. You go and ask any Baloch what he or she wants and he will tell you what’s on his or her mind. They are fed up of the federation. Go and see what students of Balochistan University say or go to any school or colleges and ask Baloch students and you will know.

Q. There had been claims that you have an Indian passport and that you are supported by India and certain other agencies?

BB: You know that has been the biggest turn-off. The Pakistanis think that everyone is supported by someone else. While the Baloch would welcome any international intervention to stop human rights abuses, but the concept of India supporting us is just pathetic. What else could I say? We are fighting for Balochistan, not India or anyone else. When will people understand this?

praksam · Post by **praksam** » 24 Sep 2010 16:22

Balochistan needs wikileaks: Mehran Baluch tells UN body

http://baluchsarmachar.wordpress.com/20 ... s-un-body/

krisna · Post by **krisna** » 24 Sep 2010 20:04

Balocistan Needs More Aid

Pakistan's record floods continue to take a massive toll on rural communities in eastern Balochistan, a remote region already reeling from armed violence.

As floodwaters slowly recede, an estimated 600,000 displaced flood victims are preparing to return to what is left of their homes. "The floods that have devastated lives and livelihoods throughout Pakistan have hit the people in Balochistan especially hard," said Adrian Zimmermann, head of the ICRC sub-delegation in Quetta.

as long as the needs of balochis are not met there will be continued piling up of resentment and more violence to occur.
gwadar and its associated developments might be in trouble unless TSPA with chinese help murders all balochis.

Kukreja · Post by **Kukreja** » 26 Sep 2010 11:43

The Baloch Agony in Pakistan
http://thebalochhal.com/2010/09/the-bal ... -pakistan/

Over the past 10 years, the Pakistan’s powerful establishment has launched a systematic and widespread campaign to subjugate the ethnic Baloch population. Thousands of cases of killings, torture, enforced disappearance and forced displacement have been documented by Amnesty International, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), Human Rights Watch, Asian Human Rights Commission and International Crisis Group.
An official policy of impunity has empowered soldiers, agents and officials to torture, enforce disappearance, kill, and extract Balochistan’s natural wealth illegally. There are more than 1,100 documented cases of enforced disappearances, including women and children, who are still missing, while upwards of 8,000 were forcibly disappeared at some point during the last five years in the Baloch intifada against Islamabad’s oppressive policies. The extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances bordering on genocide that the Baloch are faced with demand urgent international action.

krisna · Post by **krisna** » 14 Oct 2010 21:14

Allah Nazar baloch separatist leader speaks
All Baloch groups are working on the same plan and it’s to drive out the enemy (Pakistan) from Balochistan.
It’s propaganda by our enemy – the Punjabis.
Dialogue is impossible till the Pakistan removes its army from Balochistan’s territory. If anybody tries to talk with us in the Punjabi tradition, Baloch people will not tolerate it."
The Balochistan issue is more serious than Kashmir, Afghanistan and even Iraq.

Clearly mentioning that Pakjabi is the enemy.

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 15 Oct 2010 17:28

Published on Oct 15, 2010
By Anthony Kuhn
Modern-Day 'Great Game' Plays Out In Baluchistan: NPR

Almost since the birth of Pakistan, its government has been battling a low-level insurgency in the southwest region of Baluchistan.

The region accounts for nearly half of Pakistan's territory. Its strategic position and natural resources are attracting the involvement of foreign powers, which are making the insurgency worse.

"To me, the 19th-century 'Great Game' has started in this region again," he observes, "but in different forms and with different players."

The most conspicuous player in Baluchistan right now is China. A government-owned firm is mining gold and copper at Saindak. But Baluchistan National Party Secretary-General Jehanzeb Baluch says the Baluch have been shut out of the profits.

"Every nation has a right to pursue its interest," he concedes. "But the means should be fair. They should make sure that their interests do not collide with the local people's interest."

Baluch nationalists say the Chinese employ few Baluchis in the mines, and the precious metals are taken back to China to be refined.

"Baluchis feel helpless that they are being sandwiched in all these powers and this great game," Jehanzeb Baluch continues. "The Chinese are interested in getting to the Straits of Hormuz, the energy corridor. The main gate of this corridor is Gwadar, Baluchistan."

The Chinese have helped build and run the port of Gwadar, which is located on the Arabian Sea, just 180 nautical miles from the entrance to the Persian Gulf.

A Counterweight To India

China's aim is to bring Middle Eastern oil into Gwadar, through Pakistan and into the adjoining Chinese territory of Xinjiang. This could be done by trucking the oil up the Karakorum highway, which connects the two countries, or by a yet-to-be-constructed rail link. This would bypass India and a strategic choke point at the Straits of Malacca.

University of Karachi international relations expert Farhan Siddiqui explains that China's strategy is to "establish good ties with Pakistan so that Pakistan can be used as a counterweight against India, in the same sense that the Americans are using, or utilizing, India as a counterweight to China."

Raghavendra · Post by **Raghavendra** » 26 Oct 2010 23:02

Amnesty seeks probe into Pak Baluchistan violence http://www.zeenews.com/news663956.html

Airavat · Post by **Airavat** » 30 Oct 2010 09:13

beginning of harmony

Lt. Gen Javed Zia after the passing-out parade of Baloch recruits in the EMC center. He expressed his great pride over Major Kamran Mengal of Balochistan, who had recently passed out from the British military Academy of Sandhurst, and announced that Baloch youth had been given special privileges regarding their quota in Pakistan Army, in such aspects as education and physical standards.

Citing other such facilities as inducting women recruits, and officers’ ranks, while an IISB (Inter Services Selection Board) office in Quetta had also been Established for the purpose. He announced that choice had also been given to Baloch commissioned youth for being deployed at places of their choice.

BLA strikes in Kohlu

At least four pole-erecting workers have been killed while seven other severely injured in an attack carried out by Baluch Liberation Army (BLA) a banned militant wing in Kohlu area of Balochistan on Monday, BLA spokesperson, Azad Baluch claimed. Azad Baluch while talking from satellite phone from some unidentified place accepted the responsibility of the attack and said that (BLA) would continue to kill the people who found involve in giving asylum to state people. He further said that (BLA) would continue such attacks till independence.

Airavat · Post by **Airavat** » 05 Nov 2010 07:41

Seven OGDCL employees kidnapped:

Seven employees of Oil and Gas Development Corporation Limited (OGDCL) were abducted by unidentified men near Sohbatpur in Jaffarabad district. A vehicle carrying the seven employees was on its way from Jacobabad to Och gas field in Sui when unidentified armed men intercepted it and took the employees away, including the driver, and left the vehicle near Ghulam Rasool Bridge in Sohbatpur, not far from the border of Dera Bugti district.

Talking to The Express Tribune District Police Officer Jaffarabad Javed Gharsheen said that the footprints of single person were found at the crime scene and it seemed as though the actual incident took place in other area. “The officials and employees of OGDCL and other companies are usually escorted by Frontier Corps or police while traveling this route. However, the company did not even inform the FC or the Police,” he added.

krisna · Post by **krisna** » 13 Nov 2010 08:27

An analysis of baluchistan

On 4th August 1947, a tripartite agreement was signed between Pakistan, the British and Balochistan called The Standstill Agreement in which the sovereign status of Balochistan was accepted. The Khan declared Balochistan independent on 12th August 1947, two days before the independence of Pakistan. The Khan affirmed his intention to build Balochistan as a prosperous sovereign country in which Baloch could retain their identity and live in accordance with their traditions and establish relations through treaties of friendship with neighboring states of Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan as well as with India and outside world.

The Assembly held sessions in September and December 1947 and most favoured alliance and not accession with Pakistan. On December 14th 1947 Ghaus Baksh Bizenjo made a landmark speech and it is still considered as a valid argument for independence of Balochistan.

On 26th March 1948 Pakistan army was ordered to move into Baloch coastal region of Pasni, Jiwani, and Turbat. This was the first act of aggression prior to the march on Capital Kalat by Pakistani military detachment on 1st April 1948. The Khan capitulated on March 27th after the Army moved in to coastal region and it was announced in Karachi that Khan of Kalat has agreed to merge his State with Pakistan. Under the constitution of Kalat, the Khan was not authorized to take such a basic decision. The Balochistan assembly had already rejected any suggestion of forfeiting the independence of Balochistan on any pretext. The sovereign Baloch State after British withdrawal from India lasted only 227 days.

The 1973-77 conflict resulted in enormous sufferings of Baloch population in the province; forcing thousands of Marris and other Baloch to seek shelter in Afghanistan. It was during this period that the steel of Baloch mettle was really tempered and for the first time they felt confident that they could take on the might of the State and survive to fight another day. This struggle blazed a path for the future generations and without it probably the flame of Baloch struggle may have been extinguished forever.

Further highlighting the neglect he says, “Balochistan remains almost voiceless, having no say in the decision- making process at the centre. Over 50 per cent its population subsists below the poverty line.

Moreover in the table “THE TEN HIGHEST DEPRIVED DISTRICTS OF PAKISTAN” nine were from Balochistan and it emerges as the most deprived province with over 91 percent of population residing in high deprived districts during 2005. It shows that in 1998 the percentage of population living in a high degree of deprivation was 25 per cent in Punjab, 23 per cent in urban Sindh, 49 per cent in rural Sindh, 51 per cent in the NWFP, and 88 per cent in Balochistan. In 2005 the figures were, Punjab 28, Sindh 35, NWFP 35 and Balochistan 91 showing that Balochistan is in a consistent nose-dive.

A horrific picture emerges if one surveys the maternal mortality rate which is 650 per 100,000 births in Balochistan while it is 281in Karachi. This is double the national average. Infant mortality in Balochistan is 158 deaths per 1,000 live births even Democratic Republic of Congo's average of 126 is lower while Pakistan's national average of 70 is less than half.

Similarly, Balochistan accounted for 7 out of the 9 districts with the lowest full immunization rate, including the four districts with the worst record.

Only 20 per cent of its people have an access to safe drinking water compared to 86 per cent in the rest of Pakistan. Village electrification is only 25 per cent compared to 75 per cent in the rest of the country.

US interest

US has, unsuccessfully so far, been trying to open a Consulate in Quetta but it will get its way because Pakistan like a lady of easy virtue would like to show at least some resistance before it caves in. US fully understand the need to engage the Baloch nationalists and have made secret overtures though nothing substantial has emerged or can be expected to emerge in the near future. US have made no secret of its desire to play a part in Balochistan because it wouldn’t like to be left behind in this new great game. It fully realizes that nature abhors vacuum and if it doesn’t someone else will certainly take advantage and then it would be left in limbo. US is not a fool and it will not sit idle.

Russian interest

Which is one of the prime interests of US and EU to block IPI gas pipeline many analysts even raise finger at US that they support an insurgency in Iranian occupied Balochistan to create instability to prevent any gas pipelines to carry gas to south, and hence force Iran to sell her gas to EU countries that will weaken Russian who at present have almost monopoly on European gas markets, hence creating serious political and economical rift between two powerful neighbours Russia and Iran and at the same time bring the gas prices seriously down which benefits only EU and give severe economical blow to Russian and Iranian economies whose budget’s lion share comes from energy sources.

Chinese interest

They need Balochistan not only for her minerals wealth but want to use her coastal areas and ports for their geo-political and military needs, there for they want direct access to the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf and a friendly and easily purchase able government in Islamabad was to China’s advantage. China has helped build Gwadar port in Baluchistan for her imports most importantly its shortest transit routes to western China and can, in no time, send its forces from Zinjiang in Central Asia to Gwadar. And use Gwadar port as her military base to control Major economical hub and energy routes from both mid east and central Asia and to encircle and counter India militarily.

Indian interest

Obviously India has many interests as a major regional and hence forth future growing world power cannot ignore Balochistan as she is the door to the central Asia countries and apart from being major energy source is the gate way for central Asian and Iranian energy and trade corridor, India cannot ignore the Chinese factor and for sure would like to see an independent Balochistan who is either neutral or friendly to India, apart from this India will like to use Baloch factor as a balance in her turbulence relations with Pakistan in many fronts most notable factor is J&K, the Indian would like to see Baloch factor an arguments in their future negotiated settlement on Kashmir and they will try to give Pakistan tough time ahead on this, as already many times Indian media and politicians indirectly told Pakistan we will give you J&K you give up Sindh and Balochistan though nobody can take it for seriously but every joke has half truth in it.

Saudi and GCC

Saudis and other GCC keep an open eye on Balochistan first they treat Balochistan as region which is traditionally under their sphere of influence since historical times second they fear Iran’s domination of entire Balochistan if ever shaky Pakistan breaks apart, they will jump and support Baloch in order to prevent Balochistan falling under Tehran who is their uncompromising rival in the region for many reasons.

Afghan and central Asian countries:

afghans and central Asian states are land locked countries their direct and easy access to Indian ocean and ports is only through Balochistan, they would prefer to see small Balochistan an independent with whom it will be easy for them to deal then blackmailing Islamabad which herself depends on china and US for piece of bread, economically it’s in the interests of all regional countries support an independent Balochistan to use her ports and trade routes to reach for world markets.

Pak/Iran interests

These two countries who directly and brutally occupy Balochistan will never be willing to let Balochistan go in their free will since their survival depends on Balochistan

Dr Jumma Khan Marri is president of the Baloch Unity Organisation who, while living in exile in Moscow, highlights his people's struggle for self-determination through the blog http://www.balochunity.org.

svinayak · Post by **svinayak** » 13 Nov 2010 12:49

^^^
Good comments here

British hegemony never ended with the empire. It has left its mark upon all the worlds most notorious trouble spots to this day. The "Great Game" continues in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan, with the help of a brilliant propaganda machine and America as its most willing assistant.

I don't think that I can keep up with every rogue or persecuted province in Pakistan. Now Baluchistan is making a stink about wanting autonomy from neglectful and corrupt Pakistani government. How this country can keep from imploding is beyond me.

Raghavendra · Post by **Raghavendra** » 21 Nov 2010 18:39

Rocket attacks continue in Kohlu by BLA http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.as ... 010_pg7_26

QUETTA: Rocket attacks continued in Kohlu district for the second consecutive day on Saturday and a rocket also hit a house in Quetta damaging it. However, no causality was reported in the attacks.

According police, a rocket fired from unspecified location exploded with a big bang on the roof of a house in Baloch Colony situated on Brewery Road.

The roof was partially damaged. Police and the bomb disposal squad rushed to the spot and cordoned off the area soon after the blast. Eight rockets were fired on Chamalang and Kohlu near security check posts.

A rocket exploded in Bala Dakha area and another near a check post in Chamalang area. However, no loss of life was reported in the attack.

Balochistan shuts to mark Balaach Marri’s death http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.as ... 2010_pg7_1

* Protesters block all major highways preventing movement of all types of vehicles

* Transporters join strike

By Mohammad Zafar

QUETTA: A complete shutter-down and wheel-jam strike was observed in most parts of Balochistan on Saturday to mark the third death anniversary of Nawabzada Balaach Marri.

Traffic between Quetta and rest of the country remained suspended for the day. The RCD Highway connecting Quetta with Zahidan was also closed for traffic. Protesters put up barricades on all the major highways preventing the movement of all types of vehicle. Transporters also joined the strike call from the Baloch nationalists by not plying their passenger buses. Intercity traffic remained suspended.

The strike call was supported by the Baloch nationalist parties, including Balochistan National Party (BNP-M), Baloch Republican Party (BRP), Baloch National Movement (BNM), Baloch Students Organisation-Azad (BSO-Azad) and others. Complete shutter-down strike was observed in Quetta. All the shopping and trading centers situated in Liaquat Bazaar, Jinnah Road, Mezan Chowk, Alamdar Road, Prince Road, Saryab Road, Brewery Road, Hazar Ganji, Joint Road, Shahbaz Town, Jinnah Town, Abdul Sattar Road and other areas remained closed for the day.

Most of the streets wore a deserted look and traffic was thin. People in all the major townships and population centres of the province preferred to stay at home. A curfew-like situation was witnessed in those parts of Quetta that are strongholds of Baloch nationalists. No political worker was seen on the roads implementing the strike call through intimidation or use of force. The businessmen, traders and shopkeepers voluntarily observed the strike.

Stringent security measures were adopted to avert any untoward incident in the city. Heavy contingents of police, Frontier Corps and other law enforcement agencies were deployed at different places. They patrolled the more sensitive areas. Police vehicles, mounted with guns, were seen patrolling the provincial metropolis. Provincial Police Officer Malik Iqbal inspected the security measures in Quetta.

The strike was also observed in Mastung, Kalat, Khuzdar, Lasbela, Gwadar, Kech, Mand, Pasni, Sibi, Naseerabad, Jaffarabad, Kohlu, Dera Bugti, Awaran, Panjgur and other Baloch dominant districts of province. The activists of BRP and BSO staged protest demonstrations in Sibi and some other places. They accused government functionaries of killing innocent Baloch students and political opponents in their custody.

Marri was killed near Sarlat, a no-man’s land between Pakistan and Afghanistan, during a search operation in 2007. Government officials claimed that he was killed in an airstrike by NATO forces inside the Afghan territory. The Afghan government had never confirmed this claim. Marri was elected member of the Balochistan Assembly in 2002 from Kohlu district as an independent candidate during the Musharraf regime. He had never attended the assembly session. Unconfirmed reports say that he had also led the banned Baloch Liberation Army.

arun · Post by **arun** » 25 Nov 2010 21:46

The Asian Human Rights Commission puts out a statement condemning the Government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan for acts of extrajudicial murder targeting the Baloch minority carried out by State Actors like the Frontier Corps and Security Agencies :

PAKISTAN: Extrajudicial killings rapidly increase in Balochistan

Meanwhile the Chief Minister of Balochistan, Sardar Aslam Raisani , confirms to the BBC the involvement of security agencies of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in the killings of the minority Baloch :

Top Balochistan minister alleges extrajudicial killings

arun · Post by **arun** » 27 Nov 2010 11:46

X posted from the Oppression of Minorities in Pakistan thread.

International press freedom watchdog Reporters Sans Frontières suspects the kidnap, torture and murder of minority Baloch journalist Abdul Hameed Hayatan as an act of extrajudicial execution committed by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

Note the cynical message of “Eid present for the Baloch people.” pinned to the journalists body. Is an “Islamic Republic” which claims to be the worlds first “ideological Muslim State” permitted to indulge in practices that lower the sanctity of a Muslim holy day ? :

Baloch journalist kidnapped, tortured and murdered

Airavat · Post by **Airavat** » 07 Dec 2010 04:04

Pakistani Frontier Corps massacres Baloch opposition family:

FC troops stormed the house of its central leader Ayub Gichki and killed his two sons and three relatives in cold blood. Gichki is a maternal uncle of BNP-M chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal. The bodies were shifted to Turbat Hospital.

Dozens of BNP-M workers staged a demonstration outside the Quetta Press Club to condemn “target killing” of its activists in Turbat. They claimed the attack was a part of a preplanned campaign to eliminate BNP leaders and workers. Protesters said it was Zulfikar Ali Bhutto who had ordered a military operation in Balochistan in 1973. And now ethnic cleansing of the Baloch people was again being carried out during the Pakistan Peoples Party’s government.

arun · Post by **arun** » 12 Dec 2010 14:13

Oppression of the Baloch ethnic minority continues. Security forces of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan kidnap Baloch student leader:

BSO-Azad leader whisked away by security agencies

arun · Post by **arun** » 15 Dec 2010 22:06

X Posted from the ISI News & Discussion thread.

Death squad sponsored by the notorious intelligence organisation of the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), suspected in the killing journalist Mohammad Khan Sasoli in Khuzdar, Baluchistan :

I.S.I.'s death squad believed to be involved in Khuzdar reporter killing

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 22 Dec 2010 02:05

Facebook: Gali Gali men shor hai, Pakistan madar...d hai

Airavat · Post by **Airavat** » 25 Dec 2010 10:34

Arrest of Shahzain Bugti, grandson of late Nawab Akbar Bugti

Talking to Express News, US embassy spokesman Alberto Rodrix said that Shahzain had contacted an official in the American embassy. Rodrix said that Bugti had discussed his arrest with the official. The JWP called for a shutter-down strike in Balochistan today to protest the the arrest of Shahzain Bugti.

Bugti was arrested by Frontier Corps (FC) officials on Wednesday at the Balili Checkpost near Chaman. A spokesman for Capital City Police Quetta has said the weapons which were recovered included RPG-7, Anti-Tank and Antiaircraft guns. Bugti said that if he and his companions were really carrying so many weapons the police would not have been able to stop them.

Accusing secret agencies’ involvement in the episode, he said that this was a conspiracy to prevent the long march on to Dera Bugti. He said that his grandfather, later Nawab Akbar Bugti, had also been killed under a similar pre-planned conspiracy. “I have (already) spent eight months in jail and not scared of being jailed,” he said.

krisna · Post by **krisna** » 31 Dec 2010 03:24

China has designs on Balochistan

Pakistani province Balochistan is rich in minerals, oil and natural gas and its location gives it great strategic importance. Pakistan's close ally and neighbour, China is aware of this fact. In 2002, to gain a strategic foothold in the Persian Gulf region, China contributed over 300 million USD for the construction of Gwadar deep-sea port and road-link in Balochistan. The project was completed at a total cost of 1.16 billion USD. During the recent visit of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao Pakistan sought increased Chinese involvement in the operation of a strategic port run by Singapore's state-owned PSA International LTD. Pakistan has also given access to Chinese companies to explore mines and minerals in Balochistan. Chinese firms have already poured in at least 15 billion USD in various projects that include an oil refinery, copper and zinc mines and ports.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZGOM2r5 ... r_embedded#!

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 01 Jan 2011 13:38

"An Intractable Situation", by Ali K Chishti in TFT this week.

Balochistan constitutes roughly 40 to 43 percent of the land mass with only a 5 to 7 percent share in the population. It has the richest mineral and natural resources in the country, yet, is the most impoverished area of Pakistan with the lowest literacy, health and infrastructure. The province also happens to house one of the longest popular insurgent moments in history dating back more than, five decades.

From 1973 to 1978 roughly 60,000 Baloch tribesmen and militia faced-off against the Pakistani army. Iran, eager to quell any similar uprising in its bordering area, contributed its air-force and personnel to the Pakistani efforts and bombarded Baloch villages into submission. {Pakistan should have been the only country to have asked another country to bomb its own people !} Bhutto’s ouster, via Zia’s military coup, forced a calm onto the situation as Zia launched into his One-Pakistan-through-Islam program. The Afghanistan war, the Iranian revolution and Zia’s policies made Balochistan an island of outsider activity. US and UN aid for Afghani refugees poured into the metropolitan areas. During the 1990s, the Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif governments did little for Balochistan and Baloch nationalist parties floundered in exile.

After General Musharraf landed into power, he tried to foster new a relationship with Balochistan. Over the last decade, the Kachhi Canal, Mirani Dam, Gwadar Port, Makran
Coastal Highway, Saindak Copper Project and Quetta Water Supply Scheme were announced by Islamabad. More than a 300 percent increase was made in the national budget for development programmes in Balochistan. Yet, all these things have failed to materialize and with the killing of Nawab Akbar Bhugtti and later of Marri, all hope for reconciliation is lost.

The present government in Balochistan lacks legitimacy as all Baloch nationalist parties’ boycotted 2008 elections in protest against an unannounced operation in Balochistan. According to author of bestselling The Way of the World, Ron Suskind, the current chief minister Nawab Aslam Raisani has links with intelligence agencies. The Baloch see him as an agent of the Pakistani establishment.

The Baloch Nationalist Movement (BNM) and the Baloch National Party (BNP) were once considered ‘moderates’ with leaders like Dr Abdul Hayee Baloch and Hasil Bizenjo. In recent years, Baloch nationalism in what is described as the “Balochistan belt” has silently but inevitably changed its direction from political activism to militant movement or active insurgency. The middle class that once denounced militancy has recently taken a very tough stance against the state of Pakistan and had turned hawkish. Now anyone who speaks of reconciliation with Islamabad or even provincial autonomy is seen as an “agent” of the intelligence bureaus.

Historically, the Pakistani establishment via its various intelligence agencies had played various Baloch tribes against each other. The intelligence officials stationed in Balochistan continue this policy of dividing the Baloch; however, its effectiveness has diminished. Across the province the younger generation has become completely radicalized and to them Balochistan is already an independent state. A visit to Balochistan University, Quetta, and Balochistan Engineering University, Khuzdar, confirms that the demand of “full autonomy” is widespread. Even the middle class Baloch will not settle on anything less than, “complete independence”.

Due to the highhanded techniques employed by Frontier Corps, which run a shadow government in Balochistan, strong militant nationalism has gained ground. The locus of militancy is in ‘Baloch’ districts such as Dera Bugti, Kohlu and Wadh (areas controlled by Mengals, Bugtis and Marris). However, anti-state sentiments are no longer confined to a specific area of Balochistan anymore.

Several analysts claim that the Pakistan military is in control, is ‘hyper active’, micro managing, and super sensitive about Balochistan. It regularly detains young Balochis from Lyari, Karachi, and allegedly indulges in human rights’ abuses and terror tactics. My research indicates that at least since 2009 for every non-Baloch killed in Balochistan, a Baloch is killed the next day. This pattern seems to indicate that the security establishment has decided to apply the ‘Swat Model’ to Balochistan by grossly misjudging the two insurgencies. Another terror device has been to throw Balochi activists from helicopters. Only recently two more mutilated bodies have been found in Mustang and Turbat.

Demographic changes manufactured by Islamabad by encouraging Pashtuns to settle in Balochistan have created tensions between the Baloch and Pashtun communities within the province. The Frontier Corps has become a colonial force viewed by locals as responsible for killing Balochis. Incidentally, FC is largely composed of Pashtuns (and some Punjabis). It is creating additional friction within Balochistan where the Baloch for the first time feels a sense of animosity against the Pashtuns who had been living in Balochistan for generations. An intelligence insider who had previously been in-charge of Balochistan confirms the fact that Mahmood Khan Achakzai, a veteran Pashtun leader in Balochistan, holds a key to the future of Balochistan, but for the Baloch he has decided to ‘look the other way’.

Actions by the tribals and the military response in Balochistan can be understood within the context of the acrimonious center-province relationship in Pakistan. The rights of provinces, minorities, and individuals are negotiated in a deeply contested manner where the military power brokers have the final word. Given the lack of political space, aggrieved parties are finding no alternative except violent struggle. Foreign intervention has also been reported but the evidence for that is sketchy and unclear. However, Balochistan is a largely a domestic issue and requires a political solution. Pakistani state has created similar situations in urban Sindh, Waziristan in the past. It is time that the civil and military leadership took this issue seriously and devise a political agreement with the people of Balochistan to save the federation.

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 01 Jan 2011 13:49

"Violence in Balochistan" - TFT's excerpts from the Human Rights Watch report, 2010

Balochistan is both economically and strategically important: not only does the province border Iran and Afghanistan, it hosts a particular ethnic mix of residents, and is allegedly home to the so-called Quetta Shura of the Taliban in the provincial capital Quetta. The situation is further complicated by the large number of foreign states with an economic or political stake in the mineral-rich province, including the United States, China, Iran, India, and the United Arab Emirates.

The province has historically had a tense relationship with Pakistan’s government, in large part due to issues of provincial autonomy, control of mineral resources and exploration, and a consequent sense of deprivation. Under President Gen Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan’s military ruler from 1999 until 2008, the situation deteriorated markedly. Two assassination attempts on Musharraf in 2005 and 2006 during visits to Balochistan resulted in a crackdown on Baloch nationalists by armed forces and Military Intelligence (MI), its lead intelligence agency in the province. These operations ultimately led to the killing in August 2006 of influential tribal chieftain Nawab Akbar Bugti and 35 of his close followers.

Since 2005, Pakistani human rights organizations have recorded numerous serious human rights violations by security forces, including extrajudicial executions, torture, enforced disappearances, forced displacement, and excessive use of force. According to the Geneva-based Internal Displacement Monitoring Center, violence in 2005 around Dera Bugti district alone displaced around 6,000 people and killed scores. The total number of people displaced from all districts remains unknown, with estimates ranging from tens to hundreds of thousands. After Musharraf’s ouster in 2008, Pakistan’s Interior Ministry estimated that 1,100 Baloch had “disappeared” during his rule. To date, the government has only uncovered the fate of a handful of these people.

Armed militant groups in Balochistan are responsible for targeted killings and destroying private property. In the past several years, they have increasingly targeted non-Baloch civilians and their businesses, as well as major gas installations and infrastructure. They have also struck police and security forces and military bases throughout the province.

Militancy in Balochistan has been fuelled by ethnic Baloch anger over the Pakistani government’s efforts to harness local mineral and fossil fuel resources, maintain large numbers of troops in the province, and construct the Gwadar deep-sea port at the mouth of the Persian Gulf with non-Baloch workers.

The Pakistani military charges that Baloch militants receive arms and financial support from India. While India consistently denies these allegations, Pakistani officials say that India’s role in stoking unrest in Balochistan is illustrated by the scale and sophistication of recent attacks on Pakistan interests, alleged confessions of captured militants, and past evidence of support by “foreign” powers for separatist elements.

In December 2009 Pakistan’s newly elected civilian government, in an effort to bring about political reconciliation in the province, passed the Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Balochistan package of constitutional, political, administrative, and economic reforms. It noted the province’s “sense of deprivation in the political and economic structures of the federation” and past failure to implement provisions of the 1973 Pakistan Constitution that sought to empower the provinces.

The package aims, among other things, to delegate a range of federal areas of authority to the Balochistan government, and requires federal authorities to obtain provincial government consent with respect to major projects. It seeks to redress the province’s socio-economic disparity compared to the rest of the country by increasing Baloch employment in the civil service, giving provincial and local government authorities a greater share of resource industry revenues, and compensating communities displaced by violence. It also calls for military cantonments under construction in the resource-rich Sui and Kohlu regions to be temporarily halted and for the military to be replaced there by the Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force that answers to the civilian Federal Ministry of the Interior. Under the package, the Balochistan chief minister is to have control over the Frontier Corps’ law and order operations. The package also calls for an investigation of missing persons, and for all persons detained without charge to be released.

As a result of the package, the Pakistan federal government in 2010 released Rs 12 billion to the Balochistan government in outstanding debts owed to it with respect to natural gas revenues and announced a Rs 152 billion budget for the province, double that of 2009. The package also establishes a judicial inquiry into the killing of Nawab Akbar Bugti and other Baloch political leaders.

Despite these attempted reforms, doubts persist within Baloch society about the Pakistan government’s intentions. Significant Baloch nationalist parties and leaders have rejected the package, claiming it does not adequately address core grievances or genuinely enable greater provincial autonomy. Many have continued to call for complete separation from Pakistan. However, Baloch nationalists are highly splintered and it is unclear how much influence Baloch political leaders now exert over militant groups.

Divisions among Baloch nationalists have exacerbated lawlessness and violence in the province. In 2010, militants escalated sectarian and ethnically motivated targeted killings, especially in Quetta. In addition, they have continued to target gas pipelines, railway lines and electricity networks, and government buildings, including schools.

Three distinct groups are responsible for violence against civilians in the province: militant Baloch nationalist groups seeking separation or autonomy for Balochistan that target Punjabis and other minorities; militant Sunni Muslim groups that attack members of the Shia community; and armed Islamist groups that have most recently attacked those who act contrary to their interpretation of Islam.

Militant nationalist groups such as the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and the Baloch Liberation United Front (BLUF) have claimed responsibility for most killings of non-Baloch civilians, including teachers and other education personnel. They attempt to justify these attacks as a nationalist Baloch response to grievances against the state, and retaliation against abuses that state security forces have committed against Baloch community members.

Amidst the violence, Balochistan’s long-term problems of governance and the stand-off between the Pakistani military and Baloch militants have deepened a general perception in the province of neglect, discrimination, and denial of rights. These are exacerbated by the continuing tribal system and its archaic social structures, the influence of the tribal chief on the justice system and police, and the consequent denial of citizens’ fundamental rights.

The poor and marginalized, particularly women, are adversely affected by traditional forms of dispute resolution and lack of access to other redress mechanisms. They lack assets and opportunities, have no social safety net, and are bound by practices that affect their welfare. There are frequent reports of both state law enforcement agencies and local power-brokers committing abuses against marginalized populations. Labor conditions are abysmal, and there is no single system of justice despite a uniform civil and criminal code. The widespread use of tribal jirgas (councils) and other informal forums of justice increase the difficulty of seeking redress and obtaining justice, devaluing its quality.

Finally, the violence has denuded the already thinly spread provision of public safety. Organized police services cover only a fraction of the province’s territory (about 4 percent of the land area), while the rest is covered by tribal recruits forming levies.

While the Pakistani military and Baloch militants readily exploit the misery of civilians for their own political purposes, they have failed to address these grievances or to accept responsibility for them.

anupmisra · Post by **anupmisra** » 01 Jan 2011 18:17

Balochistan is a complex issue unlike the freedom struggle of the paki Bengalis.

In my opinion, China's economic and strategic interests are and will remain the leading major factors that stand between the Balochis' goal for independence and their struggle being squashed (Iran's own sunni-political issue remains the other major factor). For the baloch to gain freedom from the pakjabis (and the pashtoons), they must carefully balance their aspirations between Iran and China without irritating either one of them. As long as the Chinese are fearful of the outcome from dismemberment and destabilization of pakistan (various reasons, economic being the biggest), they will continue to support pakistan (morals and ethics be damned). If they (the Baloch leadership) are able to convince the Chinese that their economic interests in Gwadar will be reasonably maintained (in addition to restrained access to the mineral rights), and if they are able to convince the Iranians that the struggle for the independent nation of Balochistan will be restricted on the paki side of the border (and will prove to be better neighbors than the pakis), then there is some hope for the nation of Balochistan to materialize in the near future. Otherwise, it will be a long and violent struggle.

Now, some of us may ask: But hey! what about the US? Will we allow pakistan to disintegrate? I dont think we have any long term interests here except the worry about the Chinese navy's access to the persian gulf, and the safety of paki nukes if pakistan were to balkanize. First of all, the Baloch must convince the US that their struggle is a truly secular one. Secondly, many US think-tanks have already prophesized the paki breakup in this decade and, in fact, expect it (and very likely have contingency plans for that eventuality). I am fairly convinced that the paki nukes are already under the US' oversight (the paki bluster not withstanding). The China factor, however, will remain the big irritant.

As far as the Indian interests are concerned, since there is no common border between India and Balchistan, the only major positive outcome for India is the further disintegration of pakistan and loss of its major source of energy. Unlike the formation of Bangladesh where millions of refugees streamed into India causing it economic hardships, in Balochistan none of that is likely to happen. India's support to the freedom struggle should continue to be restricted to moral, financial and diplomatic. India can become the arbitrator between the Baloch leadership (in pakistan) and the Iranian government, whereby the Baloch promise to restrict their independence movement to their (paki) side only. The chinese would be trickier to handle but if their future interests are guaranteed, they will likely work with the new nation of Balochistan (may even counsel pakis to back off). India obviously has no role in this arbitration. And there shouldn't be one.

Just my thoughts.

krisna · Post by **krisna** » 14 Jan 2011 08:00

Gedrosia of Past Times, Today’s Tyrannized Baluchistan

A vast surface in the east of Karmania (Central – Eastern Iran) and in the south of Arachosia (South Afghanistan) stretches from the straits of Ormuz to the Delta of Indus (the area of today’ Karachi); this is Gedrosia, the present day Baluchistan.

The overall surface of Baluchistan totals ca. 550000 km2 (as large as France), and there are about 13 million Baluchis in the world. The great majority lives in Pakistan (9.5 million people), and the capital of the Pakistani Baluchistan is Quetta. In the Iranian part of Baluchistan live ca. 2.5 million people, with Zahedan for capital. A small part of Baluchistan is included in the southern territory of Afghanistan.

Baluchistan reflects some of Asia’s bleakest pages of oppression and tyranny. For centuries the Baluchis were part of the Iranian Empire, at a time the concept of ‘nation’ did not exist in they way we use it today. With the division of the area between the colonial British and the nationalist monarchical regime of Iran, the Baluchis found their land divided by otherwise incomprehensible borders. A long story of humiliations, persecutions and cultural discriminations started; quite unfortunately, it has not ended yet.

SureshP · Post by **SureshP** » 18 Jan 2011 05:02

Bullet-riddled bodies of 3 political activists found in Balochistan

QUETTA: Bullet-riddled bodies of three political activists were found from Ormara, a coastal township and Khuzdar on Monday. They were identified as Naseer Kamalan, a seasoned poet and political activist, who was the local president of the Baloch National Movement (BMN), Pasni, Ahmed Dad, an activist of the Baloch Republican Party (BRP) and Nisar Ahmed Mengal, the younger brother of late Rasool Bakhsh Mengal whose body was found hanging from a tree with ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ written on his body. According to the Balochistan Levies in Pasni, some passers-by spotted two bodies near the Makran Coastal Highway and informed the Levies personnel. The bodies were brought to the Rural Health Centre for medical examination. The family members of the deceased said that the killers also shaved Ahmed Dad’s beard, and dyed Naseer Kamalan’s beard black so that they could not be easily identified. Naseer Kamalan was kidnapped from Karwat area near Gwadar and Pasni on November 5 from a passenger van while Ahmed Dad was kidnapped on October 12 near the Zero Point in Uthal in Lasbela district from a Gwadar-Karachi bound passenger coach, family members told reporters. They accused the security agencies of killing them during illegal detention. muhammad zafar

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.as ... 2011_pg1_9

VinodTK · Post by **VinodTK** » 23 Jan 2011 06:15

Balochistan’s prospects

But nuclear equations tend to deter war with India. Will the mere promise of political autonomy and economic development and representation in the organs of the civil-military bureaucracy persuade the insurgents to abandon armed struggle and accept rehabilitation in Quetta?

krisna · Post by **krisna** » 03 Feb 2011 23:43

Free Baluchistan-selig harrison

As the Islamist nightmare envelops Pakistan, the Obama administration ponders what the United States should do. But the bitter reality is that the United States is already doing too much in Pakistan. It is the American shadow everywhere, the Pakistani feeling of being smothered by the U.S. embrace, that gives the Islamists their principal rallying cry.

The endless procession of U.S. leaders paying goodwill visits to Islamabad, most recently Vice President Joe Biden, evokes sneers and ridicule in the Urdu-language press, accompanied by cartoons showing Pakistanis scratching fleas crawling over their bodies. (cartoonists required) The late special envoy to Pakistan and Afghanistan, Richard Holbrooke, liked free-swinging encounters with Pakistani journalists that left a trail of bitterness expressed in the Urdu media, but this did not deter Holbrooke and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton from return visits.

what should uncle do-

the United States should start by phasing out drone attacks in the Pashtun border areas with their massive civilian casualties

should end the $1 billion plus in annual subsidies to the armed forces that make them look like American puppets.

At the same time, less visible education and development aid provided by the Kerry-Lugar bill should be continued, together with the International Monetary Fund credits that keep the Pakistani state afloat, and access to U.S. markets for Pakistani textile exports should be increased.

the United States should recognize that Islamabad is afraid of stirring up Pashtun ethnic sentiment there that could break up the fragile multiethnic Pakistani federation.

Why does the United States keep pouring aid into Pakistan despite its active support for the Taliban in Afghanistan at the expense of U.S.-NATO forces and its inability or unwillingness to help the United States root out al-Qaeda from its mountain sanctuaries?

a tight U.S. embrace of the Pakistani military and intelligence elite is necessary to make sure that another nuclear-proliferation racket does not emerge like the one organized by nuclear czar A. Q. Khan.

But the larger danger to the United States is that the nuclear arsenal will fall into the hands of the Islamist sympathizers inside the nuclear establishment, or that the Islamists will completely take over the armed forces, branding current military leaders as U.S. stooges.

First, it should support anti-Islamist Sindhi leaders of the Sufi variant of Islam with their network of 124,000 shrines. Most important, it should aid the 6 million Baluch insurgents fighting for independence from Pakistan in the face of growing ISI repression. Pakistan has given China a base at Gwadar in the heart of Baluch territory. So an independent Baluchistan would serve U.S. strategic interests in addition to the immediate goal of countering Islamist forces.

Already drone attacks being scaled down by design or due to weather? Is uncle slowly changing tactics by not pushing for offensive at KH by TSPA.
TSP on handouts to maintain itself.
It will give a fillip to baluch resistance and others.

give peace a chance destroy tsp.

Airavat · Post by **Airavat** » 04 Feb 2011 04:34

Endangered Baluchistan Falcons gifted to Arab princes by Pakistan government