As China and Pakistan get ready to inaugurate an international airport in Gwadar, the seaport town is experiencing a different kind of excitement. On 28 July, thousands of Baloch gathered in Gwadar for Rajee Muchi, a Baloch national gathering, to protest for their rights. They claim their town of Gwadar is being fenced off to make it inaccessible to the local population. Their agenda also included drawing attention toward years of State terror, which has resulted in the disappearance of Baloch individuals, and a cry for their right over local resources.
State authorities were sceptical of the Balochistan Yakjehti Committee’s (BYC) demand to hold a peaceful gathering in Gwadar. The provincial government continued to deny them permission and suggested alternative venues in cities like Turbat. The government did not want the protest to be held in Gwadar because of its suspicion of the gathering turning violent. Given the government’s eagerness to placate China’s security concerns in the area, its hesitation was obvious. While the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Agreement seems largely stalled, China has a dominant presence in Gwadar, which has led Islamabad to suspect that the protest might be used as a tool by international players to damage China-Pakistan bilateral relations and their joint interests in the province.
According to Mahrang Baloch, a prominent human rights activist who called for Rajee Muchi and is leading the campaign against extra-judicial killings and forced disappearances in Balochistan, the Commissioner in Quetta informed her that the Chinese didn’t want the gathering to take place in Gwadar. She claims that Chinese influence extends indirectly through the Balochistan government and its officials. However, other sources I spoke with were of the view that due to its investment and stakes in Balochistan, China even offered to help the Pakistan government physically eliminate Baloch insurgency and political movement. This offer was not entertained, likely due to its long-term political repercussions and because Islamabad wants to demonstrate an upper hand over the situation.
Not surprisingly, violence broke out at the Rajee Muchi. The government accused the protestors of killing a Frontier Corps (FC) personnel and injuring another 16 security personnel. The BYC, on the other hand, claims that innocent protestors were fired upon. As both sides have their own version, it is almost impossible to get a true picture. Needless to say, such violence and chaos seemed inevitable as it was grounded on high levels of suspicion and anxiety among the local Baloch population.
Also read: Pakistan has laid a trap for itself in Gwadar — by letting conspiracy theories dictate policy
Fight for home, heritage
The BYC’s logic for holding the protest in Gwadar can be explained as a natural political pushback. The port city, which was once home to thousands of Baloch fishermen, is now being sealed off to keep ordinary Baloch out or make their access difficult. Sources I spoke with said that fishing has become difficult for local fishermen, who now need fishing permits from the navy. Life, in any case, is difficult due to a shortage of clean drinking water and other facilities. While Gwadar is a strategic spot for the Pakistani State, for the ordinary Baloch, it is part of their heritage that is now being denied to them.
The recent encounter between security forces and protestors is likely to result in more abductions, thus, deepening a problem that is fast becoming unmanageable for the State. Baloch disappearances are a major issue that can no longer be taken lightly, partly because it is getting noticed internationally but mainly because it has emerged into a powerful local voice. Women in Balochistan have given a political voice and face to the anxiety of thousands who have lost their loved ones and are desperate to find them. The State finds it much more difficult to counter this political movement than the insurgency. While the insurgency itself is a big problem for the security forces, it can be politically countered based on the State’s right to protect itself against internal security threats. The authorities are unable to silence the political voice with more people protesting in other towns of Balochistan against the repression in Gwadar.
The movement for the disappeared is a potent political strategy that shows how a political voice is stronger than insurgency. It exposes an authoritarian system more, especially if it refuses to engage in a meaningful dialogue. It is far more difficult to justify clamping down voices and peaceful protest. When Mahrang Baloch and other young women marched to Islamabad in May this year, advocating for the rights of those whose family members were forcibly abducted, the caretaker government found it difficult to silence them. It was even harder for the world to ignore the maltreatment of the protestors. The BYC holds a clear advantage in the battle of narratives against Pakistan’s security establishment. Beating the state politically and through building a powerful narrative is something that the younger generation of activists has learnt from other movements such as the Pushtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) but also its own past mistakes.
Logically, the issue of disappearances could be solved politically. However, this is easier said than done especially when the establishment and its political partners believe that cracking down on dissent and abductions are the only recipe. The current ruling regime in Pakistan is deficient in the art of political language and believes that force is the only tool to be used.
Balochistan is even more problematic because the popular narrative is incomprehensible to the ruling regime. It is unable to comprehend that the younger generation is exhausted of political machinations and the blatant mismanagement of their province over decades. The recent elections in Balochistan give little hope, as the results were heavily manipulated to bring in a government that has no sympathy among the people.
The hurt and anger among the ordinary Baloch date back to the years of the British colonial era to over 75 years of post-colonial rule, where Balochistan’s significance has been largely reduced to the exploitation of its mineral resources without giving much in return. The assassination of Nawab Akbar Bugti in 2006, a tribal leader who was willing to talk to the state, emphasised the reality that the state was not appreciative of any dialogue with the Baloch. In the words of an activist, “The problem is that Balochistan was never taken seriously.” A solution can only come about with political normalcy and stability returning to Pakistan, which itself seems like an uphill task.
Ayesha Siddiqa is Senior Fellow at the Department of War Studies at King’s College, London. She is the author of Military Inc. She tweets @iamthedrifter. Views are personal.
(Edited by Ratan Priya)