Peaceful Balochistan: Need of the Day

By       Aasef Chauhdry

Dr Mannan Baloch, a senior leader of the banned Baloch Liberation Front (BLF), and four other suspected militants were killed in a gun battle with security forces in Mastung on 30 January 2016. Balochistan Home Minister Sarfaraz Ahmed Bugti, while addressing a press conference at the Chief Minister Secretariat Quetta the next very day. The others present at the occasion were

the Inspector General of Balochistan Police, Ahsan Mehboob, DIG Frontier Corps Briga­dier Tahir and a spokesman for the Balochistan government, Anwarul Haq Kakar. He said Mannan headed the Baloch National Movement (BNM), an organisation supporting militants. According to him Mannan headed the Baloch National Movement (BNM), an organisation supporting militants. During the search operation conducted by the security forces in Killi Datu area of Mastung, an exchange of fire took place between the security personnel and militants hiding in a house and that’s where Mannan along with his four comrades was killed. After the clash security forces seized arms and ammunition from the house where the five men were hiding.

As it was quite expected that on his death the Western media and the foreign agencies started propaganda about killing of innocent and peaceful political worker; Mannan Baloch, whereas the minister very categorically told the media that Mannan and four other men were allegedly involved in subversive activities, including attacks on law enforcement agencies.

Mannan Baloch was the secretary general of the Baloch National Movement (BNM) and number 2 of Baloch Liberation Front (BLF). Being employed in Balochistan health department he was not only an intrepid political campaigner whose party could successfully hold shutter down strikes in Khuzdar to propagate the separatist theme but was also very instrumental in influencing the educated youth taking refuge of humanitarian aspects in fueling the insurgent agenda.

On the directions of his handlers Mannan was a staunch critic of the CPEC. His effort was to propagate that ethnic Baloch people view the project as a colonizing endeavor by the military and the Chinese to usurp the Baloch land and resources.  His efforts were directed to create a perception that the Baloch leaders who oppose these construction projects in Balochistan because of the fear that the Baloch will not be the primary recipient of the investment are actually fighting for the Baloch people rights. The Baloch , who make only 5% of Pakistan’s total population, will be converted into a minority on their own land with the influx of ‘outsiders’ on the port city.

Mr. Bugti alleged that some foreign agencies, including Indian secret agency RAW and Afghans, were stoking the unrest in Balochistan. However, the country’s security forces were determined to confront foreign agents and their supporters in Balochistan. So was in case of Mannan, who was a militant commander and who had appeared armed in numerous videos and photographs. In videos he had accept the responsibility for many attacks involving killing of pro government civilians and policemen. As a matter of fact the political side of Mannan had never been a cause of his fame but these militant activities. During earthquake of September 2013 Mannan was actively involved in targeting the law enforcement agencies operation for relief activities in Awaran District.

Mannan was financed, assisted and propagated as a helping hand in connection with IDPs of military operations by an INGO Action Aid Pakistan. Being employee of health department he shared sensitive information regarding the IDPs to the NGO especially on the medical needs of women and children of the conflict to be proliferated for vested designs.  He is alleged to remain part of the medical practitioners involved in the illegal sale of human organs and exploited the IDPs in the camps where Doctors had taken their kidneys out. The children of IDPs were terrorized not to divulge more details.

He informed the media that subversive activities in the province were parts of attempts to sabotage the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. However, he added, security forces of the country would foil all such moves.

He informed that in recent operations conducted in the port city of Gwadar, a large number of people who were allegedly involved in subversive activities had been taken into custody. How serious the security forces are about peace in the province is evident through the forces efforts in this regard. The security forces had conducted 239 intelligence-based operations in Balochistan over the past two months in which 22 militants were killed and 14 others injured.