Daily Times

Chinese President Xi Jinping has concluded a two-day visit to Islamabad after signing accords worth $ 46 billion to establish the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) linking the two countries. Pakistan has been left with two options: either to grab this golden opportunity and usher in a new era of development or continue struggling with its problems. The Chinese President has conveyed his government’s appreciation to Pakistan for its role in deterring religious militancy in the western part of China. Due to the threat from extremist Muslim Uighurs, China has urged Islamabad to jointly address security challenges. Pakistan has also been a victim of such militancy in its tribal areas. The appreciation by the Chinese President seems a note of thanks for what Pakistan has done so far against extremists in its tribal areas bordering China and Afghanistan. While addressing parliament, Mr Xi stressed bilateral measures for strengthening ties between the two friendly states. He focused on formulating a common strategy for bringing peace and development. Undoubtedly, security and development are indivisible. The President has called for maintaining strategic cooperation on international issues. In order to allay the concerns of China, Pakistan has assured the former of taking robust security measures for the protection of Chinese workers. An announcement has been made by the government about the formation of a Special Security Division consisting of 10,000 troops to provide security to those Chinese engineers and workers who will render services in Pakistan.
Just like other major development projects, the CPEC has also been caught in the web of conspiracy theories even before its groundbreaking. Fingers are being raised at the road and rail network route that has allegedly been changed in favour of Punjab and Sindh while bypassing the less privileged provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. Although Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has tried to clarify these concerns in the media, yet such details should be discussed at a proper platform. The government should take parliament into confidence on the issue. The Chinese largesse is an epoch-making development and the government should not stay idle. Rather it should work hard on the CPEC while emulating the hardworking Chinese. It should ensure that all development works are implemented on time without leaving any chance for corruption at any level. A perception that increasing ties between China and Pakistan can pose a threat to regional stability, does not have grounds. Beijing and Islamabad have been enjoying close friendly relations for decades and that is why China wants to see Pakistan as a developed nation. It is a great achievement for the PML-N regime but it should act more sensibly now. It would have been better if along with the announcement of the security force, the government had announced measures to redress the grievances of the Baloch people and made them a stakeholder in the whole development process. *