“Let me tell you, it is not a case of Baloch having killed Punjabis but terrorists having martyred Pakistanis” Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti did not mince words when he sat in front of cameramen in August and emphasised that the state would take all necessary measures to put an end to this “genocide.” However, no administration has ever performed the unimaginable with mere words.
As seven more innocent labourers were killed in their sleep in Panjgur over the weekend because their domicile branded them with a target on their back, what would he or the interior ministry (or even the country’s prime minister) offer in their defence? Had the state machinery been on “high alert,” on the heels of multiple attacks that had previously resulted in over 50 deaths in just one day, surely it could have done something or the other to prevent any further untoward incident.
They say misfortune comes in threes but there’s no telling when the ominous grim reaper would leave by the bedside of these innocent civilians. The situation has long crossed the point where the separatist movement saw the security forces as enemies.
Their robust networks and help from across borders means they can now operate with far greater freedom, increasingly desperate to pick a fight wherever they can. Attacks on security installations, Chinese nationals and projects and now, introducing the ethnic flavour in the insurgency, the message could not be any clearer: they alone would decide who is welcome and who is not. Of course, a befitting line of action from the state against those who spill blood for optics could not be stressed enough.
Collaborating with China, which has already shown a willingness to step into the field for the sake of preserving its own investments, could be considered to weave an intricate net of comprehensive strategies that seek to uplift local communities, and in turn, dismantle the business model of the likes of BLA.
There might not be a greater masterstroke than plans to foster a greater sense of unity across Pakistan – regardless of province, language or ethnicity. *