Daily Times

China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), often dubbed a game-changer for Pakistan, has brought $64 billion ventures, including connectivity, energy, and infrastructure projects in Pakistan. It not only offers great opportunities for the long-term economic prosperity of China and Pakistan, but is also expected to afford both a tremendous geo-strategic boost. In fact, CPEC is the flagship project of the ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, which will connect Beijing to markets in Asia, Europe and beyond.

The CPEC has tremendous potential to rapidly transform regional dynamics in terms of trade, development and politics. Nevertheless, all this is unfolding against the backdrop of looming security threats as hostile agencies like India’s RAW are said to be actively trying to sabotage the project. The initiative will also be helpful in tackling the menace of terrorism from the region, which is a major risk for the security and stability of the region.

Through the economic uplift of Pakistan under CPEC, there is a probability of stability in Afghanistan as well, because China would easily access and invest in Afghanistan through the improved infrastructure of Pakistan.

As far as our eastern neighbour is concerned, it fervently opposes CPEC for the simple reason that it doesn’t want to see Pakistan become an economically strong and viable nation. In short, New Delhi fears that the corridor will become a fate-changer for Pakistan, thereby recasting the country as a powerful player in the region. Prime Minister Narenda Modi has already publicly vowed to mount a global campaign to isolate Pakistan internationally.

Pakistan has found that the hostile agencies are working to disrupt CPEC by creating unrest in Balochistan. The resource-rich province of Pakistan has always remained in limelight. Particularly after CPEC and development of port at Gwadar, its worth has increased manifold. The history suggests that, unfortunately, this province was made victim of political turmoil and separatist movement because of domestic and foreign propaganda. The West and its media particularly have never understood the security dynamics of Pakistan. For them, Pakistan is a country, which breeds extremism.

Time and again foreign media is found active in propagating against Pakistan with their agenda to destabilize a country fighting extremism successfully. Regrettably, rebels have always sought foreign help and used foreign assistance to achieve their objectives of maligning Pakistan.

Propaganda against Balochistan is not new. In the past, unrest often hit the province, but with the launch of CPEC in Balochistan, which will turn the province into a booming region, many non-state actors are active with their evil plans. Anti-CPEC forces are out to damage the repute of CPEC and make the Chinese government feel that their move to invest billions of dollars is a totally flop idea since Pakistani government does not have the ability to maintain its security in the areas from where the CPEC route passes.

Fortunately, Beijing understands these constraints. Thus it has been working closely with Pakistan towards providing foolproof security to its personnel across Pakistan.

Special Chinese security cells have been established in the Special Branch of Punjab Police. Here, both on-site and residential security arrangements are assessed. The need of the hour is to formulate a comprehensive strategy to keep the CPEC investment safe. And this must focus on the four Ps of security: Physical security; protective intelligence; people-to-people contact, and press and media power.

It must be noted here that greater social interaction is essential to fostering mutual understanding in terms of culture and aspirations. Naturally, the media can play a positive role when it comes to deflecting the deliberately orchestrated negative propaganda aimed at undermining the Sino-Pak bilateral relationship.

Published in Daily Times, September 6^th 2018.