Zarvan
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by Sardar Rizvi [Terminal X Desk] - The construction of Gwadar port in Pakistan did not commence until 2002, when it was handed over to the Port Authority of Singapore.
During the same year, the US played a key role in (mis)handling the development of Gwadar port to Port Authority of Singapore (PAS) during the Pervez Musharraf era, which resulted in the PAS' failure to make Gwadar port operational. It also caused loss of millions of dollars in losses both for the project and the economy of Pakistan.
However, in February 2013, the Gwadar port was handed over to China during Asif Ali Zardari's because the PAS had utterly failed in doing something worthwhile with it; that too, on time.
Gwadar is strategically located on the western end of Balochistan coast, opposite to the Gulf of Oman which is an important route for oil tankers bound for Japan and Western countries. The route through Gwadar to Central Asia is the most economical, with a distance of only 1400 kilometres. Since the outflow of goods from western China and Central Asia will reach Gwadar and pass through this overland trade route, Pakistan could earn millions of dollars a year in terms of port and cargo handling charges and also as freight charges for the import of cargoes and export of material goods.
The Gwadar port is important not only for Pakistan, but also for China, the Central Asian Republics (CARs) and the entire region as a whole. The port provides China with a powerful strategic foothold in the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean also, something which India and the US perceive as threats to their regional interests. It will also place the Pakistan Navy in a very strong position and will help to further strengthen its capabilities. The port will be a corridor for the billions worth of trade to and from its docks. It is expected to generate at least two million jobs for the deprived people of Balochistan.
Of the planned Chinese investment in Gwadar port, Balochistan has a share of 38 percent: for infrastructure development, creating jobs for the people of Balochistan and putting an end to elements which exploit the current jobs deficit among youth to promote anti-state activities.
After Gwadar port was handed over to China and huge investment was injected subsequently, Iran also unveiled its own plans for setting up the world's largest oil refinery there, with a production capacity of 400,000 barrels per day at the cost of $8 billion. It also expressed interest in establishing power plants at the port. However, the continued American pressure against the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline has stalled the refinery project. This oil refinery project, if initiated and set on track, could not only have met Pakistan's oil needs but could also have provided surplus for exports to China.
Presently, China gets 50 percent of its oil from the Middle East. It makes for a 10,000 kilometre long route for China, from Dubai to Shanghai for oil refinery and then Urumqi. Whereas, if an oil refinery is established at Gwadar, it will provide it with the shortest oil transport route for from Dubai to Gwadar and then Urumqi, thus making a mere 3500 kilometre route for transport to China. The logistical benefits China will receive are many.
Gwadar will also cut down the port congestion in the Arabian Sea and Strait of Hormuz. At present, ships have to wait for days to get a berth. Once completed, the Gwadar port will rank among the world's largest deep-sea ports.
So far, work for the port has been slow because of the poor infrastructure and ongoing insurgency in Balochistan. The Government of Pakistan should do more to crush the insurgency once and for all. The provincial government should invest more in law-enforcement agencies to finish the terrorism in Balochistan and invest more in building infrastructure connecting Gwadar with the region immediately; this should be carried out on emergency basis to revive and boost Pakistan's economy.
There are more than two dozen terrorist groups operating in Balochistan, from which the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), Baloch Republican Army (BRA) and the sectarian Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) are the most active.
The BLA was founded in 1999. It has been declared a terrorist organization by the Pakistan and the UK; the former listed BLA as a terrorist organization in April 2006, after their attacks on security personnel, civilians and journalists. On 17 July 2006, the government of the UK listed BLA as a "proscribed group" based on the Terrorism Act 2000. The group's actions have been described as "terrorism" by the US State Department as well, and despite continuous appeals by the Government of Pakistan, the US has not yet declared the BLA as a terrorist organization.
Another terrorist group active in Balochistan province is the BRA. It is controlled by Brahumdagh Bugti, grandson of the slain Akbar Bugti who lives in self-exile in Geneva, Switzerland. The BRA came into existence after the death of Akbar Khan Bugti in 2006. His death is a controversy in itself. He died in a bomb blast in his well-furnished cave in the Bugti Tribal Area. Baloch separatists claim that his death was due to a Pakistan Army operation. Whereas some senior officials deny this charge and claim that it was a suicide planned by Akbar Bugti in case of being caught by the armed forced while he was hiding there. A few senior army officials were also martyred in that blast, including senior Special Services Group (SSG) officers.
Other affiliates of BLA include the Balochistan Liberation United Front (BLUF), a smaller group but more hardliner. The BRA's strong presence and operations occur mostly in remote areas such as Dera Bugti, Naseerabad and Jaffarabad. The separatist parties and organizations have also restricted the hoisting of the Pakistani flag and playing of national anthems in areas where they have a strong presence.
The BLA, BRA, BLUF and all other affiliated organizations are closely tied with each other and work effortlessly together, someway or the other, on the very same agenda: separation from the state of Pakistan. Some of these organizations have also been found to have close, mutually-beneficial ties with the Pakistani Taliban (TTP). Target killings are on the rise in the province in which Punjabis and Shias (particularly Hazaras) are the main victims of ethnic and sectarian terrorism. Gas pipelines, security personnel and other government infrastructures are also targeted to further dent Pakistan's image of stability internationally and portray it as a country full of chaos.
Baloch separatists generally show a very stubborn attitude towards prospects of reconciliation and negotiations with the Government of Pakistan; some tribal chiefs have even demanded complete control over the natural resources of Balochistan, withdrawal of the armed forces of Pakistan and release of their prisoners caught in terrorist activities. They also demand a high level of provincial autonomy, one which borders on "self-rule" and a written apology by the Government of Pakistan for their alleged wrongdoings.
Provincial autonomy is acceptable, according to the country's constitution of 1973, however, all other demands are simply unacceptable for the Government of Pakistan (and rightly so). Former President Asif Ali Zardari had already apologized to the Baloch people on behalf of the Government of Pakistan for not giving them their due share of attention and welfare. Despite his apology, there was no soft response or reasonable outcome by the separatists, thus clearly indicating that are not serious about peace and stability.
In actuality, the insurgency and chaos in Balochistan clearly seems to be a big part of the international proxy wars going on in the mineral-rich province to prevent the establishment of Gwadar port. The BLA and other separatist organizations have been found by intelligence agencies to be funded in all or some parts, directly or indirectly by the UAE, US, India, Israel and Afghanistan. Pakistan has been giving proofs of Research and Analysis Wing's (R&AW's) involvement in Balochistan to India since 2006. In fact, then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had been shown evidence in 2009 by former Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani at the Sharm El Sheikh summit about the extensive involvement of Indian intelligence agencies in fanning Baloch separatism and acts of terrorism.
According to media reports and WikiLeaks, former ISI chief Lt Gen (retd) Ahmed Shuja Pasha, while briefing Pakistani parliamentarians, had claimed that India and the UAE were funding and arming the Baloch separatist organizations.
Baloch leaders have often admitted the involvement of foreign agencies in Balochistan. Brahumdagh Bugti once admitted receiving assistance from India and Afghanistan to defend the so-called 'nationalist cause' of Balochistan. Akhter Mengal has also admitted the involvement of foreign elements in Balochistan.
Baloch insurgents have often claimed that they have been funded by the UAE. It is very obvious that Gwadar port has the potential to undermine the UAE's commercial interests by taking trans-shipment business away from the port of Dubai because of its significant strategic location just in the mouth of Strait of Hormuz, which happens to be the busiest passageway for oil tankers in the world. Also, Gwadar connects CARs with the Arabian Sea as the cheapest and shortest land route.
Pakistan's paramilitary Frontier Corps (FC) recently claimed that the Afghan spy agency National Directorate of Security (NDS) was behind terrorism in Balochistan after they conducted a successful operation on leads from intelligence agencies and seized a large cache of weapons and ammunition; these were being transported on a truck from some areas of the Khyber Pakhtun Khwa (KPK) province. These weapons were going to be used for a series of terrorist activities in Balochistan. The investigation furthermore revealed that the NDS was not alone in all these activities, rather it had the assistance of various other foreign agencies from behind-the-scenes.
There are tensions between Islamabad and Tehran regarding the developments in Balochistan. Tehran accuses Islamabad of providing support to Jundollah, a Sunni terrorist group. Both countries accuse each other of interfering in each other's internal matters and both states have difficulty in facing the Balochistan issue (Iran is also troubled by separatist elements in its Sistan-Balouchestan province).
Gwadar is also a big threat for the developing Chahbahar port of Iran which is merely 72 kilometres away from the Gwadar port, where India has also invested heavily in developing infrastructure to counter Gwadar and create their alternate land route and corridor to and from CARs' natural resources and businesses. Thought factually-speaking, Gwadar port is a much bigger project than Chahbahar and once fully developed will become the world's largest deep sea-port.
There is also a baseless propaganda by domestic and foreign media about the number of missing persons allegedly kidnapped by Pakistani security agencies and armed forces. There are people in the missing persons list who were found involved in killings and robberies and who later got 'generously bailed' from the courts; they were disappeared later. Some missing people in the list from Balochistan were also kidnapped by the BLA and some had even joined the BLA of their own accord. There have also been reports since long that many Baloch people have been smuggled into Afghanistan for guerrilla training.
Pakistan is fighting its biggest battle yet for survival in the region, with a broken economy and multiple enemies. It is expected to emerge as victorious in the near future, hopefully, and set its place as a powerful economical hub over the next 20 years or so. As soon as Gwadar port's construction is completed and regular operations are initiated, Pakistan will emerge on the world map as a major economy in the region.
The writer is a young internee analyst at Terminal X who is interested in Pakistan's national affairs and regional geopolitics. He is based in Kahror Pakka, district Lodhran, Pakistan and can be reached at sardar.rizvi@terminalx.org
Read more: Commentary: Gwadar and the battle for Pakistan's survival | Terminal X
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