XVI.

Ethnic Issues and National

Integration

 1947
Islamic state or collection of ethnic
groups
Centralized attitude

1971:
loss of biggest ethnic group
result of ethnic divide

 Post 1971
People hoping decentralization and
new constitutions
Bhutto negotiated with all political
parties future constitution of
Pakistan

 0n 21 April,1972 Bhutto promulgated

interim constitution
Finally 14-- 1973 th August
1973
Constitution Federal
But Bhutto not---

 Bhutto --Strong center

Before 1971 Muhajirs and Punjabi
elite
In Bhutto era Sindhis and Punjabi
elite dominated in the government

 We will learn in detail about all ethnic

groups one by one

Sindhi from Sindh

Sindh was the first province in
undivided India which supported
Pakistan
Sindhi is an ethnic group of Sindh

What is Sindhi Nationalism

Nationalism based on three pillars
Language
Sense of victimization
Socio-economic deprivation

After 1947
Nationalism ^ reinforced by Muhajirs
Lost their most important city Karachi in 1948
could not accept the dominance of
immigrants
Against Muhajir & Capital

1950s One Unit Scheme

One Unit
No status
No resources
Socio-economic deprivation

G.M.Syed moved more close to

Pashtun and Bengali nationalists
Who was G.M.Syed

Underrepresentation

Marginalization in Army and Civil bureaucracy

1947 2.2% in Army
1959 not a single Sindhi in top 47 army officer
1959 in the Civil Service of Pakistan
Sindhis represented 2.5%
Punjabi
48.9%
Muhajir
30.3%

Underrepresentedeverywhere Why?
Language and Muhajir

Ayub policies 1960s

Sindhi Language ---- Ayub replaced Sindhi with Urdu after 6 th
grade
Sindhi movement key in removing Ayub
Bhutto was behind the Sindhi movement in
1960s . . But not to get independence

1960s
2 leaders 2 different approaches
G.M.Syed --- separation on ethnic lines
Bhutto talked about social reforms, poor
people -- Sha Abdul Latif a Pakistani National poet
not Sindi. (Bhutto)

Bhutto 1970s
Arrested GM Syed in 1973
Implemented pro Sindhi policies in Sindh
to promote Sindhi ---made an act related
to Sindhi language
Teaching Promotion and use of Sindhi
Language Act in 1972

 Compulsory Sindhi 4 to 12 grades

Bhutto wanted Sindhi to become language of
courts, administration etc
Muhajirs protested in Karachi, Hyderabad and
Larkana --- whole Sindh
Language conflict ----- violence, riots and
even killings

 Bhutto changed his plans to make

Sindhi language of courts etc.
Act will be enforced after 12 years
Muhajir could learn

Quota system in Civil Service

recruitment
Since 1948 Quota system Introduced
regulation recruitments
In 1948, 2 % Quota for Muhajirs in civil
services even they were 1.5 % of population
In 1973 Muhajirs 30.1 % and and Sindhis
3.1 % in the general administration in the
central government

 Bhutto changed the Quota system to give more

representation to Sindhis
10 % merit seats
50 % Punjab
11.5% NWFP

11.4% Rural Sindh ---- (sindhi)

7.6 % Urban Sindh----(Muhajirs)
3.5% Baluchistan

 In 1983 Number of Sindis increased in

administration
and
Muhjairs
decreased
compared to 1973

the
as

Muhajirs and Sindhis were is 17.4% and 5.4%

respectively
Sindhi representation increased
And Muhajir decreased.. As compared to Past
Table important

 Nationalization of industries and

businesses
Specially penalized the Muhajir
business community of Karachi
In short Bhutto pro sindi policies
defuse the Sindhi nationalism

Zia 1977-1988
Sindhi nationalism rekindled
Muhajir General arrested Sindhi PM
Punjabi courts ---------- death..
Punjabi judges ----------rejected appeal
All this made him Sinhdi Shaeed
(Sindhi martyr)

 Zia terminated Sindhis from gov. jobs (by 1978, 1746

sindhis terminated from provincial setup )
Strong control over the provincial administration of Sindh
Prefer Punjabis over Sindhis
MRD was launched against Zia.. PPP was key party
300 killed during MRD

1988 PPP again

After Zia death
Daughter of Bhutto Benazir
Sindhi PM again
This renewed Sindhi allegiance to Pakistan
But in 1991 Sindh Tarraqi Pasand Party

was created .

Conclusion
Presence of weak institution produce
ethnic divide
Bhutto policies were
counterproductive for Pakistan
Sindhi language preference over
National language
increased the gap between the two
major ethnic groups in Sindh

 On the other side his pro Sindhi

policies denounced Sindh separatism
movements
He could not maintain the balance
between the ethnic groups within
Sindh and whole Pakistan
Mainly due to weaknesses and
deficiencies in the Government
Institution

Baluch in Baluchistan

 3% population
42% land
This contrast mainly cause problems
for them

Baloch Nationalism

Baloch Ethnic identity

Before 1947
1666 Kalat Capital Khan of Kalat

was ruler
British defeated Khan of Kalat in 1939
The region enjoyed autonomy

First Baloch uprising in 1948

After 1947
Nationalism crystalized
Khan of Kalat , refused to join Pakistan
Later signed Instrument Of Succession
in 1948
Agreement all subjects with Baluchistan
except 3
But agreement never implemented
This led to the first uprising in Balochistan

 Prince Abdul Karim ------ separartion

tried to convince Baloch sardars
But government convinced many of
them
continued to be the standard- bearer of
Baloch nationalism
Government policy of divide and rule
controlled the first insurgency in
Baluchistan

Baloch
2 main types, Balochi and Barhui
18 tribes
Traditionally

tribes:

Marri,

Bughti

and

Mengal .. Nationalistic & resist gov Policies

Baloch nationalist movement developed
in rxn to government policies

Second Baloch Uprising in

1950s
1950s: reasons
Underrepresentation in government
and army
One unit scheme
Exploitation of their natural resources
Baloch People Liberation Front
(BPLF) developed Marries main
players initiated other 2 supported

 Baloch

nationalist

movement

sparked

after the coercive measures of Ayub

Arrested insurgents, hanged them
Used force to suppress them
Centre policies--- instead of defusing
ethnic tensions, radicalized it

 Second insurgency was also crushed

by the policies of divide and rule and
coercive measures
But this resulted into detribalization
Middle class and youth (students)
became active

Third Baloch uprsing in

1960s
Under the aegis of Muhammad Marri
Also against policies of center
Also crushed by the army
Baloch Student Organization formed
in 1967

Fourth uprising in 1970s

Also called war of Balochistan

4 years 1973 to 1977
1972 provincial election
Baloch leader elevated to provincial
assemby with the help of NAP of Wali
Khan
Attaullah Mengal becam CM

 Announced to take two steps

I. replace civil administration with the
Sons of the Soil
II. formulate industrial policy and
developmental plans for their
province themselves
Bhutto dismissed his government in 1973
Reason CM was involved in separatist
activities

 Bhutto step.. Sparked a violent

insurrection against the government
A guerrilla movement started
But again tribal division and Baloch
Sardars opportunism weakened the
movement from the start

 Akbar Bhugti sided with Bhutto

Became Governor of Baloschistan
Tribal culture and history .. To
weak your opponent , develop
good relations with government
Militant groups
BRA- Baloch Republican Army--Bhugtis
BLA- Baloch Liberation Army ---Marris

 In 1970s Balochi militants(10,000) from

BPLF, BSO and BLA resisted army operation
Government sent 80,000 troops to crush the
insurgency
5300 Balochi killed and 3300 killed in army
The insurrection finally quashed in 1977

 In 1950s and 1960s insurrections

were for more provincial autonomy
now it was for Independence
All because of centralist policies of
the government

General Zia 1977-1988

Adopted carrot and
stick
policy to deal with Balochistan
and Baloch nationalists
Intractable and rigid with hardliners
Took
steps
for
economic
development
To appease tribal leaders released
prisoners
Granted amnesty to exiled

 Baloch exile
I. Attaullah Khan Mengal went London..
Formed Sindh Baloch Pashtun Front with
the help of Mumtaz Bhutto. Armed
struggle to get goal
II. Another exile was Khair Bux Marri went
to Afghanistan with his army BLA his
goal was to make Greater Balochistan
including Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistani
Balochi area

 Those remained in Pakistan had moderate

approch demanded autonomy not
independence
Like
Ghous
Buksh
Bazenjo
(former
Governor) founded a party called Pakistan
National Party (PNP)--- its demand was
autonomy and better administration as per
1973 constitution of Pakistan
PNP changed to BNP (Baloch National
Party) after the death of Bazenjo in 1989

 Overall Baloch nationalist movement

slowed down in 1980s
reasons:

Leaders outside
No support of middle class and students
Cultural homogeneity continued to decline
In 1981 Baloch 57% and Pashtuns 28%
Baloch moved other regions and abroad esp
Gulf
Population drain defuse national movement

 However diaspora maintained strong

ties with their homeland and proved
to be a useful resource in the
nationalists
revival
in
2000s
Musharraf regime

After death of Zia in 1988

Democracy would change the fate Baloch
National Alliance -- composed of JWP
(Jamhoori Watan Party)

of Bughti and BNM

(Baloch National

Movement)

After election Bugti became CM

Baloch polities remain prisoner of faction
fights

 BNA was short livedas its alliance

BNM divided into two factions
1. One led by Dr Hayee Baloch
2. Other led by Akhtar Mengal

BNM of Akhtar Mengal (son of

Attaullah Mengal) merged with party
of Gous Buksh Bazenjo PNP -----formed Baloch National Party (BNP)

1990s
Baloch politicians --- through different
alliances with other parties formed
governments in the alternate regimes of
Benazir and Nawaz
Zulfikar Ali Khan CM in 1996
Akhtar Mengal (BNP) CM in 1997
Akhtar Mengal resigned in protest that
center did not inform him about the nuclear
tests in his province
Another reason was issue of royalty

 The policies and attitude of center

towards Balochistan in 1990s gave
rise to what we call Fifth Baloch
war/insurgency

 Exploitation of natural resources

The deposits of District Dera Bughti ( Sui
& Pir koh) discovered in 1953.
In 1964- gas was supplied to Punjabs
cities --could not supply to Dera Bughti
until 1995
In 2004, royalty issue
Center owed billions of rupees to
Balochistan in term of gas revenue arrears

Gawadar
A place to which Baloch people are
emotionally attached
Their historical hero Hammal Jeayand
fought a key battle at Gawadar
against the Portugese occupation
Gawadar port developed with the
help of China

 China string of pearls strategy in the

Indian ocean
Strategic location
Trade value
Gawadar port development did not
give any benefit to local Balochis
Out of 600 employees hired in the
Gawadar port development , only 30
were locals

 City population would increase and

people from other provinces would
go to Gawadar

Musharraf regime
Two steps generated insurrection again
In 2002 election, MMA incorporated into
Provincial assembly
Introduced a decentralized plan local
government directly linked to Islamabad

Musharraf policies alienated Balochis but

political policies were not the only reason
for insurrection
In 2003 Baloch Ittehad formed
composed of all national parties

 Baloch
middle
class
mobilized,
through BSO and BNM led by Dr
Abdul
Hayee,
to
protest
the
underrepresentation of Balochis in
the government
In 2005
Not a single Baloch Ambassador
Only 502 Baloch recruited into army

 BLA attacked and destroyed Gas Pipe

lines many times in 2000s
In 2005 Musharraf warned in his
statement:
Dont push us. This is not the
seventies. They (Baloch) will not even
know what has hit them (when army
strikes).
BLA of Marris consisted of 3000 fighters,

 The insurgency of Bhugti tribe aggravated

after the rape of female doctor of Bughti
tribe by an army Captain in 2005
In the past Bughtis compromised with
government after getting incentives but
this time they were not willing to
negotiate .
Musharraf announced that India is behind
the insurgency in Balochistan

 In 2006 Akbar Bhugti was killed by

an air strike
mystery
Baloch blamed army and army
denied allegation
This incident changed the entire
landscape of Baloch resistance
against the center.

On Bughti funeral on 29th August 2006, young Baloch

tore down portraits of Jinnah
Later in June 2013, residency of Jinnah at Ziarat was
torched
On 21st Sep 2006, a Baloch National Jirga was
convened in Quetta to reconsider Balochistan
accession to Pakistan.

 Khan of Kalat, 35th , Mir Suleman, self

exiled in London, called the grand
jirga
It was decided that he should take
the case of Kalats restoration as an
independent
entity
to
the
International Court of Justice in the
Hague.
He also made public the Instrument
of Accession

 BRA again activated on the instigation

of Baramdagh Bughti
In 2007 son of Khair Bux Marri (Balach
Marri) killed in Afghanistan and Akhtar
Mengal was arrested(released soon
and he went to London)
Between 20022007, 54 opponents
disappeared
(Human
Rights
Commission of Pakistan)

 1102 Baloch were forcibly

disappeared during Musharraf rule
(another NGO report: Human Rights
Watch)
In this context, Akhtar Mengal a
moderate leader return from exile
and boycotted 2008 elections

Post 2008
PPP won 2008 elections
Promised to change tack.
April 2008 formed a Shaheed Benazir
Bhutto Reconciliatory Committee on
Balochistan to form Balochistan
Package.
Committee gave recommendations to
government to adopt 39 concrete
steps in Balochistan

 Balochistan Package included measures

like:

Return of political exiles

Release of prisoners
Moratorium on building new garrisons
Job creation
More autonomy
Give Balochis control over their assets
All new development projects would require
approval from Balochistan provincial
government etc

 Nationalists rejected Balochistan Package

Demanded greater autonomy
Halt to military operations

Akhtar Mengal propose six points but

government ignored him
Balochistan Package was not implemented.
In 2010: 18th Amendment and 7th NFC
awards gave Balochistan provincial
government and Federal government equal
control on Oil and Gas reserves.

 The armys modus operandi has not

changed since Musharraf
According
to
Human
Rights
Commission of Pakistan out of 143
missing persons recorded in 2011, 89
of them were disappeared between
2008 and 2010. Between July 2010
and May 2011, 140 mutilated bodies
of insurgents were recovered in
Balochistan

 In 2014 situation had not improved

as an article in the express tribune:
164 bullet ridden bodies were found
in Balochistan in the last 12 months.
This kill and dump process was
probably not to punish but also to
intimidate the Baloch nationalists.

In response, Baloch nationalists, since 2005

Killed foreigners , Punjabis
Doctors, engineers, teachers
On 14th August, 2010, insurgents hijacked a
bus going to Lahore from Quettakilled 10
Punjabis in the Bus.
Around 100 thousand Punjabis left their
homes in Balochistan and moved to other
places

 Target killing became a routine

matter
In 2013 terrorist attacks in Quetta
increased by 39% as compared to
2012
According to a report of Pakistan
Institute of Peace Studies (PIPS), out
of total 487 terrorist attacks in
Balochistan, 427 were executed by
Baloch nationalist insurgents.

2013 elections PML (N)

2013 elections did not defuse the
ethnic tensions
Mengal BNP contested but lost
In 2014 gas pipelines were destroyed
84 times
In Feburary,2014, militants destroyed
3 gas pipelines at the same time
near Rahim Yar Khan (BRA of
Baramdagh Bughti claimed the
responsibility)

 Why BNP of Akhtar Mengal lost in the elections

2013
Demographic factor
Hazaras-- ethnic group migrated from
Afghanistan to Balochistan--200,000 to 300,000
Out of 30 districts 12 are dominated by Pashtuns
Pashtuns are 40 % of population , controlling the
economy
Pk MAP main party of Pashtuns (Pakhtunkhawa
Mili Awami Part)

 In 2013 election
Pk MAP won 14 seats
National Party (nationalist party)10
seats
PML (N) 20 seats
Abdul Malik Baloch leader of National
Party formed in 2004 formed the
coalition government in Balochistan
(PkMAP, PML(N) and National Party)

 Baloch movement has shaped into

international movement by the
uprising of Baloch people for
independence in Iran.
In 2009 the Jundullah movement
fighting for the independence of
Iranian Balochistan killed 42 Iranian
state officials in a suicide attack ,
including 15 revolutionary guards.
Iran blamed Pakistan for that

Conclusion

Conclusion
Even if the Baloch movement for self
determination has not achieved its
goal and it is crushed once again, it
could reemerge after sometime

 Every government has refused to

respect the constitution of Pakistan
that was of federalist nature.. But
governments were of centralist style

 18th Amendment and & 7th NFC award

corrected the defect in constitution
No control over oil and gas
Only mineral and coal

Now provinces have control

But this happened only in 2010

 The 18th Amendment and NFC award

have met the demand of Baloch
nationalist half way, killing of Baloch
youth has not stopped.
For which moderate leaders blame
intelligence agencies
Baloch people respect their Sardars,
killing of Akbar Bughti in 2006
aggravated the insurgency in
Balochistan

 Inter-tribal and intra-tribal disputes

When it comes to armed struggle, there are
four major militant groups in Baluchistan
Only BLA composed of militants or fighters from
different tribes
BRA only Bughti tribe fighters

4 major militant groups are fighting for

independence
(BLA, BRA, United Baloch Army UBA, Baloch
Liberation Front BLF)

 Only 2 political parties amongst the

nationalist parties are prominent
National Party
BNP Mengal

 Following things are a matter of

routine in Balochistan
Killing of Punjabis and foreigners by
Baloch militants
Killing of Baloch nationalists by
intelligence agencies
Killing of security forces
Missing persons

 Balochi grievances
Provincial autonomy
Control over natural resourcees
Underrepresentation
Underdevelopment
Gawadar
Now Reko Diq in Western Balochistan
Killing of Baloch Saradar- Akbar Bhughti
Role of intelligence agencies
Army operations etc

 Government stand
Met the issues of natural resources in
18th Amendment and 7th NFC award
Government is serious about
employment, job creation, development
and education in Balochistan
Huge land and small population is the
main problem
Foreign hand India and others

 Compare and contrast the resistance

movement of East Pakistan with the
present movement of Baluchistan.
Suggest remedies. CSS 2010