A seminar titled “Reimagining Pakistan” was held in Quetta. Several including Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, former Chief Minister Balochistan Nawab Aslam Raisani, former federal finance minister Miftah Ismaeel, former People’s party leader and senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokar, president of Pakistan Union of Journalists Shehzad Zulfiqar and Haq Dho Tehreek leader Hussain Wadhela addressed the event.
Whether it has been the nuclear tests of Raskoh, the overnight formation of BAP, or the very new experiment of Reimagining Pakistan, Balochistan has continued to remain the launching pad of Pakistan. It is not clear yet what are the objectives of Reimagining Pakistan, but its leaders claim they want to raise the issues that are normally ignored in Pakistani legislative assemblies.
The forcible disappearances and other burning issues of Balochistan were discussed in this seminar held in Quetta. Though Balochistan’s problems were highlighted but no roadmap towards the resolution of these issues was presented. And in fact the responsibility for the matters that were discussed in this seminar mainly lies with the very political personalities and the parliamentary parties. When Shahid Khaqan was Pakistani Prime Minister he would never talk about forcible disappearances. He would never open his mouth about the military operations kn Balochistan. Mustafa Nawaz Khokar was a leader of Peoples Party when during its governance mutilated dead bodies of Baloch missing persons were dumped on daily basis.
Today Aslam Raisani makes hue and cries about forcible disappearances and fake encounters, but he was the Chief Minister when the mass killings of Baloch youth were initiated. The Pakistani parliamentary parties and personalities can see the brutalities in Balochistan only when they are in opposition. Once they are in government they happily collaborate with Pakistani military in the state crimes.
Balochistan’s issues cannot be resolved with a seminar or passing a bill in the parliament. To the day the Pakistani state and the military do not agree to the national rights of Balochistan, including the right of freedom, Balochistan will keep burning and the insurgency will remain.