Sultan M Hali
CHAIRMAN of Baloch National Movement (BNM), Khalil Baloch has given a provocative but false statement denigrating the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which has been picked up by Indian media and is being proliferated widely. Indian news agency, WION, has published an article based on the same fiction titled ‘BNM Slams China for its Imperialist Ambitions in Balochistan’. Labelling the mega development project as a strategic one for China, the BNM chief claims that Pakistan has mortgaged Balochistan and the port of Gwadar to maintain occupation and crush the Baloch independence movement. He further insinuates that CPEC will have far-reaching political and military consequences for the region. Khalil asserts that China is shifting the balance of power and increasing its influence in the Indian Ocean which would also affect India.
Khalil’s figment of imagination spins a yarn that China is developing naval bases in Balochistan at Jiwani and Gwadar. To support his lie, the BNM chief quotes an article from the Forbes journal titled, ‘China’s New High-Security Compound in Pakistan May Indicate Naval Plans’. The article itself is based on murky twists of facts. The only piece of evidence Forbes can present in support of its tall claims that China is building its naval presence in Gwadar are recent satellite images that appear to show that several new complexes have been built in the last few years. One of them, identified as being used by a Chinese company involved in port development, has unusually high security. The Forbes article informs that the high-security compound is being used by the China Communications Construction Company (CCCC Ltd). This is a majority state-owned company that is heavily involved in many Chinese civil engineering projects. While some degree of security is normal in the region, the level of security seen here is extensive. It has anti-vehicle berms, security fences and a high wall. Sentry posts and elevated guard towers cover the perimeter between the fence and the inner wall. This suggests armed guards with rifles.
The article itself provides the rationale that in the near past, the Chinese Consulate in Karachi and the Pearl Continental Hotel in Gwadar were targeted by terrorists on 23 November 2018 and 11 May 2019 respectively. The protagonists for both attacks were Baloch miscreants but their handlers turned out to be none other than the [in-]famous Indian spy agency RAW. If the projects in the vicinity of Gwadar have heightened security, it should not come as a surprise. In the modern era of satellites and other methods of imagery, it would be nigh impossible to hide a naval presence.
Pejorative comments from the ilk of Khalil Baloch are nothing new. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced in India’s Republic Day address to the nation while astride the ramparts of Delhi’s Red Fort that it is his moral duty to help the liberation movement in Balochistan. Numerous retired Indian army analysts appearing on Indian TV Channels have admitted having deep contacts with Baloch separatists. Commander Kulbhoshan Sudhir Jadhav, a senior RAW operative apprehended from Balochistan while masquerading as Hussain Mubarak Patel had exposed Indian heinous plans to sabotage CPEC. The disgruntled BNM chief appears to be mouthing slogans fed by his RAW handlers, claiming falsely that Pakistan Army has bombarded the route of CPEC project forcing families to migrate. He then goes on to declare that Balochistan has paid a high price and will defend its land in future. He announces that the Baloch are willing to unite with any power against Chinese ambitions. In a bid to secure international sympathy and build a negative consensus against China, Khalil states: “Today, China is swiftly shifting the balance of power in the region.
This is not only a catastrophic move for Balochistan but other countries in the region will not be spared of its effects. India will be directly affected by Chinese influence in the Indian Ocean and Chinese military presence near the Strait of Hormuz could lead to war in the region.” He said that China is gaining ground in Balochistan and becoming a new colonial power in the region. “Thousands of Chinese are already in different areas of Balochistan, including Gwadar and Saindak to complete the CPEC and Saindak projects,” he asserted. “ Several large military bases are being built. In future, the Chinese invasion of the entire Baloch coast will be the most significant concern for the Baloch national existence and identity after the occupation of Pakistan,” he added.
The truth is that the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), of which CPEC is a flagship project has been open to the entire world and scores of countries including most of Europe have come on board. Only India, Japan, Australia and the US remain outside its fold. China and Pakistan have invited international observers to visit the projects and satisfy themselves to the efficacy and fruitfulness of the mega project. Majority of the Baloch have welcomed CPEC because they are cognizant of the fact that it will provide them with employment opportunities and enhance the medical, educational and communications resources of the once deprived and neglected province. Only a handful of misinformed Baloch youth, recruited by the RAW are trying to bring insurgency into the region. Slowly and gradually their numbers too are diminishing but the detractors of China, Pakistan and the economic uplift of the region would like to destabilize it for their own nefarious goals.
—The writer is retired PAF Group Captain and a TV talk show host.