Defence Minister Khawaja Asif is currently addressing the National Assembly (NA), where he is speaking about the security situation in Balochistan.
He spoke after Speaker Ayaz Sadiq asked him to brief the House on the situation in Balochistan, where terrorists carried out a large-scale coordinated attack on Saturday. According to the military’s media affairs wing, more than 150 terrorists have been killed in retaliatory action.
Asif began his address by recalling that the restoration of peace in Balochistan had been “disrupted” several times over the decades. However, he maintained that there had been long spells of peace in the province as well, and development work was also carried out in Balochistan.
The defence minister said during the initial decades following Pakistan’s independence, the “overtones of this disturbance had a so-called political colour to them”.
Moreover, he said some grievances also existed.
“Without going into details of whether they were right or wrong, but some grievances also had [undertones] of a nationalistic fervour,” he said.
The minister said elements supported by India were operating as “proxies” in Balochistan, adding that Afghan soil was also used in fanning the flames of terrorism in the province.
“The terrorists’ leadership is based in Afghanistan, and they receive support from there,” he said.
Asif alleged that the “political element in this movement was hijacked by smuggling in the recent, or slightly distant past”.
“Billions and trillions of rupees were being lost to smuggling, mainly oil smuggling. This criminal mafia […] began supporting the movement. And their leadership now comprises these elements,” he said.
The minister added that commodities destined for Afghanistan or elsewhere through transit trade would return to Pakistan and were sold in markets here.
“Our government took strict action to curb this. You may recall that a protest on the Chaman border went on for long. Likewise, in other areas of Balochistan where this facility was available and being exploited, protests erupted.
“The members of this movement would call it a nationalistic movement, but it turned into a movement of criminals and smugglers. They began funding it,” he said.
The defence minister said an opinion existed that talks should be held with terrorists or members of a national movement. He said negotiations with political entities had been held in other countries as well, even with the ones that became violent.
“But this movement, or these people among whom 170 criminals were killed, has no political or nationalistic identity. And their fake covers of being nationalistic or political entities, or a movement for human rights, do not exist anymore and a movement of criminals has emerged,” he said.
He said this movement was being run to make up for financial losses.
“For example, this network of corruption was selling Iranian oil worth Rs60 per litre for Rs200 per litre in Karachi. Those who are running this movement are earning Rs4 billion in profit daily through oil smuggling, which has been curbed. This is why peace has been disrupted there (Balochistan).
“It has turned into a nexus. It has turned into a nexus of the bureaucracy, tribal leadership and criminal elements.”
More to follow
