BALOCHISTAN (3): A RESTLESS HISTORY

C O N F I D E N T I A L ISLAMABAD 016987 SIPDIS C O R R E C T E D C O P Y (PARA MARKINGS) SIPDIS NOFORN E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/19/2015 TAGS: PK PREL PGOV PTER PINR SUBJECT: BALOCHISTAN (3): A RESTLESS HISTORY REF: A. ISLAMABAD 14349 ¶B. ISLAMABAD 16269 ¶C. ISLAMABAD 16944 ¶D. ISLAMABAD 16962 Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Peter W. Bodde, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary: Balochistan has a history of uprisings against Pakistani rule. Major insurrections occurred in 1947-48, 1958, throughout the 1960s, and 1973-77. The Bugti tribe has been waging a localized insurgency since 2004. This cable on insurrections in Balochistan since the founding of Pakistan in 1947 is part of series on the political dynamics in Pakistan's largest but least-populated province. End summary. ¶2. (U) The Government of Pakistan's Balochistan problem began the day after partition in August 1947, when the Baloch Khan of Kalat declared the province,s independence. Kalat's drive for Baloch independence lasted until March 1948, when the Pakistan Army moved into the province. There was little unrest in the early 1950s, when Balochistan was given the unique status of a "state union" within Pakistan, a step below that of a full-fledged province. ¶3. (U) Modern Baloch nationalism arose between 1955 and 1970, when the disputes between the province and Islamabad over natural resource exploitation by the federal government, lack of representation in the federal bureaucracy and government, inadequate access to jobs and education, and the influx of settlers from other provinces first came to the fore. To offset growing Bengali power in East Pakistan, the GOP abolished all the provinces in West Pakistan in 1955 and created a single province--what was called the "One Unit." In Balochistan, this arrangement was seen as reducing provincial autonomy and reinforcing Punjabi domination. During the "One Unit" era, the GOP began to exploit the natural gas fields at Sui in Dera Bugti district and insurgents christened themselves "firaris," a Baloch name for those whose grievances cannot be satisfied through negotiations. ¶4. (U) An uprising in 1958 was put down by the military; subsequent insurrections flared throughout the 1960s, ending when the "One Unit" was broken up in 1970 and Balochistan became a full province. ¶5. (C/NF) The most severe Baloch insurrection raged from 1973 to 1977, with an estimated 55,000 tribal militants and 80,000 Pakistani troops fighting in the eastern and central parts of the province. Fighting was triggered by the dismissal of the provincial government in February 1973 and subsequent imposition of central government rule by Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, who sought to consolidate power in the hands of the Pakistan Peoples, Party (PPP). The Marri, Bugti, and Mengal tribes overcame traditional differences to join forces to fight the Bhutto government. During the uprising, as many as 10,000 Baloch fled to Afghanistan for safety. The Army eventually suppressed the uprising, after some 5,000 Baloch fighters and 3,000 government soldiers died in the fighting. ¶6. (C/NF) In the 1980s and 1990s, militants launched sporadic attacks on government forces and development projects as the Baloch tribes tried to squeeze royalties out of the government and oil and gas companies. The period was also marked by severe intertribal fighting as the unity of the 1970s faded. BODDE