BALOCHISTAN - PROTESTS ROIL PROVINCE AFTER

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KARACHI 000131 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/14/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PK SUBJECT: BALOCHISTAN - PROTESTS ROIL PROVINCE AFTER NATIONALIST LEADER FOUND DEAD REF: KARACHI 34 Classified By: CLASSIFIED BY CONSUL GENERAL STEPHEN FAKAN FOR REASONS 1 .4 b and d. Summary: -------------- ¶1. (C) The mutilated bodies of Baloch National Movement (BNM) General Secretary Ghulam Mohammad and two other Baloch nationalists were found near the southern Balochistan city of Turbat on April 8. The discovery sparked violent unrest in many urban centers throughout Balochistan, including protests that closed the Hub ) Chaman road for a day, and in some areas of Karachi. Sixteen people were killed in the rioting and police made 30 arrests. Militant Baloch nationalist groups have claimed responsibility for the killings of police and coal miners. Ghulam had been a member of a high-level committee working to resolve Baloch "missing persons" issues with the GOP as part of the negotiations for the release of kidnapped United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Quetta Office Director John Solecki. No one has been formally accused of the killings, although many Baloch nationalists have blamed GOP intelligence agencies, without presenting any evidence to support this accusation. By April 13, the situation in Balochistan and Karachi were returning to normal. Baloch Leader Found Near Abduction Point -------------- ¶2. (C) On April 8, authorities found the body of Baloch National Movement (BNM) General Secretary Ghulam Mohammad Baloch around 20 kilometers from the southern Balochistan city of Turbat. He was taken by unidentified armed persons from his attorney's office in Turbat along with two other Baloch nationalists, Lala Munir and Sher Mohammad Baloch, on April 4. Initial reports from POL sources indicated that all three bodies were mutilated and had been dead for some time. Played Role in Negotiations for John Solecki release -------------- -------------- ¶3. (C) Baloch was a member of a high-level committee formed by tribal leader Harbiyar Marri and Interior Minister Rehman Malik to negotiate for the release of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Quetta Office Director John Solecki, kidnapped on February 2 by members of the Balochistan Liberation United Front (BLUF) (reftel). He had met with USG and UN officials during the negotiations and represented Baloch interests in discussions with the GOP about the nationalists' demands for accountability of alleged missing persons. Widespread Unrest in Balochistan -------------- ¶4. (C) After the discovery of the bodies became known on April 9, residents in many areas of Balochistan and parts of Karachi reacted angrily. In the ensuing violence, 16 people including four police in the Jaffarabad district, were killed. Six coal miners were among the dead. The Marri-tribe dominated Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for killing the miners. The Bugti-tribe affiliated Baloch Republican Army (BRA) claimed responsibility for killing the police officers. Police have reported around 30 arrests in connection with the unrest. ¶5. (C) Media and Post sources reported grenade attacks and bomb blasts in various areas of the district. Rockets were reportedly fired at security posts in Kalat and Dera Bugti districts. Businesses in Quetta and other major urban centers in Balochistan, including Pashtun dominated areas, shut down in protest on April 9 and did not reopen until April 12. Quetta police fired teargas at protestors in the city and higher educational institutions there have closed until April 15. ¶6. (C) During the rioting, protestors burned four banks and a UN vehicle in Quetta. They also burned Pakistan People's KARACHI 00000131 002 OF 002 Party (PPP),Pakistan Muslim League (PML-Q),and Balochistan National Party-Awami (BNP-A) offices in Panjgur, and Turbat. Rioters also torched the office of the District Coordination Officer (DCO) and a number of other official and private buildings in Turbat. Three shops were destroyed in Gwadar. The paramilitary Frontier Corps (FC) took over security from local police forces in urban centers. By April 13, the situation had begun to return to normal Protests in Karachi -------------- ¶7. (C) In Karachi, protests broke out in areas with a large Baloch population. Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) leader Altaf Hussain led a pro-Baloch gathering (addressing the crowd by telephone from London) on April 11, calling for a high-level judicial inquiry into the deaths. The Sindhi-nationalist Jeay Sindh Quami Mahaz party rallied to denounce the killings. Residents observed a transportation strike and the Baloch National Front (BNF) led a rally attended by around 2,500 people, in front of the Karachi Press Club (near the Consulate) on April 12. Hub ) Chaman Transit Blocked -------------- ¶8. (C) POL and RSO sources reported that around 200 protestors blocked the Hub - Chaman road in the vicinity of the central Balochistan city of Khuzdar on April 9. (Note: As of April 10, the road had been reopened. End note.) Railroad tracks in the Quetta to Chaman route were reportedly blown up on April 11 and again on April 12. Note: The damage was minor. The railway has been repaired and is now operating. End note.) Nationalist Political Parties Protest Killing -------------- ¶9. (C) Many Baloch political parties - Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M)),National Party (NP),Balochistan National Movement (BNM),the Baloch National Front (BNF),and the Pashtun-dominated Pakhtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) all joined in the call for an official inquiry into the killings. Several of the nationalist parties went further, specifying that they wanted an official UN (instead of a GOP) investigation. Comment -------------- ¶10. (C) Although many Baloch leaders, including provincial Finance Minister Muhammad Asim Kurd Gaillo, have accused GOP intelligence agencies of the abductions and murders, there has been no real evidence to support this claim. (Note: Suspicion of the GOP has always run high among Baloch nationalists and they frequently accuse GOP agencies of actions against them, often without any proof. End note.) Yet, by coming out in public in order to help secure Solecki's release, Ghulam Mohammad and other Baloch leaders had warned they were risking their lives and exposing themselves to retribution or detention by Pakistani intelligence. ¶11. (C) For the moment, the incident has united Baloch nationalists and appears to have garnered some sympathy from their traditional rivals, the Pashtuns. MQM appears to be seizing the opportunity to build support among the Baloch as it vies to expand its party base outside of Sindh. Post notes that the BLA's claimed attack on coal miners served to highlight the nationalists' frustration over exploitation of the province's natural resources ) an issue that is at the heart of their insurgency. While the deaths will most likely not destabilize the province, it may add to the list of perceived injustices the nationalists will probably point to in their ongoing struggle with the GOP. FAKAN