Balochistan: The Largest, Most Resource-Rich, Yet Poorest Province of Pakistan
Journalist Jahanzeb Hussain talks about who's profiting from the Pakistani province's natural gas and the suppression of the Baloch people - November 9, 2015
On Thursday Pakistani forces laid siege to Pakistan's largest province, Balochistan, injuring and killing several people. If you haven't heard about Balochistan, it's at the heart of the conflict between the Pakistani government and Balochistan nationalists who are demanding independence from Pakistan. This southwestern province is Pakistan's largest and most natural resource-rich province, and has been affiliated with violence since Pakistan's independence in 1947. This area is of great significance of late since there's an ongoing development project being negotiated connecting Balochistan's Gwadar port to China. It's being called the China-Pakistan economic corridor.
Joining us to unpack this is Jahanzeb Hussein. Jahanzeb is an editor at Ricochet Media, the South Asia editor at Global Voices and a blogger at Huffington Post India. Thank you so much for joining us.
JAHANZEB HUSSEIN: Thank you, thank you for having me.
DESVARIEUX: So Jahanzeb, Balochistan has so many natural resources, I think the estimates are about $1 trillion. And there's access to shipping routes from its port city, as I mentioned in the intro, through Gwadar. And Balochistan remains Pakistan's most undeveloped province, though, at the same time. It has the lowest literacy rate and the highest infant mortality rate. So a lot of people who don't know much about this story are probably wondering, how did we even get here. Can you just give us a brief modern history as to the roots of the Balochistan and conflict and grievances of the Baloch people.
HUSSEIN: Well, at the time when the British were leaving India and Pakistan was being founded, Balochistan at that time was an independent state which had an independent relation with Britain, even though it was indirectly ruled by it. And then when Pakistan was near to, 1947 partition was near and it was clear that something like Pakistan would be founded, the Baloch leaders thought that the same way they had their relation with the British as an independent state, as an autonomous state, that relation would continue later on with Pakistan as well. And that is what was promised to them, that they would remain, the relation between Pakistan and Balochistan would remain of two independent states, more or less.
But the Pakistani leaders then reneged on their promises, and a few, and not very--. After the creation of Pakistan in 1947 the Pakistani army invaded Balochistan to forcibly annex it. So Balochistan never wanted to be a part of Pakistan. It was forced to become a part of Pakistan. And it was quite later on that it was given the full status of a province. Before that it was ruled directly by the governor general of Pakistan under some sort of colonial rule. But then later on it was made a province of Pakistan.
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