- Baloch Insurgency and Rahimuddin's Stabilization
The Baloch Insurgency was a series of secessionist rebellions in Balochistan, the largest
province ofPakistan , from 1973 to 1976. Rahimuddin Khan's Stabilization was a series of administrativereform s and indirectmilitary action aimed at undermining the 1970s insurgency by then-dictator GeneralRahimuddin Khan from 1977 to 1984.The
secession ofBangladesh earlier in 1971 encouraged Balochnationalists to demand "greater provincial autonomy" from then-Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto . After Bhutto's refusal to negotiate on any terms, the situation deteriorated into widespreadcivil disorder and armed uprisings, calling for the secession and independence of Balochistan.With the overthrow of Bhutto's civilian government by a
military dictatorship under GeneralMuhammad Zia-ul-Haq , some stability was restored to Balochistan, but difficulties remained substantial enough to threaten the regional unity of Pakistan. To solve the problem with a hands-on approach, General Zia set up amilitary regime , to act as a separateentity independent of thecentral government , within Balochistan. GeneralRahimuddin Khan , thenLieutenant General , was appointedMartial Law Administrator and Governor over the regime, thus becoming the "carte blanche "dictator of the province.General Rahimuddin Khan's subsequent provincial policies in his capacity as
Governor (1978–1984), characterized by his distaste forappeasement andauthoritarian style of government, have come to be known as the Stabilization of Balochistan. This is mainly due to his politicalsuccess in securingsocial stability and greatly decreasing, if not stopping,civil disobedience movements within theprovince .Calls for Balochistan's independence
The
1971 Indo-Pakistani War had ended with the humiliating defeat ofPakistan at the hands of neighboringIndia , andEast Pakistan declaring itself to be independent. It became a newsovereign state calledBangladesh , to be ruled by Bengali leaderShaikh Mujibur Rahman . Mujib had been a major personality in the events that had led to the war, having called for greater provincial autonomy and rights for what was then East Pakistan, only to be met with utter disapproval by the then military rulerYahya Khan and his West Pakistan-based political opponentZulfikar Ali Bhutto . Despite Mujib's having won the federal elections of 1970, both Yahya and Bhutto refused to let Mujib form thecentral government . The ensuing unrest gradually deteriorated intocivil war , and ultimately thesecession of Bangladesh.This would greatly influence Balochistan's leading
political party , the National Awami Party. Led bynationalists andfeudal leaders such as SardarAtaullah Mengal andKhan Wali Khan , the party dominated the province due to a the large amount of individual political influence its leaders held. Emboldened by the secession of Bangladesh, the party demanded greaterautonomy and provincial rights from Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who had become the newPresident of Pakistan following his predecessor Yahya Khan'sresignation in December 1971, in return for a consensual agreement on Bhutto'sPakistan Constitution of 1973 . Bhutto, however, refused to negotiate on any terms whatsoever with chief ministerAtaullah Mengal inQuetta andMufti Mahmud inPeshawar . The already significantcivil unrest now turned volatile as provincial tensions erupted.Nationalists' Rebellion
The Baloch rebellion of the 1970s, the most threatening
civil disorder to a United Pakistan since Bangladesh's secession, now began. Surveying the political instability, Bhutto'scentral government sacked two provincial governments within six months, arrested the two chief ministers, two governors and forty-four MNAs and MPAs, obtained an order from theSupreme Court banning the NAP and charged everyone with high treason to be tried by a specially constituted Hyderabad Tribunal of handpicked judges.In time, the
nationalist insurgency , which had been steadily gathering steam, now exploded into action, with widespreadcivil disobedience and armed uprisings. Bhutto now sent in the army to maintain order and crush the insurgency. This essentially pitted the Baloch people against the capitalIslamabad . As casualties rose, the insurgency became a full-fledged armed struggle against thePakistan Army . The sporadic fighting between theinsurgency and the army started in 1973 with the largest confrontation taking place in September 1974 when around 15,000 Balochs fought the Pakistani Army and the Air Force. The Iranian military fearing a spread of the greater Baloch resistance in Iran also aided the Bhutto-sent Pakistan military in brutally putting down the insurrection. [cite web| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4182151.stm| title=Pakistan risks new battlefront| accessdate=2006-04-08| first=News page| last=BBC] The Pakistan government was also afraid of another Indian intervention just like the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War when the Indian Military played a vital part in defeating Pakistan leading to the secession of East Pakistan; however India was fearful of further balkanization of the subcontinent after Bangladesh and did not interfere. After three days of fighting the Baloch tribals were running out ofammunition and so withdrew b 1976. The army had suffered 25 fatalities and around 300 casualties in the fight while the rebels lost 5,000 people as of 1977.Government Change and Stabilization
Although major fighting had broken down, ideological schisms caused splinter groups to form and steadily gain momentum. Despite the overthrow of the Bhutto government in 1977 by General
Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq , calls forsecession and widespreadcivil disobedience remained. Themilitary government then appointed GeneralRahimuddin Khan asMartial Law Administrator and Governor over theprovince . The provincial government under the famouslyauthoritarian Rahimuddin began to act as a separateentity andmilitary regime independent of thecentral government .This allowed General Rahimuddin to act as a
dictator , unanswerable to the central government. Both General Zia-ul-Haq and General Rahimuddin Khan supported the declaration of a generalamnesty in Balochistan to those willing to give up arms. Rahimuddin then purposefully isolatedfeudal leaders such asNawab Akbar Khan Bugti andAtaullah Mengal from provincial policy. He also militarily put down all civil disobedience movements, effectively leading to unprecedentedsocial stability within the province. Due to Martial Law, his reign was the longest in thehistory of Balochistan (1977–1984).Tensions have resurfaced recently in the province with the
Pakistan Army being involved in attacks against a terrorist organisation known as theBalochistan Liberation Army . Attempted uprisings have taken place as recently as 2005. The recent uprising has more todo with Gas Royalty then anything else. Majority of Balochs want to get rid of Nawab's who have exploited them and treated them as slaves.Notes
External links
* [http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/pakistan1.htm]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.