Every life is precious. The state apparatus must provide security for the populace to pursue what they want to without any fear of persecution, let alone a threat to life. Our constitution offers safeguards for the protection of one’s life, liberty, arrest and detention among many others. But the target killings, forced disappearances and bullet-ridden bodies in Balochistan imply the irrelevance of constitutional rights there.
The skewed priorities of the security agencies have virtually turned the country’s largest province into a no-go area for the rest of the country. Khuzdar alone has seen more than 33 dead bodies in a period of three months. And that’s only counting the ones that have been reported. The state apparatus is either in on the scheme of things, which would beckon towards a more severe underlying issue, or its lacks the resources to challenge the situation, which would force one to believe the state is not willing to stand up to the challenge. The government’s response to the issue is rather tepid, while the Supreme Court’s directives are blatantly disregarded or delayed. Such tendencies, if allowed to grow unchecked, are sure to create a bedlam and allow the hyper nationalist separatist movements to hold sway completely. Precariously close to the tipping point.
In a democracy there is nothing more important than the free will of the people.
Balochistan might have a tribal society but they have a right to the same constitutional rights as are provided to other parts of the country. By integrating the local population into the mainstream, their concerns can be answered easily. But before the state starts pumping out solutions, ethnic and traditional sensitivities must be taken into account. Where the LEAs and security agencies have failed, more comprehensive and inclusive programmes for capacity building and resource management of these agencies should be put in place.