CPEC: The cost of human life will remain too great to bear
While the west has been less than jubilant about CPEC’s progress, one statement from the American security establishment does stand out: the warning that a project of this magnitude, for all its benefits, would only increase the targets for terrorists to shoot down.
In the time that CPEC has started development that statement has proven to be eerily accurate. Despite two major military operations and the deployment of security forces to ensure the safety of both local and foreign workers involved in CPEC projects, including Gawadar, the last week saw the shooting of ten more labourers. Friday’s reports bore witness to the deaths of three more Pakistani labourers. By the time this editorial goes to print, we may well hearing of more.
Game changer though we hope CPEC may prove to be, it is the cost of human life that gives even the most optimistic of us reason to pause. Given India’s persisting opposition to the project, Pakistan’s own narrative of RAW involvement (especially following Jadhav’s arrest), and the necessity of this corridor to Pakistan’s regional security and economic development, we can only stress, once again, the necessity of maintaining constant vigilance.
