Pakistan's Balochistan province shares some similarities with the US state of Alaska. It is the largest of Pakistan's four provinces in terms of area (347,190 square kilometers) but the smallest in terms of population (6.6 million). With large reserves of copper, gold and natural gas, it is probably the richest of Pakistan's provinces in terms of its natural resources.
Most of the grievances of the people of Balochistan stem from a sense that they have not benefited from the resources under their land. Powerful tribal chieftains in the province have exploited this sense of deprivation to demand and receive significant funds for themselves while ordinary Balochis have remained among the poorest and most backward in Pakistan.
As Pakistan moves forward with vast new mineral discoveries such as Reko Diq in Balochistan, it's essential that there be a mechanism to equitably share with ordinary Balochis the billions of dollars in revenue expected to flow from these resources.
Balochistan Fund can be modeled on Alaska Permanent Fund. It is a constitutionally established and professionally managed fund which is run by a semi-independent corporation. Shortly after the oil from Alaska's North Slope began flowing to market through the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System, the Permanent Fund was created by an amendment to the constitution of the U.S. state of Alaska to be an investment for at least 25% of proceeds from some minerals [such as oil and gas] sale or royalties.
Similar funds should be established for other provinces as well. For example, energy-rich Sindh has large coal deposits and huge shale gas reserves which are worth at least hundreds of billions of dollars. Revenues from these resources should be shared equitably to benefit ordinary citizen of Sindh province.
Sharing of the wealth with the people in each province will give them a tangible stake in national development. It will help bring and maintain peace and stability necessary to attract badly needed investments for developing Pakistan's vast mineral resources.
Related Links:
Haq's Musings
Pakistan's Vast Shale Gas Reserves
Reko Diq Copper & Gold
Pakistan's Mineral Wealth
Thar Coal Deposits
USGS Minerals Overview For Pakistan
US Dept of Energy Report on Shale Gas
Pakistan's Twin Energy Crises
Pakistan's Electricity Crisis
Pakistan's Gas Pipeline and Distribution Network
Lure of Pakistan's Riches Calls
Israel in Alaska?
13 comments:
With TCC, Baluchistan was being guaranteed $400 million per year in direct payments from TCC. With the government of Pakistan, Baluchistan would get squat. The company that Samar Mubarakmund keeps talking about to replace TCC is nowhere in sight. When it does become a fact, the theft and graft prevalent in Pakistan will turn it into a PIA, Railways, Pakistan Steel Mills, Karachi Shipyard, PNSC - you name it.
There is no use of a Baluchistan fund if the entire income from its mining is given away to the Baloch government. Yes, there will be thefts. But the difference between Baluchistan and Alaska is that in Alaska, all oil is going of to the private oil firms, with very little tax back to the Alaskan government, since oil is refined elsewhere, and the royalties at lease time were federally controlled. They were set very low about 40 years ago, and those rates are still in force.
Along with millions of others, I would immediately establish domicile in Balochistan (and live in California)! Wink
Amjad: "I would immediately establish domicile in Balochistan"
Why wait? Why not do it now in Alaska, or the lands of some of the native American tribes where wealth is shared right here in America?
Some readers have raised questions about the differences between Alaska and Balochistan in terms of the native populations being different from the majority of national population.
No two places are ever exactly alike, but both Alaska and Balochistan have small native populations which constitute a minority in each. Alaska has 15% native population and Balochistan has over a third of its population that are ethnic Baloch.
Almost as many ethnic Baloch people live outside of Balochistan province (in Sindh and Southern Punjab) as in Balochistan, according to Anatol Lieven (Pakistan-A Hard Country)....and they are quite well integrated with the rest of the population in Pakistan.
Asif Zardari, the current president of Pakistan, is an ethnic Baloch, as was former President Farooq Laghari.
Here's the latest from Dawn on Reko Diq license:
LONDON: Pakistan’s Balochistan province has rejected a mining lease application from Chilean copper producer Antofagasta and Canada’s Barrick Gold, raising questions over the future of their Reko Diq copper-gold project.
The two miners’ joint venture, Tethyan Copper, said last month it had filed a “notice of dispute” with the province over Reko Diq, after Balochistan government officials refused to meet the company’s executives or extend a deadline for a response to objections raised over the lease.
The mining lease application, for an area including the Reko Diq deposit, was submitted in February.
“Tethyan strongly believes that the Reko Diq project can contribute significantly to the development of a modern mining industry in Balochistan and will consider its options for further courses of action,” Antofagasta said in a statement on Wednesday.
Reko Diq – only the second significant project in the mineral-rich region and potentially a source of much needed inward investment for Pakistan – holds an estimated 5.9 billion tonnes of mineral resources, with an average copper grade of 0.41 per cent and an average gold grade of 0.22 grams a tonne.
The joint venture partners spent $200 million in 2006 buying the exploration licence from rival BHP Billiton.
Construction has been projected to cost some $3.3 billion, but that is expected to climb given rising costs faced by the mining industry, particularly in remote locations like Balochistan.
http://www.dawn.com/2011/11/16/pakistan-says-no-to-antofagasta-barrick-gold-mine.html
Really a neat idea.
It will be nice if this dividend goes back to the people of Balochistan in the form of free schools and free colleges. Free food program for schools. If they use children for labor, than compensating the parents for taking them off the labor force. Free health care. More development roads and bridges, provide employment but no free welfare.
It will be good for Balochistan and unified Pakistan.
The problem is if its done right, Balochis will become the most advanced ethnic group in Pakistan.
I am serious, what can we do to make this happen, writing letters to the editors ? start a campaign ? what would it take for someone to take notice...
Mike,
In the Alaska model, 25% of the state's royalty income from oil and gas goes into the Alaska Permanent Fund, with the rest going to Alaska treasury for spending on education, health care, infrastructure and other programs.
Using the Alaska model, at least 25% of the money will go to the independently managed fund and pay dividends to the people directly, thus keeping it out of the hands of corrupt sardar politicians who control power in Quetta and care little about their people.
Imran,
It's not just Balochistan. Sindh is now emerging as a very energy-rich province with billions of tons of coal, about 40 trillion cubic feet of shale gas, tremendous wind energy potential along the coast line, and offshore oil and gas reserves. Unless this expected wealth is shared equitably with the people of Sindh, there could be a Sindhi nationalist insurgency in the province which already contributes the most in taxes to Islamabad from its ports and industries in Karachi.
Here's an excerpt of a Huffington Post Op Ed on Baloch insurgents:
According to Peters, one of the most serious issues with the Baloch independence movement is "deeply troubling" infighting. In fact, he is emphatic in his condemnation of such bickering; going so far as to assert: "they are quickly becoming their own worse enemies."
In his view, individual Baloch simply don't understand that their personal feuding undermines the larger movement: "Certain Baloch fail to understand that their only hope in gaining independence is if they put their own egos and vanity aside and work together. This is the cold hard fact. They are already outgunned and outmanned. Pakistan will continue to to exploit their differences until they realize this."
So long as the Baloch continue to engage in "petty infighting," including "savaging each other in emails," (Ralph) Peters is pessimistic they can garner widespread support in the West. In fact, he warns that such infighting could eventually put off even their staunchest supporters.
As a result, he recommends that the Baloch leadership and activists set the example and halt their public bickering: "The Baloch leaders need to stop their severe personal attacks on each other and others. In the military, we say that you don't let an entire attack get bogged down by a single sniper. But, there are individuals out there who are causing divisions and attacking people. They tend to look at the debate as if you don't agree with me completely then you're my enemy. This undermines their cause."
Until these leaders and activists "support the big picture," Peters offers little hope that the broader Baloch nation will be able to "work together, put aside their deep divide, and unify." This troubles Peters as he confides: "At this point, do I believe they have a good chance of achieving independence? No. But, it would be much higher in the future if they just start working together. It's frustrating that the leaders can't unite."
Peters is also bothered by the Baloch tendancy to blame such infighting on covert operations by Pakistan's military and security services: "The region as a whole tends to blame conspiracy theories. But, I have come to believe that you never accept conspiracies when something can be explained by incompetence. There are probably a mix of things going on here. The Pakistani military and intelligence services probably have provocateurs working in Balochistan just like they do in Afghanistan. They live by the old rule of divide and conquer and they are good at that. But, the bigger issue is the Baloch's own egos. That's what needs addressed."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eddie-walsh/baloch-pakistan_b_1326421.html
Here's a Daily Times Op Ed on oil and gas reserves in Balochistan:
Khattan oil would be more valuable to the railway now than it was formerly. As fuel it was worth not more than 1½ times in weight to Khost coal and so could not possibly compete, but it was mainly as a possible substitute for pitch, the agglomerate used in fuel briquette manufacture, that it is to be now considered. Borings were also commenced in 1891 at Pir Koh near Spintangi, but were abandoned after they had reached a depth of 560 feet as no signs of petroleum were discovered. Gypsum occurs in considerable quantities near Khattan and Tung near Spintangi.
Another detailed, modern, scientific seismic survey was conducted in the mid-1990s, which proved the presence of tremendous gas and oil deposits across Balochistan, including the Marri Bugti areas, near the Quetta Zargoon belt. There are proven big gas fields, very good quality and at a large scale, explored near Barkhan at Jandran in the 1970s, and only require to be linked to the Dera Ghazi Khan pipeline. Oil also has been found at Kingari District Loralai and it needs to be pumped out. In Dera Bugti near Sui three more gas fields with very big deposits; all three estimated to hold about ten trillion cubic meters, have been explored very recently. According to reports, all proven explored gas is estimated to be about 20 trillion cubic meters, whereas Pakistan requires 700 million cubic feet and is clamouring to get it from Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Iran or Qatar.
It is also reported that the cost of imported gas either from Central Asia, Iran or Qatar would be double of local available gas in Balochistan. The important point worthy of attention in any case is that if a pipeline is built to import gas from Central Asia, Iran or Qatar, it has to cross Balochistan. Now the question is, why is the local Balochistan oil and gas not extracted to meet Pakistan’s life and death energy crisis?
------------
The reports observe that this security assessment about shifting trends in the insurgency comes with the warning that the “unthinkable situation” may worsen, which could further aggravate if the political leadership does not wake up to the situation. One high security official in the briefing realises, “Balochistan is no longer a local issue. It has acquired the international limelight.” Now the main question is, whose is the policy failure in Balochistan, politicians or the use of force? If at all the political leadership wakes up to the situation today, what options are left to them? Recently, moderate pro-federation, former chief minister Sardar Ataullah Mengal said that the Baloch are pushed to a position of no return. In this background, the basic question under discussion is how to cope with the energy crisis. In any case, exploration of local Balochistan resources or the pipeline have to be laid across thousand of miles of the Baloch land.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2012\03\19\story_19-3-2012_pg3_4
Here's an Economic Times story on the wealth of Balochistan ministers:
A provincial minister in Pakistan owns a tract of land that equals a small town - 24,338 acres to be precise. Another wears diamond-studded Rolex watches while a lawmaker runs seven mines and owns 300 guns.
Balochistan Chief Minister Nawab Muhammad Aslam Khan Raisani drives a luxury sport utility vehicle Hummer H2 that was gifted to him and a Harley Davidson motorcycle brought to Pakistan after a waiver on customs duty, showed statement of assets and liabilities submitted to the Election Commission for 2010-11.
Besides owning a safety and security firm, he also has a mining company with a capital investment of Rs.106.5 million, the Dawn newspaper reported.
But, he is easily overshadowed by his Minister for Home and Tribal Affairs, Mir Zafar Ullah Khan.
Khan owns a staggering 24,338 acres of land, most of which he has inherited. He has Rs.51 million in two bank accounts.
Building Minister Agha Irfan Karim owns four properties, including a farm house, 150 acres of agricultural land and a house in Quetta.
Karim also two diamond-studded Rolex wrist watches, two more with gold and silver, 10 diamond-studded cufflinks and 200 tola of gold.
Pir Abdul Qadir Algilani, a lawmaker, too has a generous land holding.
He owns 3,200 acres of land and an under-construction farm spread over 400 acres.
That's not all.
Algilani's other properties include two coal mines, three manganese mines, one copper mine and one iron ore mine in his own and his wife's name.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/et-cetera/a-pakistani-minister-mir-zafar-owns-almost-a-town/articleshow/12368249.cms
Here's a report of Baloch seeking independence from sardars:
Tribesmen belonging to different Bugti tribes met in United Arab Emirates and demanded for their safe return to Dera Bugti.
According to a handout issued here on Tuesday, Hamoon Khan Bugti, a chief of United Tribes, while addressing the gathering said that they would appeal to Swiss government to reject the application of Brahamdagh Bugti for political asylum. He said that Bugti was the killer of several Bugti tribesmen.
Hamoom said that Bugti had the passport of Indian government. He said that they had been threatened by the separatist leader to shut the mouth. He added that they would continue to expose the real face of Bugti.
He further said that Bugti was a terrorist and still killing innocent Bugtis’ in the Dera.
“We will fight for our basic rights. We need to go back to our homes which were bulldozed by Bugti in 2002,” he said.
http://www.thenewstribe.com/2012/02/29/bugti-tribesmen-urge-swiss-govt-to-reject-brahamdaghs-asylum-appeal/#.T3scZMUQo14
Here's a Gallup survey on Balochistan independence as reported by Khaleej Times:
The support for an independent Balochistan is not popular even among a majority of the Baloch population, a Gallup survey for the UK international official body, DFID, has revealed.
The survey conducted on July 20 says that among the Baloch, 37 per cent favour independence, whereas among the Pashtun population only 12 per cent favour that option. The results of the survey were published by The News on Monday.
The vast majority, according to the survey, opposes the idea of an independent Balochistan. However, 67 per cent of the people of Balochistan, including Baloch and Pashtuns, support greater provincial autonomy.
The survey says that 79 per cent of the Baloch population and 53 per cent of Pashtuns support the idea that the people of Balochistan should have greater control over their political affairs. Balochistan, which is home to Baloch and Pashtun tribes, through this survey reflects Pashtuns’ tilt to national mainstream as against the increased tendency of Balochi separatism in recent years.
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/international/2012/August/international_August432.xml§ion=international&col=
Post a Comment