Syeda Mazhar
The CPEC (China Pakistan Economic Corridor) was launched amidst a lot of hope and expectations of the Pakistani people and also the Pakistan government. The 46 Billion project was viewed as a life saver for the worsening economic structure of Pakistan. It is expected to change the complexion of the country both economically as well as a socially due to its reach in the undeveloped areas. While the project has strengthened the relationship with the great economic giant that china is, most other countries are apprehensive to see Pakistan prosper or to see China getting access to warm waters and potentially more powerful. While there are many outside factors which are monitoring the progress in a hawk-like manner, our neighbours have already executed series of incidents to sabotage the project to hinder its smooth takeoff.
We hope that the bigwigs of Pakistan are more aware and a step ahead to counter any untoward incident or plan to threaten this multifaceted project. One saddening and ever present conflict remains that of lack of domestic consensus. When CPEC was initially launched, every mainstream political party supported it, including the ruling Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PMNL-N). However their enthusiasm turned to political bickering when the all-powerful genie of the government in power came roaring out of its bottle, turning and twisting the route of CPEC. Obviously the economically weaker provinces have started to create a hue and cry and were justified in doing so. They felt that their province’s reservations about CPEC are not being addressed. The Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Perwez Khattak said, “It is not a western route but merely a road, because it has no such infrastructure that would improve the condition of neglected provinces such as KP, Balochistan and Gilgit Baltistan”. Although he has a valid point but any road will ultimately bring prosperity to the region. Therefore all differences should be set aside and the project should continue as planned.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has already chaired an All Parties Conference to address provincial grievances and has formed a committee to handle the issues. Regional parties from KPK (Tehreek-e Insaf, Jamaat Islami and Awami National Party) and Balochistan (Balochistan National Party- Mengel) have also organized APCs to discuss the provincial concerns. The issues have flared up so much that even China has felt it necessary to put out a statement urging parties to overcome their differences. It is a shameful and embarrassing situation when the Spokesman from the Chinese Embassy in Islamabad had to say, “Relevant parties should strengthen their communication and coordination on the matter”.
Another aspect that needs to be given consideration is the status of Gilgit Baltistan. While Gilgit Baltistan is the gateway to Pakistan from China, there is no proposed hydropower scheme, economic zone or infrastructure development plan- all of which the region desperately needs. Gilgit Baltistan is underdeveloped lacks legal status due to which it is not getting its fair share of CPEC attention. Pakistan’s assertion that it has semi-autonomous control over Azad Kashmir is probably not convincing enough for Chinese authorities. To pacify the Chinese the Pakistani government is now working to give Gilgit Baltistan constitutional status by making it the country’s fifth province. Giving Gilgit Baltistan provincial status will not only be bold but also tricky. The region is part of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir and therefore India also lays claim to it. China is rightly apprehensive in investing billions of dollars on a road that passes through a disputed territory.
Another major and continuous hurdle for the progress of the CPEC is the security condition of Pakistan. Many Chinese workers have already lost their lives in Pakistan during different projects. However their commitment to Pakistan and progression in general is unrivaled that they are still willing to work in such security threatened environment. Our part to ensure their security should be fool proof and all out efforts should be made to make them comfortable and secure. For this the government has already decided to install 10,000 army personnel under the command of a major general whose primary objective will be to safeguard Chines engineers and guard the entire trade route. For this deployment has already been initiated. This is such a positive and welcome stance that it clearly indicates that the civilian and military leadership are on the same page for this strategically vital project. Islamabad is doing its best to eliminate anti-China elements from its territory. For pacifying the detractors of CPEC, both china and Pakistan need to engage in exterior diplomatic maneuvers for assuring the world that CPEC will benefit the entire region and will result in a win-win situation for all. It is heartening that amidst the persistent security threats, political ailments China remains steadfast and strong in their commitment towards Pakistan and progress.
