As federating units are asking for greater control over their resources and allocation of federal funds, not on population but also on needs basis, B.M. Kutty, a close associate of Mir Bizenjo, has pieced together valuable information on why the Baloch people are expressing discontent. It also helps us understand as to why some of them, including Sardars, who have benefited from Pakistan, are advocating independence by taking advantage of the second phase of the Great Game, under the US leadership.

The book contains valuable information about the early days of the Baloch national struggle, role of the leftist parties in Pakistan and dismissal of the NAP-led government in NWFP and Balochistan, as well as the events that culminatd in the emergence of Bangladesh and the PNA movement that led to the overthrow of Mr Bhutto's government.

Being an ardent leftist, Mir Bizenjo firmly believed in democracy and considered it incomplete without federalism and autonomy for the federating units. He believed that the root cause of the instability in our region is 'foreign interference'. In the given circumstances his analysis is still valid; be it the Iran-Iraq war or the on-going Afghanistan crisis, the periodical army takeovers in Pakistan, the decades-old Arab-Israel conflict, or the endemic hostility between Pakistan and India — all are links in the same chain, says the author.

Perhaps his observation that 'the ruling elite of Punjab denied legitimate participation to others in the country's governance,' still dominates our politics and the perception that 'all policies and plans were drawn up by them, for them and any obstacle in their way was removed with the help of the bureaucracy and the armed forces' has become deep-rooted. 'It has been like a cycle — some sort of toothless democratic dispensation running the country for a certain period, followed by army rule replacing it for a few years, then giving way to a civil dispensation for another few years — and so the cycle continues till today', Bizenjo said.

The book also contains his views on 'how Z.A. Bhutto proceeded to construct his 'new Pakistan' and how his dealings with the NAP-JUI governments led to their dismissal. He maintained that four and a half years of military action in Balochistan got Bhutto nowhere.

Despite being an ardent critic of Bhutto's policies, Bizenjo nevertheless thought that though the generals' greed for power had to do much with this unfortunate turn of events, most politicians were so blinded by their hatred of Bhutto that they were willing to shake hands with the devil if it would help them to get rid of Bhutto. They failed to realise that with all his personal faults and despite the odious things his government did, he still represented some sort of a democratic facade which was better than a military dictatorship.

Bizenjo was of the view that Bhutto's military action in Balochistan gave birth to extremist tendencies among the youth. The subsequent decade of Zia's rule further sharpened these tendencies as Balochistan continued to be denied its legitimate rights within the federation. Today the political leadership in Balochistan and the youth seem to have arrived at the conclusion that there is no future for smaller nationalities in Pakistan.

He recalls a meeting of senior detained members of NAP from Balochistan in Hyderabad jail to take a final decision on what the future course of action should be. Two viewpoints emerged (1) Fight for national rights within the framework of Pakistan; suspend the resistance movement which has taken the path of violence; call the men back from the mountains; (2) Upgrade the present movement into a full-fledged struggle for separation from Pakistan; those who are in the mountains be asked to stay there and reorganise themselves for this mission.

Nawab Khair Bakhsh, Sardar Ataullah and three other comrades were of the opinion that the Baloch or for that matter any other small nationality has no future in Pakistan. Their argument ran as follows Punjab will not let any other nationality live with honour and dignity. If East Pakistan, despite its numerical and electoral majority, could be exploited and oppressed with impunity to the extent that they were left with no option but to secede, who is going to pay heed to the wailings of the Baloch with their miniscule size in terms of numbers? The blood and sweat we will squander in the futile exercise or seeking to reform Pakistan should be saved for the noble cause of the liberation of Baluchistan. Therefore, no move should be made to bring back the men who are still in the mountains or in Afghanistan. Incidentally, these sardars are in the forefront of the current Baloch struggle.

Perhaps the second view is gaining strength even today because the ruling elite's mindset has not changed, nor have the ways of the sardars who use the youth as fodder for achieving their objectives.

Bizenjo, however, was of the opinion that the aim of Baloch mobilisation should not be predicated on Punjab-bashing and secession. On the contrary, the Baloch people should unite and fight for the political and economic rights of different nationalities within the framework of Pakistan.

He argued that their struggle should consist of the demand that each province should have exclusive and indisputable control over all its resources and they should be politically and economically autonomous and sovereign as explicitly stated in the 1940 Lahore Resolution. Only such powers shall be conceded to the centre on which all the units are unanimous and without which their defence and development can be hampered. These issues are still very important and must be given serious thought by the parties concerned.

Bizenjo has cited an example of the cynicism of the mindset of Pakistani rulers when he dealt with the East Pakistan situation. He had a meeting with General Yahya Khan some time before 1970 elections. When the issue of East Pakistan came up, the general had this to say 'Sooner or later, East Pakistan will have to be amputated. And if at all that is to happen, why let them suck our blood for two or three more years?'

The question is has this mind set changed?

Unfortunately the intelligentsia and the leaders of the smaller provinces are finding it increasingly difficult to bear the burden of persistent denial and suppression of their rights by the dominant group by force of its sheer numerical majority and its predominant position in the bureaucracy and armed forces. They are faced with a real battle for hearts and minds.

In Search of Solutions
An autobiography of Mir Ghaus Baksh Bizenjo
Edited By B.M. Kutty
Pakistan Study Centre, University of Karachi & Pakistan Labour Trust, Karachi
ISBN 978-969-8791-22-3
270pp. Rs400