QUETTA: Two leading political parties in Balochistan held protests on Sunday, demanding a greater share for the province in the Reko Diq project, one of the world's largest underdeveloped sites of copper and gold deposits, where mining is set to resume under a new agreement.
Under the out-of-court deal signed in March, an $11 billion penalty slapped against Pakistan by a World Bank arbitration court and other liabilities has been waived and Barrick Gold and its partners will invest $10 billion in the project. Earlier this month, Pakistan's Supreme Court also endorsed the settlement for Barrick Gold to restart mining in the southwestern province of Balochistan, bordering Afghanistan and Iran.
Under the new deal, 50% shares in Reko Diq will be owned by Barrick, 25% by the Balochistan province and 25% by major Pakistani state-owned enterprises.
However, two major political parties have come out in protest, saying Balochistan should constitutionally own 50% share in the project.
“For the sake of Pakistan’s current economic crisis, we agreed on the Reko Diq project, but in the final agreement, the federal government allocated 25% share for Balochistan, which is unacceptable to the people of Balochistan,” Dr. Jahanzaib Jamaldini, senior member of the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M), told Arab News during a protest demonstration in Quetta on Sunday.
BNP-M is part of the ruling cabinet of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, though party chief Sardar Akhtar Jan Mengal has threatened to part ways with the federal government to protest Balochistan’s inadequate share in the multi-billion dollar Reko Diq deal.
“We can’t stay part of any government which has been exploiting the rights of our people and our resources,” Jamaldini said.
This undated file photo shows a general view of the Reko Diq site. (Photo courtesy: Tethyan Copper Company)
Pakistan's mineral-rich Balochistan is the country’s largest but least developed province, and home to both religious militants and separatist Baloch insurgents who have engaged in insurgency against the government for decades, demanding a greater share of the region's resources.
At a separate protest march held in Quetta on Sunday, members and supporters of the National Party also opposed the mining project over the share of the province.
Ali Langove, the spokesperson of the party, called the Reko Diq agreement “unconstitutional,” and said it would “deprive the people of Balochistan of their due share on their natural resources.”
Representatives of the federal government could not be reached for comment.
Farrah Azeem Shah, a spokesperson for the Balochistan government, said the multi-billion dollar project was vital for the development of the people of Balochistan and should not be "compromised for dirty politics."
“The political leadership of the province inside and outside of the parliament were taken into confidence by Chief Minister Mir Abdul Qudus Bizenjo over the Reko Diq project,” Shah told Arab News.
Speaking on Saturday at the closing ceremony of the 10th National Security Workshop organized by the army and the Balochistan government, Bizenjo had defended the Reko Diq agreement, saying Balochistan had not surrendered its share in revenue from taxes in the project deal.
