Hi readers!
Just read the above title. This is a story published by the Guardian: a British daily newspaper on January 26th, 2025, after the Gwadar Int., Airport inauguration, and is written jointly by
Shah Meer in Gwadar and Hannah Ellis in Delhi (the English language speaks for itself)
You can read the full article at the following link.
The story is full of controversial statements which are placed below for your information (in the original words of the story).
1. Gwadar International Airport was hailed by Pakistan’s government as a step towards “progress and prosperity”.
“Yet the optics of the event told another story. On 20 January 2025, the surrounding city of Gwadar was put under a draconian security lockdown. While several senior Pakistan government and military figures were present, their Chinese government counterparts were noticeably absent, even though it was China footing the $230m bill for the airport”.
2. Gwadar, with its Chinese-sponsored airport, Deepwater port and proposed economic zone, has been touted as a jewel in the crown of the China-Pakistan economic corridor (CPEC), under which China pledged to build around $62bn of infrastructure “megaprojects” spanning airports, highways, railways, ports and power plants for cash-strapped Pakistan.
3. “After a decade, questions are being raised about CPEC’s future as
it has provoked a full-blown security crisis and stirring up tensions between the two countries.
4. Starkly unfulfilled promises that Gwadar would be transformed into “Pakistan’s Dubai” have led to potent anger towards China among locals, who accuse it of turning the city into something akin to a high security prison, with high fencing, segregated areas for Chinese workers, security checkpoints, and heavy police and military presence on the streets.
Local against Chinese says, “Access to the sea has also become restricted around Gwadar’s Deepwater port, which sends 90% of its profits to its Chinese operator”.
“We can barely survive because they are no longer allowed to freely sail and have had their boats raided by security forces while out fishing. We have lost the entire sea,” said 70-year-old fisher Dad Karim. “When we go fishing, it feels like we are going there as thieves and hiding ourselves. The sea or ocean does not belong to the fishermen anymore.
“It belongs to the Chinese.”
5. CPEC has made enemies of many terrorist organizations in Pakistan. The regional separatist militant group Baluchistan (BLA) has accused China of exploiting the area’s resources and embarked on a violent campaign to halt CPEC that continues to escalate.
6. The security of Chinese workers has become such a severe obstacle for CPEC that Phase II of the project still had not begun, and that some of the 26 projects still in the pipeline may be scaled back from original ambitions. China has pulled out swathes of its workforce from Pakistan, and any arrival of Chinese personnel into Gwadar now prompts a military-grade security shutdown.
China’s political secretary to Pakistan, voiced unusually candid criticism of Pakistan over the threats facing CPEC and expressed “serious concerns” over the future of China’s multibillion-dollar investment in the country.
“If the security is not improved, who would come and work in this environment? There is hatred against the Chinese in Gwadar and Baluchistan, ” he said. “Some evil forces are against the CPEC, and they want to sabotage it.”
Is it a hatred for:
China? or
Baluchistan’s prosperity? or
Pak Military? or
Damaging the interests of someone else? or
Economic stability of Pakistan?
Will anyone dare to answer such questions despite everybody’s knowledge?
6. According to the story, The Chinese political secretary to Pakistan Mr. Sheng Jie accused the Pakistani government of using “false rhetoric” around CPEC projects, which had given unrealistic expectations to locals. “We don’t work in rhetoric like Pakistan, we just focus on development,” he said. “If this kind of security situation persists, it will hamper development.”
Isn’t it a bitter and shameful truth?
7. There are concerns over whether China’s true motives behind its investments are more militarily strategic than economic. Many have questioned why Gwadar: a city of about 150,000 people who mostly live below the poverty line, would need Pakistan’s largest airport. Locally, people haven taken to referring to it as a commercial “white elephant.”
We can and are managing over 40,000,000 Afghan refugees for nearly3 generations but, are unable to manage 150,000 locals and allowed to talk freely to all and sundry?
We are unable to convince the handful of people that Chinese are working for our economic security, providing security to them is four religious obligation
8. Several Pakistani officials in Gwadar working on CPEC projects believe China intended to use the Deepwater port as a strategic military base for its navy and the airport as a resource for its military. They say, It is an
“old demand from China” that China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) forces could be brought into Pakistan to guard Chinese workers against attacks, and for Chinese navy ships and submarines to have access to Gwadar port. (Unheard off before. We can not control our own people what to talk about others?
Dear readers! have you realized that we are more “incapable” of what the world think about us, especially our neighboring countries. Imagine! CPEC began in 2015, but we started fighting over western route and eastern route because we heavily publicized it as “game changer”. Has this route been made, the game would have really been changed by now as Pakistan would have been earning revenue of billions of dollars. But we are so incompetent that instead of reaping the benefits, we have made this game changer project a life threat for the locals and those who are sponsoring them.
Can we get out of this quagmire? I guess NO because it is our own creation made purposely. Had it been really under the control of Chinese the entire belt and road project from China to Africa would have been completed by now. Instead, we have put Chinese credibility at stake. When we are unable to do this simple road project how can we think of making Dams and railways and other bigger connection network?
Better give it to China who believe in work and not in rhetoric, optics and sloganeering. Chines can manage her security while sitting on the MARS and MOON while we cannot while sitting on the spot. This is our capability which is now being questioned all over.
See you next week.
Take care, Bye.
