In the backdrop of the attack of Chinese engineers in Pakistan, images have surfaced on social media showing Chinese workers at the China Pakistan Economic Corridor, or CPEC, armed with AK-47 guns to protect themselves. 
 
July 14 saw an attack on a bus that was carrying Chinese engineers to the Dasu dam project in Pakistan's northern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. 
 
Nine Chinese engineers died in the attack, the first on Chinese nationals in the country, with Beijing quick to send its team to investigate it.

The use of AK-47s raises questions about two Special Security Divisions (SSDs) raised by Pakistan to protect Chinese workers and assets in the country. These are 34 Light Infantry Division created in September 2016 and 44 Light Infantry Division created in 2020, each having 15,000 troops.

Chinese workers in Pakistan are involved in CPEC, the mega project that connects China's western region with Gwadar port in the restive Balochistan province. 
 
The aim is to give Chinese products a wider market in West Asia via the project, but questions have been raised about the viability and financial impact of the project.

With billions of dollars pumped into the project, the focus is also on the security of Chinese nationals working on it. It is understood that Beijing has been providing financial assistance to Islamabad so that security cover is given, but the Dasu attack points to a failure.

Meanwhile, this has also been a cause of friction between the Pakistani security officers and the Chinese workers. In the past, fistfights had broken out, with Chinese workers using Pakistani Army vehicles to visit and frequent red-light areas.

The pictures of AK-47s also raise the question of how the Chinese nationals got it. The development is significant in light of China and the Taliban being in touch with each other and the region being infested with international terror groups.

The tabloid Global Times, seen as the spokesperson of the Chinese Communist Party, recently said in a write-up, "making an enemy of the Taliban is not in the interest of China". 
 
This was reciprocated by the Taliban, which called China a friend and its spokesperson, Suhail Shaheen, in an interview with the South China Morning Post, assured them that they would not host Uyghur militants. 
 
The Uyghurs are Muslims living in China's Xinjiang region that borders Afghanistan and has ethnic linkages with Central Asia. 
 
The region has reported a lot of human rights violations by Chinese authorities, leading to large-scale protests and insurgency.

In the backdrop of the attack of Chinese engineers in Pakistan, images have surfaced on social media showing Chinese workers at the China Pakistan Economic Corridor, or CPEC, armed with AK-47 guns to protect themselves.

In the backdrop of the attack of Chinese engineers in Pakistan, images have surfaced on social media showing Chinese workers at the China Pakistan Economic Corridor, or CPEC, armed with AK-47 guns to protect themselves. July 14 saw an attack on a bus that was carrying Chinese engineers to the Dasu dam project in Pakistan's northern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Nine Chinese engineers died in the attack, the first on Chinese nationals in the country, with Beijing quick to send its team to investigate it. The use of AK-47s raises questions about two Special Security Divisions (SSDs) raised by Pakistan to protect Chinese workers and assets in the country. These are 34 Light Infantry Division created in September 2016 and 44 Light Infantry Division created in 2020, each having 15,000 troops. Chinese workers in Pakistan are involved in CPEC, the mega project that connects China's western region with Gwadar port in the restive Balochistan province. The aim is to give Chinese products a wider market in West Asia via the project, but questions have been raised about the viability and financial impact of the project. With billions of dollars pumped into the project, the focus is also on the security of Chinese nationals working on it. It is understood that Beijing has been providing financial assistance to Islamabad so that security cover is given, but the Dasu attack points to a failure. Meanwhile, this has also been a cause of friction between the Pakistani security officers and the Chinese workers. In the past, fistfights had broken out, with Chinese workers using Pakistani Army vehicles to visit and frequent red-light areas. The pictures of AK-47s also raise the question of how the Chinese nationals got it. The development is significant in light of China and the Taliban being in touch with each other and the region being infested with international terror groups. The tabloid Global Times, seen as the spokesperson of the Chinese Communist Party, recently said in a write-up, "making an enemy of the Taliban is not in the interest of China". This was reciprocated by the Taliban, which called China a friend and its spokesperson, Suhail Shaheen, in an interview with the South China Morning Post, assured them that they would not host Uyghur militants. The Uyghurs are Muslims living in China's Xinjiang region that borders Afghanistan and has ethnic linkages with Central Asia. The region has reported a lot of human rights violations by Chinese authorities, leading to large-scale protests and insurgency.

After Dasu bus blast in Pakistan, Chinese engineers working on CPEC spotted carrying AK-47 guns

China on Tuesday said Pakistan has assured that it will provide full security to its citizens and the CPEC projects following the recent terrorist attack on its Consulate in Karachi and that any attempt to sabotage their friendship would not succeed.

Three heavily-armed suicide bombers stormed the Chinese consulate in Pakistan's largest city on November 23, killing four people including two policemen before being shot dead by security forces which foiled the daring attack in the high-security zone.

The attack was soon claimed by the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) which said it would not tolerate "any Chinese military expansionist endeavours on Baloch soil".

"Pakistan has made it clear that they will get to the bottom of this attack, crackdown on the terrorist organisation and enhance the security of Chinese citizens, institutions and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters here.

Praising the swift action by Pakistan's security personnel in warding off the attack, Geng said, "this attack once again showcased the mutual trust, mutual support and friendship between the two governments and two peoples."

He said once again it proved that China-Pakistan relationship is higher than mountains and deeper than the sea.&nbsp;

"We stand by each other through everything and we are all-weather strategic partners in every way," he said.

"I want to reiterate that no attempt to sabotage our friendship will succeed. We will maintain a close communication with Pakistani side. We believe in their ability to ensure domestic security, stability and in taking tough measures to ensure Chinese interests in Pakistan and ensuring the security of Chinese citizens and institutions there," he said.

Also, some institutions and netizens in China are collecting donations to help the families of the policemen killed and injured in the attack. 
Resource-rich Balochistan is at the heart of the Beijing's ambitious China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).&nbsp;

The BLA is opposed to the CPEC, which connects Gwadar Port in Balochistan with China's Xinjiang province, alleging that the project was aimed at exploiting the resources of the province.&nbsp;

China on Tuesday said Pakistan has assured that it will provide full security to its citizens and the CPEC projects following the recent terrorist attack on its Consulate in Karachi and that any attempt to sabotage their friendship would not succeed.

China on Tuesday said Pakistan has assured that it will provide full security to its citizens and the CPEC projects following the recent terrorist attack on its Consulate in Karachi and that any attempt to sabotage their friendship would not succeed. Three heavily-armed suicide bombers stormed the Chinese consulate in Pakistan's largest city on November 23, killing four people including two policemen before being shot dead by security forces which foiled the daring attack in the high-security zone. The attack was soon claimed by the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) which said it would not tolerate "any Chinese military expansionist endeavours on Baloch soil". "Pakistan has made it clear that they will get to the bottom of this attack, crackdown on the terrorist organisation and enhance the security of Chinese citizens, institutions and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters here. Praising the swift action by Pakistan's security personnel in warding off the attack, Geng said, "this attack once again showcased the mutual trust, mutual support and friendship between the two governments and two peoples." He said once again it proved that China-Pakistan relationship is higher than mountains and deeper than the sea. "We stand by each other through everything and we are all-weather strategic partners in every way," he said. "I want to reiterate that no attempt to sabotage our friendship will succeed. We will maintain a close communication with Pakistani side. We believe in their ability to ensure domestic security, stability and in taking tough measures to ensure Chinese interests in Pakistan and ensuring the security of Chinese citizens and institutions there," he said. Also, some institutions and netizens in China are collecting donations to help the families of the policemen killed and injured in the attack. Resource-rich Balochistan is at the heart of the Beijing's ambitious China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The BLA is opposed to the CPEC, which connects Gwadar Port in Balochistan with China's Xinjiang province, alleging that the project was aimed at exploiting the resources of the province.

Pakistan assured full security to our nationals, CPEC following terror attack on Consulate: China

China said on Monday that Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's maiden visit to Beijing this week will open a new chapter in the all-weather bilateral relations, amid reports of his plans to downsize the CPEC projects and seek Chinese loans to avoid the IMF bailout.

Khan will arrive in china on November 2, his first visit to China since he assumed the office in August. He will hold meetings with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang and the two sides will review the entire range of bilateral relations.

"You know that this is Prime Minister Imran Khan's first visit to China after assuming the office. This will provide an opportunity for the leaders of our two countries to open a new chapter of the development of bilateral relations under the new circumstances," Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told the media here.

Lu said the $60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has achieved fruitful outcome and "our friendship has become ever deeper to deeper".

The CPEC is the flagship venture of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a pet project of President Xi aimed at enhancing Beijing's influence around the world through China-funded infrastructure projects.

Khan is visiting China amid anxieties here over his government's plans to downsize some of the projects like $8 billion Karachi-Peshawar railway line by about USD two billion.

Cash-strapped Pakistan has also approached International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a bailout package but Khan has said his country need not approach the international lender as his government is consulting some friendly countries and seeking their help.

An assessment by the State Bank of Pakistan and the Finance Ministry showed that Pakistan needed $ 11.7 billion to service its external debt in current fiscal year 2018-19.

The IMF also wants to scrutinise the CPEC projects.

During his recent visit to Saudi Arabia, Khan secured USD three billion loan assistance and differed oil payment to the tune of USD three billion. 
Reports from Pakistan say he may seek more loans from China to tide over cash crunch back home.

"We hope the two sides can take this visit as an opportunity to deepen our cooperation across the board and to move forward all-weather cooperative partnership," Lu said.

He said apart from official events in Beijing, Khan will also travel to Shanghai to attend the first China International Import Expo on November 4.

"I want to stress that China and Pakistan are all-weather strategic cooperative partners. Our friendship date back to long time and our two sides enjoy very strong political mutual trust," Lu said.

The bilateral relations will not be affected by changing international situation and the domestic situation, he said.

China said on Monday that Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's maiden visit to Beijing this week will open a new chapter in the all-weather bilateral relations, amid reports of his plans to downsize the CPEC projects and seek Chinese loans to avoid the IMF bailout.

China said on Monday that Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's maiden visit to Beijing this week will open a new chapter in the all-weather bilateral relations, amid reports of his plans to downsize the CPEC projects and seek Chinese loans to avoid the IMF bailout. Khan will arrive in china on November 2, his first visit to China since he assumed the office in August. He will hold meetings with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang and the two sides will review the entire range of bilateral relations. "You know that this is Prime Minister Imran Khan's first visit to China after assuming the office. This will provide an opportunity for the leaders of our two countries to open a new chapter of the development of bilateral relations under the new circumstances," Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told the media here. Lu said the $60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has achieved fruitful outcome and "our friendship has become ever deeper to deeper". The CPEC is the flagship venture of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a pet project of President Xi aimed at enhancing Beijing's influence around the world through China-funded infrastructure projects. Khan is visiting China amid anxieties here over his government's plans to downsize some of the projects like $8 billion Karachi-Peshawar railway line by about USD two billion. Cash-strapped Pakistan has also approached International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a bailout package but Khan has said his country need not approach the international lender as his government is consulting some friendly countries and seeking their help. An assessment by the State Bank of Pakistan and the Finance Ministry showed that Pakistan needed $ 11.7 billion to service its external debt in current fiscal year 2018-19. The IMF also wants to scrutinise the CPEC projects. During his recent visit to Saudi Arabia, Khan secured USD three billion loan assistance and differed oil payment to the tune of USD three billion. Reports from Pakistan say he may seek more loans from China to tide over cash crunch back home. "We hope the two sides can take this visit as an opportunity to deepen our cooperation across the board and to move forward all-weather cooperative partnership," Lu said. He said apart from official events in Beijing, Khan will also travel to Shanghai to attend the first China International Import Expo on November 4. "I want to stress that China and Pakistan are all-weather strategic cooperative partners. Our friendship date back to long time and our two sides enjoy very strong political mutual trust," Lu said. The bilateral relations will not be affected by changing international situation and the domestic situation, he said.

Imran Khan's visit will open new chapter in all-weather ties: China

&nbsp;

By Dr. Amiera Sawas &amp;&nbsp;<a href="http://theconversation.com/profiles/dr-nausheen-h-anwar-388151" rel="author">Dr. Nausheen H. Anwar</a>*

In Pakistan, there&rsquo;s no topic hotter than the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), <a href="https://theconversation.com/in-china-and-pakistans-coal-romance-wheres-the-love-for-the-climate-74772" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">a multi-billion dollar bilateral development project</a> that will officials <a href="http://www.na.gov.pk/uploads/documents/1432624359_362.pdf" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">promised</a> in 2015, &ldquo;usher in an era of unprecedented progress and prosperity&rdquo;.

The CPEC is not only Pakistan&rsquo;s first big injection of <a href="https://tribune.com.pk/story/1328206/foreign-direct-investment-amounts-1-16b-7mfy17-10/">foreign direct investment in a while</a>, its focus on energy development is also desperately needed in a country that has suffered <a href="http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&amp;task=view&amp;id=31&amp;Itemid=74&amp;jumival=10391">worsening energy shortages</a> for two decades.

With renewables constituting much of the US$33 billion earmarked for energy, the CPEC is also set to make Pakistan <a href="http://www4.unfccc.int/Submissions/INDC/Published%20Documents/Pakistan/1/Pak-INDC.pdf">a global player in meeting its Paris agreement commitments</a> to fight climate change. And for its bulging, skilled <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/1286221">youth population</a>, development promises something truly critical: jobs, jobs, jobs.

<figure class="align-center "><img alt="" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/178076/width754/file-20170713-2491-yp7vm4.JPG" />
<figcaption>
To mitigate possible hostility from local residents, the government set up a public consultation in Sindh.

The land and the losers
</figcaption>
</figure>

At least, that&rsquo;s the theory. Not everyone sees the changes wrought by the CPEC so positively.

On July 13, the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency, in the southern province of Sindh, held a consultation with locals concerned about coal expansion in Ranjho Noon, Thar, a desert region shared with India&rsquo;s Rajasthan state.

The meeting concerned the fourth of 13 planned blocks of CPEC coal projects in Thar, and where serious resistance has already greeted Block 2, now underway.

<a href="http://www.paccsresearch.org.uk/gendered-politics-dispossession-pakistan/">Based on our fieldwork with those being impacted</a> by CPEC-funded energy projects, growing citizen mobilisation in Sindh and Punjab may be turning into a political problem for Pakistan.

Projects planned for some of <a href="http://www.pk.undp.org/content/pakistan/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2016/06/20/pakistan-s-new-poverty-index-reveals-that-4-out-of-10-pakistanis-live-in-multidimensional-poverty.html">the poorest rural areas</a>, including one of the world&rsquo;s biggest solar parks (<a href="https://www.qasolar.com/">Qaid-e-Azam park</a>, in Punjab) and <a href="https://theconversation.com/in-china-and-pakistans-coal-romance-wheres-the-love-for-the-climate-74772">coal and gas exploration</a> in Thar (Sindh) promise prosperity through infrastructural progress, livelihood opportunities and climate resilience.

But while CPEC projects are already benefiting the national economy, the boon is less assured for those living in the project regions. To start with, for such projects, you need land and lots of it. Many of the residents in CPEC target areas are homesteaders, pastoralists and small business owners who hold customary land rights, inherited over decades or centuries.

Often, community members have no official deed to their property or to the common grazing land their livelihoods depend on. Without official papers, their land is seen as government-owned, and ripe for the taking.

The United Nations&rsquo; <a href="http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/documents/DRIPS_en.pdf">Free, Prior and Informed Consent</a> norm is meant to keep people facing such situations, whether in Pakistan or Bolivia, from <a href="https://theconversation.com/global/topics/indigenous-land-rights-15000">being dispossessed and displaced</a>. But in Pakistan, where the CPEC is helping the economy <a href="http://www.valuewalk.com/2017/05/pakistan-economy-cpec/">revive from stagnation</a>, development aid has long been <a href="https://tribune.com.pk/story/1120372/politics-us-aid-pakistan/">politicised</a>, and proper consultation and compensation will be difficult to ensure.

<figure class="align-center "><img alt="" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/177881/width754/file-20170712-19670-520twr.jpg" />
<figcaption>
A CPEC road in Tharparkar District, Sindh.

We found that, so far, many of the initiatives have been carried out without free, prior and informed consent, creating unnecessary tensions between environmental projects and local people and raising concerns about <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/wcc.409/full">maladaptation</a> as the country progress towards its <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/explainer-what-are-intended-nationally-determined-contributions">Nationally Determined Contributions</a> climate plan.
</figcaption>
</figure>

For example, one farmer in Muzaffargarh, Punjab, told us that his community had seen displacement, severe pollution and a surge in waterborne diseases since a geothermal project started there in 1994.

Nor did the community receive promised benefits, such as electricity and employment. In these mega-projects, jobs in construction, driving, engineering and especially management seem rarely to be offered to locals. Instead, Pakistanis from all over the country are brought in to fill them.

The farmer told us about ongoing resistance to a planned CPEC project that the government had thus far failed to heed. At this point, he said, they should expect violent opposition.

&ldquo;We will stand and fight,&rdquo; he warned. &ldquo;We are a hundred thousand people, not just a few thousand.&rdquo;

Lower Punjab has seen a disproportionate amount of energy development in recent years, <a href="http://pakchina.pk/energy-sector-projects-cpec/">housing six major energy plants within a 28-kilometre radius</a>. The region is inhabited by the <a href="http://pu.edu.pk/images/journal/pols/pdf-files/Rehana%20-%20Gulshan_V21_Issue1_2014.pdf">Seraiki population</a>, a marginalised ethnic group that is all but invisible to the state.

Even when inhabitants are not directly displaced by infrastructure projects, their livelihoods are often endangered. Livestock routes are truncated by construction; streams and rivers are suddenly polluted.

One woman from Sindh reported that five pipelines had been run through her village, and that construction noise had become unbearable.

&ldquo;They even blocked our access to hospitals&rdquo;, she said, also lamenting that when strange men appeared in the fields, &ldquo;we must cover our faces&rdquo;.

Such incursions feel like a threat to local culture, particularly regarding gender norms. A man from the same village complained that while local men are not recruited as labourers, developers have sought to train women as drivers.

&ldquo;We told them we won&rsquo;t allow our women to do this!&rdquo; he said with disbelief. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t trust [the developers]&rdquo;.

The net result for women is that their lives have now become more restricted, both by ongoing construction and by the male response to it.

Fear and anxiety

Many Pakistanis we spoke with in both Punjab and Sindh perceive CPEC development as just another form of oppression: a way to grab land and resources, further marginalising already vulnerable populations.

The CPEC agreement was designed primarily to ensure <a href="https://theconversation.com/after-isis-killings-in-pakistan-china-blames-the-victims-79787">the security of Chinese investments and citizens</a>. To keep the <a href="http://dunyanews.tv/en/Pakistan/350311-Govt-mulls-using-drones-for-CPEC-security">8,000-plus Chinese CPEC workers in Pakistan</a> safe, the government is securing concerned areas using invasive monitoring tools such as internet surveillance, stop-and-search policing and <a href="http://dunyanews.tv/en/Pakistan/396641-CPEC-project-Jammers-to-be-installed-for-Chinese-">phone jammers</a>.

<figure class="align-center "><img alt="" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/files/177883/width754/file-20170712-19642-ibzjsc.JPG" />
<figcaption>
The Qaid-e-Azam plant in Punjab, the biggest solar project in the world.

No such steps ensure Pakistani citizens&rsquo; well-being. The result of all this change, anxiety and resentment is a <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/1312937">burgeoning resistance</a>.
</figcaption>
</figure>

In February 2017, representatives from 12 Sindhi villages affected by the Gorano Dam, a reservoir intended to collect the waste water from coal and gas exploration, held a &ldquo;patriotic&rdquo; protest calling for the dam to be relocated to prevent poisoning local people and their livestock.

&ldquo;No one is listening to us,&rdquo; one of the protest&rsquo;s coordinators told us. &ldquo;Our basic rights are being snatched.&rdquo;

He estimated that 15,000 people, 2,000 animals and 200,000 trees depended on the land now designated for destruction, as well as &ldquo;fresh-water wells [and] our ancestors&rsquo; graveyard&rdquo;.

If Pakistan&rsquo;s government and CPEC developers continue to ignore these citizens, anxieties will fester. Already, discontent around the CPEC is being used by <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/1312937">local political parties</a> to bolster separatist narratives in Sindh, which has <a href="http://newsweekpakistan.com/mother-sindh-and-the-making-of-pakistan/">long-standing grievances</a> over resource-sharing with the upper-river province of Punjab.

<img alt="The Conversation" height="1" src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/80704/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" width="1" />To secure truly sustainable, safe and equitable development, the governments of both China and Pakistan must improve consultation and communication with impacted local populations. Otherwise, the price of Chinese investment may be too high for Pakistan to pay.

&nbsp;

*<a href="http://theconversation.com/profiles/dr-nausheen-h-anwar-388151" rel="author">Dr Nausheen H. Anwar</a> is Associate Professor City &amp; Regional Planning, Institute of Business Administration, Karachi

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/for-pakistan-chinas-huge-energy-investments-may-have-serious-political-costs-80704">original article</a>.

&nbsp;

Meant to boost the national economy, China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is causing displacement, severe pollution and a surge in waterborne diseases.

By Dr. Amiera Sawas & Dr. Nausheen H. Anwar* In Pakistan, there’s no topic hotter than the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a multi-billion dollar bilateral development project that will officials promised in 2015, “usher in an era of unprecedented progress and prosperity”. The CPEC is not only Pakistan’s first big injection of foreign direct investment in a while, its focus on energy development is also desperately needed in a country that has suffered worsening energy shortages for two decades. With renewables constituting much of the US$33 billion earmarked for energy, the CPEC is also set to make Pakistan a global player in meeting its Paris agreement commitments to fight climate change. And for its bulging, skilled youth population, development promises something truly critical: jobs, jobs, jobs. To mitigate possible hostility from local residents, the government set up a public consultation in Sindh. The land and the losers At least, that’s the theory. Not everyone sees the changes wrought by the CPEC so positively. On July 13, the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency, in the southern province of Sindh, held a consultation with locals concerned about coal expansion in Ranjho Noon, Thar, a desert region shared with India’s Rajasthan state. The meeting concerned the fourth of 13 planned blocks of CPEC coal projects in Thar, and where serious resistance has already greeted Block 2, now underway. Based on our fieldwork with those being impacted by CPEC-funded energy projects, growing citizen mobilisation in Sindh and Punjab may be turning into a political problem for Pakistan. Projects planned for some of the poorest rural areas, including one of the world’s biggest solar parks (Qaid-e-Azam park, in Punjab) and coal and gas exploration in Thar (Sindh) promise prosperity through infrastructural progress, livelihood opportunities and climate resilience. But while CPEC projects are already benefiting the national economy, the boon is less assured for those living in the project regions. To start with, for such projects, you need land and lots of it. Many of the residents in CPEC target areas are homesteaders, pastoralists and small business owners who hold customary land rights, inherited over decades or centuries. Often, community members have no official deed to their property or to the common grazing land their livelihoods depend on. Without official papers, their land is seen as government-owned, and ripe for the taking. The United Nations’ Free, Prior and Informed Consent norm is meant to keep people facing such situations, whether in Pakistan or Bolivia, from being dispossessed and displaced. But in Pakistan, where the CPEC is helping the economy revive from stagnation, development aid has long been politicised, and proper consultation and compensation will be difficult to ensure. A CPEC road in Tharparkar District, Sindh. We found that, so far, many of the initiatives have been carried out without free, prior and informed consent, creating unnecessary tensions between environmental projects and local people and raising concerns about maladaptation as the country progress towards its Nationally Determined Contributions climate plan. For example, one farmer in Muzaffargarh, Punjab, told us that his community had seen displacement, severe pollution and a surge in waterborne diseases since a geothermal project started there in 1994. Nor did the community receive promised benefits, such as electricity and employment. In these mega-projects, jobs in construction, driving, engineering and especially management seem rarely to be offered to locals. Instead, Pakistanis from all over the country are brought in to fill them. The farmer told us about ongoing resistance to a planned CPEC project that the government had thus far failed to heed. At this point, he said, they should expect violent opposition. “We will stand and fight,” he warned. “We are a hundred thousand people, not just a few thousand.” Lower Punjab has seen a disproportionate amount of energy development in recent years, housing six major energy plants within a 28-kilometre radius. The region is inhabited by the Seraiki population, a marginalised ethnic group that is all but invisible to the state. Even when inhabitants are not directly displaced by infrastructure projects, their livelihoods are often endangered. Livestock routes are truncated by construction; streams and rivers are suddenly polluted. One woman from Sindh reported that five pipelines had been run through her village, and that construction noise had become unbearable. “They even blocked our access to hospitals”, she said, also lamenting that when strange men appeared in the fields, “we must cover our faces”. Such incursions feel like a threat to local culture, particularly regarding gender norms. A man from the same village complained that while local men are not recruited as labourers, developers have sought to train women as drivers. “We told them we won’t allow our women to do this!” he said with disbelief. “We don’t trust [the developers]”. The net result for women is that their lives have now become more restricted, both by ongoing construction and by the male response to it. Fear and anxiety Many Pakistanis we spoke with in both Punjab and Sindh perceive CPEC development as just another form of oppression: a way to grab land and resources, further marginalising already vulnerable populations. The CPEC agreement was designed primarily to ensure the security of Chinese investments and citizens. To keep the 8,000-plus Chinese CPEC workers in Pakistan safe, the government is securing concerned areas using invasive monitoring tools such as internet surveillance, stop-and-search policing and phone jammers. The Qaid-e-Azam plant in Punjab, the biggest solar project in the world. No such steps ensure Pakistani citizens’ well-being. The result of all this change, anxiety and resentment is a burgeoning resistance. In February 2017, representatives from 12 Sindhi villages affected by the Gorano Dam, a reservoir intended to collect the waste water from coal and gas exploration, held a “patriotic” protest calling for the dam to be relocated to prevent poisoning local people and their livestock. “No one is listening to us,” one of the protest’s coordinators told us. “Our basic rights are being snatched.” He estimated that 15,000 people, 2,000 animals and 200,000 trees depended on the land now designated for destruction, as well as “fresh-water wells [and] our ancestors’ graveyard”. If Pakistan’s government and CPEC developers continue to ignore these citizens, anxieties will fester. Already, discontent around the CPEC is being used by local political parties to bolster separatist narratives in Sindh, which has long-standing grievances over resource-sharing with the upper-river province of Punjab. To secure truly sustainable, safe and equitable development, the governments of both China and Pakistan must improve consultation and communication with impacted local populations. Otherwise, the price of Chinese investment may be too high for Pakistan to pay. *Dr Nausheen H. Anwar is Associate Professor City & Regional Planning, Institute of Business Administration, Karachi This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

For Pakistan, China's huge energy investments may have serious political costs

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After Dasu bus blast in Pakistan, Chinese engineers working on CPEC spotted carrying AK-47 guns

Pakistan assured full security to our nationals, CPEC following terror attack on Consulate: China

Imran Khan's visit will open new chapter in all-weather ties: China

For Pakistan, China's huge energy investments may have serious political costs