US lawmaker's resolution slammed

Islamabad: A US congressman has sparked outrage in Pakistan by calling for the secession of the country's largest province, further complicating Washington's efforts to resuscitate its vital anti-terrorism alliance with Islamabad. Representative Dana Rohrabacher, a Republican from California, proposed a non-binding resolution last week stating that the Baloch people, who live in Pakistan's Balochistan province and also in parts of Iran and Afghanistan, "have the right to self-determination and to their own sovereign country".

Nationalists in Baloch-istan have waged a decades-long insurgency against the government. Some want greater autonomy within Pakistan and a larger share of the province's natural resources, but others demand an independent country.

The Obama administration has rejected Rohrabacher's call for an independent Balochistan, which received little attention in the US.

It has also explained it does not control the actions of congressmen.

But the response has not placated the Pakistani government, which summoned the deputy US ambassador and claimed the resolution violated "the United Nations charter, international law and recognised norms of interstate conduct".

Pandering to opposition

Rasul Bakhsh Rais, professor of political science at Lahore University of Management Sciences, said Pakistan's civilian leaders have reacted angrily to prevent the government's opponents from accusing it of tolerating US meddling.

"Not doing anything would have given the opposition an opportunity to say the government is tolerant of American interference in Pakistan's internal affairs, and therefore it has overreacted to one man's move in the House of Representatives," said Rais.

A non-binding resolution allows the US Congress to express its approval or disapproval of an issue, but the motion does not become law. Conspiracy theorists in Pakistan have long alleged that the US wants to break up the country or take away its nuclear weapons.

The storm over the non-binding resolution reflects this narrative, which is espoused by right-wing politicians and army generals.

The US has given Pakistan billions of dollars in aid over the past decade to enlist its support in fighting militants.