Save Gilgit-Baltistan

By Dj mathal

Human rights in Gilgit-Baltistan have been trampled for the last over 61 years. These have not been limited to accidental violations of rights but the population in the region has been badly affected by the situation as a whole. Gilgit-Baltistan is the only region in the 21st century where over two million people are still being deprived of their basic economic, social, political and constitutional rights. It will not be out of tune to say that this region of 28,000 square miles is like a jail in which the two million people are imprisoned. As inmates of a jail are forced to live their lives in accordance with the prison manual, people of Gilgit-Baltistan have no other option but to live under the so-called Legal Framework Order formulated by the Kashmir and Northern Areas (KANA) Division in Islamabad. Now the LFO has been renamed as Good Governance Ordinance. This is an open cruelty which has completely destroyed the people’s lives within the last over six decades. Two generations of our people have already sunk into the swamp of illiteracy and poverty while the third is at the verge of destruction and annihilation.
Recently, prominent human rights activist Asma Jrhangir spoke at length on human rights violations in Gilgit-Baltistan at the annual convention of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. The crux of her discussion in Lahore was that people of Gilgit-Baltistan have been denied their basic rights including that of self-determination. As a result, the people have collectively become weaker and groups have besieged them by using the scourge of sectarianism as a weapon. She said due to the absence of the writ of the state, sectarianism was raising its ugly head in the region. Had the people been given their right of running their affairs in accordance with their own wishes, the situation would have been completely different today. Ms Jehangir’s assertion that sectarianism raised it head when government’s writ failed to prevail is very right. In this context, it is feared that Gilgit-Baltistan will be the next target of extremist forces of Swat and Fata. The recent statement of the inspector-general of police Northern Areas has further strengthened the notion. The police chief declared to the masses that extremists and terrorists can enter the districts of Chilas and Ghizer via the Karakoram Highway. He also acknowledged that the police, because of shortage of staff, would not be in a position to handle the situation. This wave of fear has further created anxiety among the people already living under the clouds of disappointment and deprivation.
In our last issue, we had pointed towards the human rights violation cases in Gilgit-Baltistan and had requested the Chief Justice of Pakistan to at least ensure the implementation of its own verdict of 1999. Terming the call to the CJP the demand of the whole people of the region, the masses have communicated to us that there was a need for the apex court to form a larger bench and time bound the state to ensure the implementation of the verdict and give the region a representative and powerful assembly. It is necessary that the Supreme Court should save the region before terrorists and extremists take it over.
We again refer to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan convention at Lahore where it was stated that a fact-finding mission in its report in 2006 had showed that the people of Gilgit-Baltistan wanted provincial autonomy and, therefore, the government should take immediate steps. However, no attention was paid to the report. Ms Asma Jehangir further said the writ of the state was not visible anywhere in Gilgit-Baltistan as bureaucracy held sway there. She is also absolutely right because had there been the writ of the state the menace of sectarianism would not have taken its roots. None of the responsible persons behind the many incidents of sectarian killings have ever been brought to justice in the region so far. Despite deployment of additional units of Rangers and other law enforcers, there is no peace in the area. As a result, extremists and terrorists have started making a safe haven there. The recent email threats to Musharbrum Hotel in Skardu are one such example of their rising presence in the region. The local administration has failed to take any measures against the threats despite the passage of a week. This has further created panic among the masses and would certainly destroy the hotel and tourism industry. If extremists and terrorists enter this area it will not remain confined to this area rather it will engulf the whole region right from the Central Asian states to China and Russia. India has since 1947 been waiting for such a moment to strike a blow on Pakistan. If Gilgit-Baltistan is targeted by drones or India goes for a surgical strike, who will be the responsible?
The people of Gilgit-Baltistan do not want their area to be like Swat or Waziristan. Therefore, their eyes are now on the Chief Justice of Pakistan who can save the region from chaos and destruction.
(www.weeklybaang.blogspot.com)

GB getting out Pakistan's hands

By Dj mathal

Pakistan is such an unfortunate country which is being destroyed at the hands of its own caretakers. The country is located on a land which has been bestowed with all nature's wealth but due to their myopic vision and shortsightedness, its rulers have never tried to explore the God-gifted resources for the good of the people. Due to these shortsightedness of the Pakistani leaders, half of the country was lost in 1971 but the debacle failed even to make the so-called leaders careful of not repeating the blunders they had been committing. The umpteenth blunders of the leaders have now put the four units of the federation at stake and the country is facing worst types of crises in its history. Three small provinces of the country consider the biggest province of Punjab as usurper of their rights and now they are hell-bent on seeking separate status for themselves. In the NWFP, a number of areas have virtually slipped out of the control of Pakistan. In Balochistan, the situation is even more critical, where the state has failed to protect the life and property of the people and is alleged to be involved in forced disappearance and killing of nationalist leaders. There is resentment among the Baloch and the people are openly demanding separation. The tension with Balochistan can spiral into Punjab any time soon. In Sindh, the situation is also not satisfactory; where the Sindhis have already chanted the slogan of Pakistan Na Khapey (Don't want Pakistan).Why all such incidents are happening; the answer is very clear and simple. The biggest province of the federation, Punjab, has been controlling all resources of the country at the cost of the smaller provinces. The armed forces also mainly comprised people of Punjab. Until the Punjabi generals, landlords, politicians and vaderas get themselves satiated, they never want to give anything to others. They loot the resources of the other provinces on the pretext of federation's share which actually go to the coffers of Punjabi elites. As a result, those deserving are deprived of their rightsUnfortunately, Pakistani rulers very quickly forgot that the demands chanted on the streets of Dhaka before 1971 were against Punjab and for public rights. But the rulers of Pakistan especially the Punjabi lords not only did not learn lesson from the blunder of 1971 but also went one step ahead in repeating them. When the people of former East Pakistan were treated like third class citizens, the situation reached such a pass that they came up with their own six-point demands. But the rulers considered that a joke and did not take it seriously. As a result, the country was dismembered. Had the rulers took some serious steps to resolve the grievances of the Bengalis, today the situation might have been different.The people of Gilgit-Baltistan have also been meted out the same treatment as was the case with the Bengalis. The over two million people of Gilgit-Baltistan are being disgraced in the same manner as the people of former East Pakistan were treated. The government of Pakistan has been disgracing the people of Gilgit-Baltistan by hoodwinking them in the name of packages for the last many decades. What is a package? Packages are given to the labourers of a factory. People of a country are not given packages; they deserve to get their rights, otherwise they will snatch them. Period. It is also dangerous to treat a disputed region as a personal fief. We have been saying and will repeat it that the situation is getting serious fast and the demands of the people of Giulgit-Baltistan should not be taken for granted. The people cannot even be further hoodwinked in the name of the Kashmir dispute.The people of Gilgit-Baltistan have the right to ask that when the people of Azad Kashmir are enjoying a separate status with an independent constitutional set-up, then why the masses of Gilgit-Baltistan have been treated like slaves? This attitude will not be tolerated any further. The rulers of Pakistan should know that there is still time to save the situation from slipping out of control. Our demands are not irrational. At least we should be given a separate independent and powerful assembly and a set-up without prejudice to the issue of Kashmir. Elections to the NALA are scheduled this year and it seems that the rulers of Pakistan want to stage the drama of another package for the region to get the PPP win the polls. Had the package been announced by now, it would have drawn severe criticism from the public and there would have been hatred against the ruling PPP. It seems that the rulers want to announce the so-called package a few days before the elections to hoodwink the people. Can there be any more dishonesty on part of the rulers with the masses? Those raising the slogans of federation are now trying to get their linkages with Larkana and Lahore. People are surprised that the region is mired in crises and the masses remain deprived of their rights but these elements are hell-bent on achieving their own vested interests and not ready to even talk for the region. The Larkana and Lahore people have already eaten up half of the country and set on fire Balochistan. How they can be expected of ensuring the denied rights to the people of Gilgit-Baltistan?It is time the rulers of Pakistan realized the gravity of the situation in Gilgit-Baltistan and take steps to bring changes to the region. If the situation remained the same, Gilgit-Baltistan will be slipping out of the hands of Pakistan.

(www.weeklybaang.blogspot.com)