If it's rebellion

By Dj Mathal

At the time of partition of the subcontinent, imperialist forces instead of recognizing the independent status of the princely states asked them to either join India or Pakistan. However, to keep Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan deprived of their political rights and subjugated, they put their issues into the cold storage which still remain unresolved. The issue was later referred to the UN to ascertain the wishes of the people of these regions through a referendum. Under the UN charter and its resolutions passed on different occasions later, the people of Gilgit-Baltistan await the recognition of their status through formation of an independent state. The governments of India and Pakistan are bound to cooperate with the world body in holding the referendum to ascertain the wishes of the people about their future.During the war of freedom started in 1947, people living in parts of Jammu and Kashmir got independence through help extended by tribesmen while the masses of Gilgit-Baltistan liberated the whole of their region single-handedly fighting the Maharaja's forces. Shah Rais was made the first president of the independent state of Gilgit-Baltistan. It may be noted that Pakistan also started its colonial game in the region at the same time. On Nov 16, 1948, Pakistan sent a naib tehsildar to Gilgit-Baltistan on the pretext of providing it administrative assistance, and very soon succeeded in eliminating the fledgling state through forgery and tricks. Later, in order to occupy the rich resources of the region, it connected the region with the issue of Kashmir through a fraudulent and illegal agreement signed at Karachi on April 28, 1949. Since then the people of Gilgit-Baltistan have been observing the day as a black day. Ironically, all the three characters of the notorious pact - former president of Azad Kashmir Sardar Ibrahim, Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas and then Pakistani minister Mushtaq Gurmani - did not belong to Gilgit-Baltistan.Knowing that they have been cheated and deprived of their basic rights, the people of Gilgit-Baltistan have started struggle to win their lost freedom. However, it is also a fact that whenever the masses of the region get united in a single platform to raise voice against injustices and to get their rights; Pakistani agencies swing into action and trample all norms of decency in using state force against the unarmed people. Even those holding protests are thrown out of the area or into the jails. These barbaric actions and cruelties against the masses of the region have continued for the last over 62 years with an increase in the intensity of state-managed violence against the area people.On Aug 29, 2009, Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Gilani presented the script of the so called package before the media saying it aimed to give GB self rule. However, the package failed, like many other such documents announced in the past, to give even a semblance of autonomy to the region. Later, to hoodwink the outside world, a drama of elections was staged in the region. The fact is that neither the assembly nor the cabinet of the dummy chief minister has powers. All powers have been vested in the council headed by the prime minister of Pakistan and consisting of stooges of Islamabad.The barbarity and injustices going on in the region for the last about six decades continue unabated. The nationalist parties of the region as usual had planned to observe April 28 as a black day against the notorious Karachi Agreement. But the agencies not only sabotaged their peaceful rallies scheduled for the day but went one step ahead and banished the nationalist leaders from the region against all norms of decency and human rights. We have been saying that GB is not part of Pakistan in any sense and the future of the region is yet to be decided under the UN mandate. Pakistan can lobby to persuade the people to join it but there is no way it should be allowed to use force and strong-arm tactics to herd the region into its domain.Today the whole world is under the threat of terrorism. It is time the world realized that depriving a people of its freedom and basic rights is also terrorism. If peoples in all parts of the world are ensured their political, economic and social freedom it can help the world eliminate the menace of terrorism to a large extent.Gilgit-Baltistan is a peaceful region; however, the question is how long the people of the region would depend on peaceful rallies and protests to gain their lost rights. The international community should realize its obligation and help the area people in achieving their basic rights in the 21st century. Pakistan never tires of claiming in the whole world that India is perpetrating injustices and oppression on the people of Kashmir. However, it never sees the injustices it has been meting out to the people of GB.It is also time people of the region understood who are their true leaders and who have been deceiving them for the last over six decades. On the other hand, Pakistan should fathom the gravity of the situation and give GB what its people want. Otherwise, there will rise movements spreading from Balochistan to Khunjerab which can pose danger even to its very survival. It is need of the time that instead of suppressing the rights of others, Pakistan should respect them on equal footing. If Pakistan did not stop its strong-arm tactics and failed to immediately send the nationalist leaders back to the region, we would start a move to expose its double standard not only inside the country but also in the whole world. We will continue raising voice against repression and injustices, and if for that reason we are dubbed as traitors we are ready for that for the good of the nation.