Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Visit to Gilgit

The mission members returned from Hunza to Gilgit, where they held meetings with religious and political leaders, representatives of civil society and senior administration officials.

Musings of the civil society

Accounts of writers and artists

The HRCP mission met writers and artists, which included several academics. The lack of constitutional status was the first concern they flagged. They appeared convinced that the geostrategic situation of Gilgit-Baltistan and the interest of several nuclear powers there was behind the bloodshed in the region. They said that a western power did not want Pakistan to give land access to China and was therefore promoting sectarianism and intolerance. They said that “one or two Muslim nations” also had influence in Gilgit-Baltistan. Some also believed that elements of the state had a role in promoting sectarian violence.

Sarzameen-e-bay-aayeen

“Ours is a well known region for many reasons. But the biggest distinction of this region now is that it is a sarzameen-e-bay-aayeen (land without a constitution).” - A poet

Missing expressions

“Our poetry does not talk about romance. My romance is the hungry child. All our literary tools, all our metaphors, and expressions of love and devotion are for Pak sarzameen and Gilgit-Baltistan. We have unconditional love for Pakistan. We have placed in Pakistan’s lap this land of untold treasures. We are simple people. We are Pakistanis and are in love with Pakistan. It is in our blood. Why are we still hanging in the balance between India and Pakistan? Why are we not in a tighter clasp with the rest of Pakistan?If there is a hindrance that should be explained to us.” - A lecturer at an educational institution in Gilgit

The 2009 Order did not meet the demands of the people for a provincial status and representation in the National Assembly and Senate. Students, journalists and businessmen demanded that Gilgit-Baltistan should be clearly mentioned in the constitution as a province and should get all the fundamental rights mentioned in the constitution and not merely those listed in the 2009 Order. They also wanted to be able to move the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The Gilgit-Baltistan higher courts were inferior in status to the high courts in the province of Pakistan.

The right to live and move freely was restricted and the right to (Pakistani) nationality was not available. There were people who said that it was a mere matter of interpretation of the 2009 Order. The fear was that the ambiguity in words should not become the people’s destiny.

There were no-go areas in Gilgit where people from various sects could not go.

There was severe dearth of libraries in the whole of Gilgit-Baltistan. The only functioning public library was situated in a no-go area in Gilgit. There was no auditorium for literary and cultural activities. People were isolated in their own shells on account of lack of exchange of views and social interaction and that had given rise to suffocation and frustration.

The region was facing a deficit of many sorts in the present situation. In some areas the literacy rate was better but in others it was abysmal.

Sectarianism and terrorism were alien plants which had come to Gilgit-Baltistan from elsewhere and efforts had been made to ensure that they took root here. Communities were being pitted against each other in a planned manner.

Despite much bloodshed, there was little animosity or hatred among the people. Those had been created. People had married across sects. The tragedy was that whenever people grew closer together a massacre occurred.

A big Silk Route festival was held in late October in Gilgit-Baltistan, and ambassadors from many countries were there. But the local people were kept away from the event. There was no public participation.

Many people believed that sectarian conflict or “bloodshed tournaments” were state-sponsored. The calendar of events was predetermined. After a short stretch of peace people apprehended that the sectarian bloodletting would resume.

The 2009 Order gave a protocol, but it had had little impact on people’s lives. From Shandur to Kargil no new school had been built since the 2009 elections. Lack of legislation reflected poorly on the legislative assembly.

The people were pro-democracy but in their experience only the dictators had done any work that benefited them.

The people would vote in the coming elections but not for the lot in the government. The incumbency factor would also go against them.

There was no reason why the Kargil-Ladakh border should not be opened.

Selling the future “Jobs are being sold. The going rate for a schoolteacher position in Gilgit-Baltistan is Rs 300,000 per job. They could at least have a merit list even if they have to sell the jobs. How can we expect a healthy new generation when the teachers they get are not the best human material?”- A teacher

Women’s rights activists

In a meeting with women’s rights activists in Gilgit, the fact-finding team members learned of the difficulties for women in the region. The activists recounted the advantages of places like Hunza where NGOs working on women’s rights and health and education for women were not taboos. In narrating extremes, they highlighted that there was no gynecologist in Diamer district, because such a prospect apparently disturbed the clerics in the area. Women in Nagar were being kept backward because of male resistance to their education, but women organisations were working to improve the situation by persuading the parents to ensure education for their daughters too.

Gilgit-Baltistan was composed of so many communities confined until recently to their respective valleys. There were distances among closed communities, including cultural distances. The two major constituents of the region, Gilgit and Baltistan, were mutually different. Gilgit-Baltistan had a tribal culture and every tribe had its own jirga for conflict resolution. Gilgit was a mix of all those cultures and tribal norms.

While the extent of women’s awakening in Gilgit-Baltistan could not be compared to the same for women from ‘down areas’, things had improved a great deal over the last few decades because of women’s participation in different fields. Women were socially in a weaker position but were getting more aware of their rights because of education.

Women activism had developed in Gilgit-Baltistan in recent years, with the launch of the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) activities, particularly due to the emphasis on education and establishment of women’s development organisations. The tribal stranglehold over women had relaxed somewhat.

There was a need for community mobilisation to get a fair deal for women. Reservation of seats for women in the legislature had contributed to women’s empowerment. Women must have more political participation including seats reserved for them in the legislative assembly and representation in other positions of decision-making.

Violence against women, the so-called honour killing and child abuse were the main concerns of women’s rights organisations. There were incidents of honour killing, which were in reality sectarian issues. Marriage of minor girls was also often because of sectarian reasons in areas with a cross-sect presence, as there were fears that the girls might get involved with someone from a different sect.

It was a shortcoming of the civil society in Gilgit-Baltistan that it had failed to appropriately investigate whether the deaths of many women were ‘honour killings’, accidental drowning or suicide.

Women could not use a bus in Gilgit without being harassed.

There had been reports of honour killings in Diamer and denial of medical treatment to women because of fears among men that that would compromise women’s pardah.

Challenges for the physically challenged

Representatives of the Visually-impaired Persons’ Rehabilitation Association (VIPRA) met the mission to explain the peculiar problems of individuals with impaired vision in Gilgit-Baltistan. President of VIPRA who also had impaired vision said that since he used a white can and sometimes fell while walking on the road, people often mistook him for a beggar and tried to give him money. “How many people can I explain it to that just because I cannot see as well as they can does not make me a beggar,” he said.

The excluded ones

“The citizens of Gilgit-Baltistan are treated as third-degree citizens but special persons are not even considered human beings. Animals too should be treated well but we are treated worse than animals.” - The president of VIPRA

Only in Gilgit was there a primary educational institution for special children and that too had no hostel. That meant that in a vast area of great distances like Gilgit-Baltistan anyone living outside Gilgit had no opportunity to benefit from even that primary educational institution.

There was one percent job quota for the physically challenged during the rule of Gen Ziaul Haq and it had been raised to two percent during the rule of Gen Pervez Musharraf. However, the quota was exhausted in lower grades. A visually-impaired young man with a masters degree in business administration had been hired as a naib qasid (in grade 2) at the accountant general’s office.

Besides access to education, rehabilitation was a big problem for the physically challenged.

The government should conduct a survey of the number and needs of the physically challenged persons in Gilgit-Baltistan.

The visually impaired, mentally retarded, hearing impaired and physically handicapped individuals needed different specialised care that was lacking in Gilgit-Baltistan. There was a need for more institutions for physically challenged persons, particularly for visually impaired persons, throughout Gilgit-Baltistan and these institutions should have hostels, transport and other necessary facilities.

This vulnerable section of society also faced social problems. The parents and families of physically challenged children tried to hide them, considered them a burden, did not attach as much importance to their education and gave them little attention.

The media was also not sensitive to the issues of the physically challenged.

Millions of rupees had been spent on the polo team in Gilgit and yet they had never managed to beat the team from Chitral. If only a fraction of that money could be used to send the physically challenged residents of Gilgit-Baltistan to Special Olympics and other international events they could gain confidence and win laurels for the region and the country.

Supreme Appellate CourtBar Association

The lawyers began the argument for a constitutional status for the region with the historical background from the days of 13 kingdoms, followed by the conquest of the region by the ruler of Kashmir, the struggle that led to the establishment of ‘Islami Jamhooria-e-Gilgit’ in 1947 and the subsequent agreement with Pakistan, which converted it into an agency and appointed a political agent who ruled after imposing Frontier Crimes Regulation here, which were withdrawn only in the 1970s during the government of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. They made the following observations:

The constitutional dilemma for Gilgit-Baltistan had continued for over 66 years. In Al-Jihad Trust versus the Federation ofPakistan the Supreme Court of Pakistan had observed that the federal government must take appropriate administrative/legislative measures within six months to make necessary amendments in the Constitution and the relevant statutes to ensure that the people of Gilgit-Baltistan enjoyed their fundamental rights. The 2009 executive order of a ministry was in clear violation of the 1999 Supreme Court order. The Ministry of Kashmir Affairs did not have the authority to make laws and the 2009 Order was an executive order by that ministry.

The biggest drawback and contradiction of the notion of empowerment was the fact that Gilgit-Baltistan had not been granted the authority to amend the 2009 Order.

Gilgit-Baltistan faced serious issues regarding dispensation of justice. The chief court was not equal in status to a high court. The people of Gilgit-Baltistan were second-class citizens and the courts given to them were also second class. Unlike the courts in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), the Gilgit-Baltistan courts were not empowered except for limited matters. The very edifice of the judicial system was flawed; the courts were not constitutional forums of justice but executive courts.

The lawyers wondered what the label Supreme Appellate Court meant. They suggested that Gilgit-Baltistan should either have a system like AJK or one with ingress into the mainstream Pakistani judicial system.

There was a big difference between the citizens of Pakistan and of Gilgit-Baltistan. The former could become the prime minister of Pakistan while the latter could not even vote to elect that prime minister.

In numerous instances, either important laws or appropriate forums were missing in the region. Many laws in Pakistan needed to be extended to Gilgit-Baltistan. There was no codified family law and it took a decade to decide the cases.

A judge brought from outside had been made in-charge of three courts. The civil judge served both as a family court judge and a judicial magistrate.

Provision of free legal aid was necessary in the region as the common people lacked financial resources.

The people and the region of Gilgit-Baltistan were not part of India. They certainly were a part of the Kashmir dispute. The Indian-administered Kashmir had protection under two sets of provisions. It had its own constitution that gave it authority over all except four subjects and it also had a special status and rights under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution. The AJK legislative assembly had framed its constitution in 1956, which provided a bicameral parliament.

Kashmir was liberated by the tribesmen from FATA and the army, but Gilgit-Baltistan was liberated by the local people without any help from anyone.

The region should at least be given those rights that had been granted to AJK. Opening the border crossing at Kargil was an economic issue, an issue of tourism and of meeting of divided families. AJK had such a link across the Line of Control but Gilgit-Baltistan did not.

When there was unrest in Balochistan the chief justice and the prime minister had gone there. The people of Gilgit-Baltistan also wanted to be called Pakistan’s citizens now. When India could do it in the part of Kashmir it controlled then how could Pakistan doing the same weaken the case for Kashmir? If one wanted to be extra cautious a provisional arrangement could be made and the people of Gilgit-Baltistan given vote as Pakistani citizens.

Aga Khan Rural Support Programme

Members of the mission visited the office of Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) and learned how the organisation had contributed to improving the lives of the people in Gilgit-Baltistan through thousands of link roads and hundreds of micro hydro-electric projects. The programme had always been considered as non-communal and above sectarian biases. Since the beginning of the programme, however, the orthodox point of view in Diamer had kept that district from benefitting from the AKRSP projects. They had stated that they did not want the organisation’s staff in Diamer and had created hurdles in development activity. After the floods in 2010, for the first time, some of the Diamer residents had said that they needed help from the organisation.

Political parties’ brief

Pakistan Peoples’ Party

The HRCP team shared with the PPP representatives in Gilgit the various observations it had recorded during the mission. They responded in the following manner:

The PPP had the credit of abolishing both the Rajgi and FCR systems from Gilgit-Baltistan.

The 2009 Order had given an identity to Gilgit-Baltistan. It had also facilitated representation for women. In a poor region with no industry and little by way of employment opportunities, the government had given 15,000 jobs. There could be a case of some favouritism somewhere, but the jobs had certainly not been sold.

New districts had also been established by the party’s government

Reforms had been carried out in judiciary and a chief court had been established.

When the PPP came to power the people in Gilgit-Baltistan were so desperate that there had been some rise in support for nationalist elements amid frustration among the youth. The 2009 Order was a timely measure that addressed people’s aspirations. More should be done to give the region full provincial status. When the PPP came to power in Islamabad again the remaining reform agenda would also be fulfilled.

Muttahida Qaumi Movement

The 2009 Order was an executive order and not an act of parliament. It had empowered the bureaucracy instead of the Gilgit-Baltistan people.

If Gilgit-Baltistan was a province then it should have been invested with the power to resolve the issues it faced.

The people needed to be informed whether they were Pakistanis or not. In all important events or on national occasions the four provincial chief ministers were seen but the Gilgit-Baltistan chief minister was not seen there.

The main demand of the people was that Gilgit-Baltistan should be made a province constitutionally and given representation in the National Assembly and Senate. The people did not want an Azad Kashmir-like system.

Most bureaucrats and other officers posted in Gilgit-Baltistan invariably started acting as rulers.

Corruption was rampant. Jobs in all departments, including police, education and excise and taxation, had been given either against money or on political basis.

Customs officials in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were involved in malpractices and checked Chinese goods when they entered the province, although the goods had already checked at the border customs post. The province also charged a levy on the value of goods passing through Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This was a completely arbitrary levy and akin to extortion.

The government could do much more and much more promptly to alleviate the problems of the people affected by the Attabad disaster.

The quota reserved for students from Gilgit-Baltistan in educational institutions of the country should be enhanced.

Progressive and nationalist parties

In its meeting with representatives of progressive and nationalist parties the fact-finding team strived to determine how much consumption there was of progressive thinking, how much recognition and support there was for the same in the next elections and whether that played any role in stopping sectarianism and terrorism. Some participants in the meeting called the 2009 Order ceremonial and said that it was not a constitutional order and lacked legal status. The revenue-generating sources had been kept with the federation in the name of Gilgit-Baltistan Council[9] and the policy for the region was made by non-local bureaucracy. One participant in the meeting claimed that large-scale arrests had taken place on the eve of the 2009 election and those protesting for their rights had been jailed on charges under Anti-Terrorism Act. A representative of a nationalist party said that progressive parties demanded provincial status for Gilgit-Baltistan and nationalists sought elections under UN auspices. The participants said that when people were deprived of something it was only natural that they would raise their voice. The representatives of these parties expressed concern over politics in the name of religion in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Divisions were being promoted and an environment of fear created which made the work of those pushing the agenda of a market economy easier.

There were perpetual curbs on public gathering and strong-arm tactics were used against protesters.

Only some clerics, local elite and contractors had benefited from the 2009 Order. They had won the elections. The common citizen’s situation was indescribably precarious.

The protocol and security escorts for elected representatives were an unjustified burden on the economy. The legislative assembly did not have much more power than a municipal committee.

In terms of the energy corridor being promoted by the prime minister, the people did not oppose development but they should be informed what exactly was being developed.

There was no sectarianism in Gilgit-Baltistan. Parties from outside and from ‘down area’ were responsible for fanning sectarianism.

Over 100 cases had been registered against nationalist leaders. How could a case of sedition against Pakistan be registered when Gilgit-Baltistan was not counted as a part of Pakistan by Islamabad?

The law barring non-locals from buying land and properties, which was in force in Azad Kashmir had not been extended to Gilgit-Baltistan. That was discriminatory and allowed outsiders to grab Gilgit-Baltistan land.

Merit was not the criteria for hiring for government job, which had been sold for Rs 300,000 or more per job.

Human rights and civil society organisations in Pakistan, particularly HRCP, should focus more on Gilgit-Baltistan. An independent and unbiased commission should hold the assembly elections.

Yearning for a level-playing field “When the administration made the mosque strong and promotions and transfers took place on clerics’ phone calls, the Gilgit-Baltistan youth went under that umbrella. Sectarian groups are stronger in Gilgit-Baltistan because of the administration’s support. The progressive elements could demonstrate their impact and role if the government did not interfere.”- A political activist

Considering matters of faith

Meeting with Masajid Board

In 2012, the Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly passed a law, called the Regulation of Masajid Act.[10] The law was aimed at promoting communal harmony and streamlining the functioning of mosques. A Masajid Board comprising respected members of Shia and Sunni sects was notified under the law and the members volunteered to strive for peace through social engagement and promotion of tolerance and peaceful co-existence.

The HRCP mission met members of the Masajid Board to learn about their role in confronting sectarian tensions and hatred. Members of the board said that such hatred was never visible before 1970. By 2005 on account of big attacks the sectarian division had peaked. In the same year, a Grand Aman (peace) Jirga comprising an equal number of Shias and Sunnis (18 each) was formed, which prepared a compromise document that was instrumental in bringing peace to a Gilgit scarred by sectarian bloodletting. Then a Masajid Board and a Parliamentary Aman Committee comprising 10 persons each from the Shia and Sunni communities was formed which contributed to combatting communal animosity and hatred. Members of the committee said they were volunteers even though the government had recognised their role.

In the form of Regulation of Masajid Act, the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly had made the first ever law in the history of Pakistan on sectarian harmony. That had been in response to efforts to weaken the nation and strengthen notions of sectarian identity. In the form of this law, there was now a practical arrangement in Gilgit-Baltistan to deal with sectarian unrest and discord and this arrangement was better than in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and in fact better than any place in Pakistan.

The people in Gilgit-Baltistan had always been moderate and wanted peace and prosperity. The word sectarian was used only after the construction of the KKH when all sorts of people came to the region from ‘down area’ and indulged in creating sectarian hatred. Those who engaged in violence and hate mongering were mainly illiterate and extremist fanatics. The sectarian war had claimed the lives of around 1,000 people. Both the Shia and Sunni communities thought that they must put an end to it and managed to gather good people from both sects. They had managed to control 99 percent of the situation.

Taliban had reached Kohistan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in some form and had been stopped in Diamer district.

It was not the people of the region fighting on their own. Someone orchestrated these fights. The government said that it was the work of foreign intelligence agencies. But it was Pakistani intelligence agencies’ job to stop them. The people of Gilgit-Baltistan were sincere, to Pakistan and among themselves, even after so many had been killed. It was this sincerity that had prevented suicide bombings in the region. That was the reason that mosques and imambargahs had not been targeted.

Members of the Aman Committee and Masajid Board went from door to door to motivate people from both sects not to react if any incident happened.

“Unlike Pakistan, the judiciary was not independent in Gilgit-Baltistan.” The judges in Gilgit-Baltistan were honest and competent but they were under pressure. The judiciary was subservient to the bureaucracy when it should have been answerable only to the Supreme Court.

In the same manner as there were efforts to foil the seaport from becoming functional in Gwadar, and terrorists from all over the world had been brought to sabotage that project, so too was the case with Gilgit-Baltistan where a western power and a neighbouring country were involved and engineering trouble because of the route to China.

The factories oftakfeer [11] had been closed and hatred in sermons stopped through constant efforts of members of the Masajid Board. In October 2013 it had been nine months since the last murder motivated by sectarian hatred had taken place.

Gilgit-Baltistan was a poor region and a remote one. It lacked electricity and infrastructure. Things that cost 100 rupees elsewhere in Pakistan cost 150 rupees in Gilgit-Baltistan. For one vacancy there were 500 applications. Yet the people tried to get education even if they had to travel to other parts of Pakistan.

There were no industries in Gilgit-Baltistan and unemployment was acute despite abundance of marble, precious stones, potential for hydro-electricity generation and fruit. The mineral-rich Gilgit-Baltistan should have an advanced mineral industry for providing jobs and multiplying earnings. Dams could be built to capitalise on the abundant water resources.

Gilgit-Baltistan should at least have an observer in the National Assembly and Senate until the people were granted representation.

The people felt that they had been left at the mercy of bureaucracy. The performance of the administration in Gilgit-Baltistan depended on the quality of officers, the system improved when sincere officers were appointed.

The trouble-makers in Gilgit-Baltistan were not even one percent of the population. It was a riddle why they could not be nabbed in an area that was smaller than Shah Aalmi locality of Lahore. If their names were given to the Masajid Board, its members would go to their homes.

The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) had taken root in Diamer because those responsible for the Lulusar and Chilas massacres had not been arrested. That encouraged the killers and led to killing of foreign mountaineers on Nanga Parbat, dealing a severe blow to Pakistan’s reputation.

The area where the Nanga Parbat killings took place was difficult to access and if helicopters had been deployed then the attackers who had walked for hours to reach the base camp and then walked the long way back could have been apprehended or killed. The TTP Diamer had threatened that if the killers were apprehended they would strike again. This madness would end within a month if all government agencies acted with sincerity.

Members of the Shia and Sunni communities were trying to form a jirga in each of the seven Gilgit-Baltistan districts and a jirga comprising representatives from all seven districts to promote peace.

Priorities “Until this region gets constitutional rights, until the people of this region also have the right to elect the prime minister, president and parliament in Pakistan, all the other measures do not matter. The people do not need anything else more urgently. This region has everything. We need a place in the constitution of Pakistan. We are true Pakistanis of great conviction. How long should we put up with this exclusion? How long must our status be kept disputed? “We should at least be given a timeframe for when we would be formally recognised as Pakistanis. The people in this region do not fight among themselves; efforts are invested in making us fight. Our region is stuck in the middle of four nuclear powers.”- A leader of the Shia community in Gilgit

When an ant gets upset “Our forefather won this area for Pakistan and then travelled a great distance on foot to ask the government to come and take control of it. Our sin is that we live in this region in peace. How many areas are there in Pakistan where they live off Pakistan and still curse the motherland? We can tolerate someone calling our mothers and sisters names but we cannot stand anyone being disrespectful towards Pakistan. When an ant gets upset, it bites itself. Why should anyone wait for a time when intense loves turns into intense resentment. The so-called nationalists have no influence here. They are an exceptionally tiny fringe group. If things do not change fast this could become like some parts of Balochistan. Gilgit-Baltistan is the head of Pakistan. If it is crushed what would happen to Pakistan’s integrity? Pakistan’s border would then recede to Balakot. In Gilgit-Baltistan there is resentment. If something positive is done it would be highlighted and send a message. Have mercy on this area and focus on it.”- A Sunni member of the Masajid Board

‘The best of Pakistanis’ “Our grievance is that we have been kept deprived of our fundamental rights. Gilgit-Baltistan desperately wants to be formally made a part of Pakistan but that has not been done to-date. If the Kashmir issue remains unresolved for a thousand years are we supposed to remain in this limbo for that long? Are we not the best of Pakistanis? They say we are a part of Kashmir, if we are then give us at least those rights that are there in AJK. But we do not want that, we are a part of Pakistan and should be formally recognised as such.”- A Masajid Board member

Tanzeem Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat

Tanzeem Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat Gilgit-Baltistan and Kohistan said that it was wrong to call Gilgit-Baltistan a disputed territory as the people of this region had liberated it after rebelling against the occupation of the Dogra rule.

The sectarian bloodshed violated Gilgit-Baltistan’s tolerant tradition and non-sectarian identity.

Until 1971, no Pakistani political party was operating in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Resort to violence for enforcement of Shariah was not permissible. Taliban who indulged in terrorism were unacceptable, as were bomb blasts and suicide bombings.

The failure to nab the culprits involved in sectarian killings had raised questions about the capacity, role and commitment of intelligence agencies. If the culprits were not arrested it was only natural that suspicion of acquiescence and worse would arise.

Measure of desperation “Gilgit-Baltistan is in desperate need of identity. Unless the government of Pakistan wants to divorce Gilgit-Baltistan they should perform a formalnikah with this region.” A representative of Tanzeem Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat

Wahdatul Muslimeen

The mission met representatives of Wahdatul Muslimeen, an organisation that had been raising its voice against faith-based violence targetting the Shia community. The main points that they made were:

This region had been under 700 years of Shia rule with complete harmony. There was no other place in Pakistan where Shiawere in majority. There had been efforts to change the demography. Shias were not being allowed to be economically established and they faced discrimination. Out of 24 judges, six were Shia and none Ismaili. Big contracts were not given to Shia contractors. Leases had been given to Pashtuns but not to Shias.

The younger generation of Shias was angry about sectarian violence and harboured sentiments of revenge. Shia clerics might not be able to restrain them indefinitely if more incidents took place.

As soon as the Muslim Gilgit Scouts personnel had heard the name of Pakistan, they had decided to join Pakistan and took a secret oath among themselves. They arrested the Dogra representative and handed him over to Pakistan. From November 1 to 16, 1947 Gilgit-Baltistan remained independent. After that it had not had any identity, neither as an autonomous region, nor Pakistani or Kashmiri.

Voting could be held now on our preference and the percentage noted for whenever the plebiscite was held.

The liberators of Gilgit-Baltistan and heroes of the people had not been accorded the recognition they deserved. Even their names had not been highlighted nor any parks or hospitals named after them. Their names were being forgotten.

If half a dozen people did their job properly the no-go areas in Gilgit would end. Many representatives on the Gilgit-Baltistan Council were local residents. If things were given in the local people’s hands the security situation would be rectified. Given the chance, the people could confront and stop the Tehrik-e-Taliban in Diamer.

Gilgit-Baltistan faced the same natural disasters as Pakistan. In addition, there were the man-made disasters. The impact of projects like the Diamer-Bhasha dam on the environment had not been properly assessed. Glaciers formed in dry cold. The lake of the hydroelectric dam would lead to greater humidity, causing more rain and melting of glaciers at a faster rate. With Diamer-Bhasha dam, there was a feeling among the people of the region that they were the ones who were being drowned but the royalty for the Diamer-Bhasha dam was being given to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Attention was not being paid to the Bunji power project, which could be completed at a much lower cost and in a much shorter time.

The forest cover that was 25 percent 40 years ago had fallen to 9 percent.

According to a WAPDA assessment there was 0.15 million megawatt hydroelectricitygeneration potential in Gilgit-Baltistan. The issue was how that would be transferred to Pakistan.

Gilgit-Baltistan lacked museums to preserve the region’s rich heritage.

Some institutions considered civilians suspect and only consideredthemselves loyal and patriotic.

Not appreciating what they have

“In the form of Bangladesh Pakistan has accepted a severed arm but does not acknowledge what is very much its arm.” - A leader of Wahdatul Muslimeen

Even though there was tremendous scope, no law except the law of preemption had been made here.

Even though Gilgit-Baltistan was not given the status of a province, whenever martial law was declared in the Pakistan it also extended to Gilgit-Baltistan. Martial law had not been imposed in AJK even when Pakistan was under military rule.

The people of AJK were allowed to meet relatives in Indian-administered Kashmir across the Line of Control, but the people of Gilgit-Baltistan were not allowed to do the same. The Kargil-Ladakh point on the Line of Control (LoC) should also be opened for trade and families’ meetings.

There had been hypocrisy and duality in the administration’s policies. Whenever criminal cases were lodged they were lodged only against Shias. The takfiris of Diamer were free and their weapons were free.

There was great love in Gilgit-Baltistan for Pakistan. That must not be allowed to turn into hatred.

The people remembered that in 1988 militants from Kohistan and Diamer districts and from FATA had not been prevented from attacking Shia citizens in their hamlets in Gilgit.

Tourism had not been established as an industry and whatever little tourism had been developed was on the brink of destruction because of acts of violence upon tourists and travellers.

Something that is better than nothing

“The 2009 Order has no constitutional protection. A section officer can abolish it. Something is better than nothing. This assembly does not have a constitutional status. It is in reality nothing more than local government.” A young man representing the Shia community

Administration’s side of the story

Governor’s views

Gilgit-Baltistan Governor Pir Syed Karam Ali Shah, who is also the vice-chairperson of the Gilgit-Baltistan Council, lamented that while the world was venturing ever further in space exploration, the argument in Gilgit-Baltistan revolved around trivial matters such as how high should the faithful tie the string of their shalwar.

Only one meeting of the Gilgit-Baltistan Council had been held, in March 2011. Nature had given all the resources to make Gilgit-Baltistan prosperous. The prime minister, who headed the council, should convene a meeting of the council every month or two months. He should consider delegating the power to act as the chairperson to someone else if it was difficult for him to attend meetings that frequently.

The four provinces of Pakistan and Bengal, which later became Bangladesh, were inherited from the partition of the subcontinent. But sons of the soil had liberated Gilgit-Baltistan in November 1947, without any external help. Their leaders had travelled several hundred miles on foot to invite Pakistan to govern this region. They unconditionally joined Pakistan even though China was closer.

As with all new things, some shortcomings were there in the 2009 Order. There was also lack of understanding about how best to use the system. However, the name, Gilgit-Baltistan, had given the region identity. Even babies were given a name at birth but this region had been denied that for over 60 years.

As a representative of the federation, the governor had conveyed to the federal government all accounts, claims and allegations he received, including claims of jobs being sold.

Gilgit-Baltistan lauded the agreements between Pakistan and China. They were also in the interest of the region.

The finance secretary of Gilgit-Baltistan should look into how approved budgeted funds were being utilised.

Gilgit-Baltistan had sacrificed much for the Kashmir cause.

Five brothers and an epidemic

“We are part of Pakistan and Pakistan alone. Bracketing the region with the Kashmir issue should not be a justification to deny the people their rights. No other part of Pakistan would put up with this kind of treatment even for a day. It is true that we ask for our rights, we complain too but we always say Pakistan zindabad (long live Pakistan). We say that in this federation there are not four brothers but five.

The epidemic of sectarian divisions in the world has affected Pakistan too. Gilgit-Baltistan has not been immune to it. In the old days, the region was accessible only in the summer. The KKH provided all-weather access to Gilgit-Baltistan.

The intelligence agencies should identify those responsible for creating sectarian trouble. Gilgit-Baltistan has a non-sectarian tradition. The instigators are from outside the region. Enemies of Pakistan do not want our connection with China and try to find different ways to hurt us.” -The governor

Administration and police officials

The HRCP mission met a number of senior bureaucrats, including Chief Secretary Muhammad Younas Dhaga and Home Secretary Dr Attaur Rehman, and other officials of the region’s administration in Gilgit. HRCP requested the officials to share their views about the region in a candid manner and communicated to them that although the mission report would include their views those would not be specifically attributed to them. HRCP is also obliged to not include the information the officials shared with the mission off-the-record.

The area was very fragmented geographically and fragmentation in some respects was part of the psyche of the people of Gilgit-Baltistan. There was a history of various communities living exclusively in their own valleys. The more closely one looked the more fragmentation one found. The population had been fragmented along ethnic lines, but before 1988 the division was never along sectarian lines. Gilgit versus Baltistan was one division; differences were rooted in the Sheen, Yashkun and Soniwal ethnicities; and then there were divisions based on language.

The Soniwals were involved in killing of Shias from both the Sheen and Yashkun communities. A Yashkun Deobandi would not kill a Yashkun Shia and vice versa. Similarly, a Sheen Shia would not kill a Sheen Deobandi.

Deobandis had established a well-funded madrassa in Ghanche and were converting Noor Bakhshis to their creed. Deobandis were providing money to the locals for dairy farming, developing orchards as well as offering jobs in Saudi Arabia.

The mullahs in Diamer had refused Aga Khan Rural Support Programme assistance for education and leadership training.

Some militant groups who were once supported by the intelligence agencies were seen to have gotten out of their control. Taliban, a new monster, had developedtheir own funding sources. Money was the Taliban ideology now and they were not a monolith but mercenaries who had even killed their own religious leaders, including muftis. There might have been disagreements earlier on among intelligence agencies on how exactly the people engaged in violence were to be tackled. There had been speculation that the intelligence agencies at least looked the other way some time. The killing of the climbers on Nanga Parbat and the assassination of a senior police officer and an army colonel and a captain had changed things even for people who had been in two minds. There had been a security paradigm shift that the culprits must be nabbed. The state apparatus had been fighting them since. All actions of the civilian administration were now being supported by all federal agencies. All of them, including the intelligence agencies, were on the same page.

It had been concluded that the local community or jirga did not have the capacity to persuade the killers to surrender. There was an agreement that there was no point in risking the lives of jirga members in pursuit of that ambition.

Seven out of eight killers of the army colonel and captain had been nabbed. Of the 11 terrorists involved in Nanga Parbat, several had been held. Three accused in the Lulusar killings had been arrested. The rest had conveyed several times that they wanted to surrender. With the winter approaching most of the wanted men on the run would have to come down from the mountains.

It had initially been believed that the people involved in the Nanga Parbat killings were from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but later on the authorities had learned that all of them were residents of Gilgit-Baltistan. Around 40 individuals had enlisted as Taliban in the area with one ameer (chief), who had been held. They were mercenaries and did not include religious elements nor had any religious motivation. As far as could be ascertained, being part of the Taliban in Diamer had been about money and power and did not have anything to do with ideology. The Yashkun in the local society lacked power and some of them believed that the marginalized could be empowered by associating with the Taliban. The motivation was for the powerless to be empowered.

The investigators had found that the original plan for the Nanga Parbat attack on foreign climbers had been to take hostage in order to seek ransom and release of detained militants. The Taliban had asked the local militants to do something big, although they had not specifically suggested abduction. Once the mountaineers were abducted, differences emerged among the abductors over killing them. The local people generally were considerate towards the Chinese and once a Chinese mountaineer was killed by one of the abductors then the rest who had opposed the Chinese man’s killing shot and killed all the climbers. The mobile phones of the deceased had been recovered from the arrested.

Their doings and ours

“There are speculations about American and Indian involvement because of their perceived dislike for China’s influence in Gilgit-Baltistan. Saudi Arabia and Iran also have a lot of influence. But it is also true that there are several problems that we have created for ourselves and which we would have to fix ourselves.” - An administration official in Gilgit

Gilgit-Baltistan was a vast area, but one with a limited budget. The region was more than twice the size of Belgium but its budget barely matched that of Gujranwala district in Punjab. Even FATA, which was three times smaller than Gilgit-Baltistan in terms of area, had more facilities and resources than Gilgit-Baltistan.

Although the first word in the name of the 2009 Order was empowerment, there had not been much empowerment. There had been little worthwhile legislation in the last four years. The previous dispensation was hardly landmark either. However, the political dispensation had to be shown some concession. There had been representation of the people under the 2009 Order. But the cake had remained the same while the number of those consuming it had increased.

Giving the region a name was a big step and one that should have been taken earlier. It had been argued that the dispensation provided under the 2009 Order was not ideal. But it was not something that could not be tinkered with. The order might not have been perfect because it was passed in a hurry. There might have been some things that were done intentionally and others unintentionally. Corrections could be made subsequently. But not a comma had been changed in the 2009 Order.

The most trivial and insignificant of matters requiring the attention of the Gilgit-Baltistan chief minister wasted time and bigger things where decision making was usually the domain of the chief ministers in the provinces were with the bureaucracy in Gilgit-Baltistan. Despite being a remote area with difficult terrain, there was no helicopter or plane for the chief minister.

The 2009 scheme of things was contradictory; it gave the people representation at the district level and ignored them at the federal level.

There were no-go areas in Gilgit. After Shia killings by a lashkar in 1988, people had started considering themselves unsafe and for the sake of safety started living in communities comprising their sectarian group. Once people had been discriminated against they became defensive. At a time of unrest no one wanted to be at a place where there was a risk that they would be killed and their houses burnt in supposed revenge simply because of their sectarian identity. This atmosphere of fear and the no-go areas were limited to Gilgit.

Looking at the sectarian unrest situation, members of one sect had stated that if there was another incident they would retaliate. This was negative and problematic at two levels: why should there be an incident and why would they act instead of letting the authorities deal with the situation?

Police were weak and had remained divided on sectarian basis. The last two police chiefs had done a lot of work to repair that. An officer of DSP rank had been made in-charge of training.

Gilgit-Baltistan still had the lowest crime ratio in the country. There was less crime and more sectarian frictions and violence. Even at the level of jails and hospitals there were divisions along sectarian lines. Elders of both Shia and Sunni communities had been actively engaged for a year and that had led to addressing hatred at the street and local community level.

In the recent prominent terrorist attacks and acts of violence elsewhere in Pakistan, the culprits had not been arrested. That was not the case in Gilgit-Baltistan. All the accused in the Chilas massacre had been arrested. In Chilas, a superintendent of police (SP) was killed; in Diamer a colonel and a captain were killed. Those involved had been traced and all except one had been arrested. Of the 11 terrorists involved in the Nanga Parbat killings, several had been held. They were also involved in the Lulusar incident.

The state of prosecution was dismal all over the country. It was even worse in Gilgit-Baltistan.

The perks and the structure of the judiciary needed to be looked at to see if the number of cases and the disposal rate justified the degree of resources being allocated.

Under the 2009 Order, there was no role of the national judiciary in the selection of chief judge. If such an arrangement was drawn up today it might be considered scandalous.

The Kohistan and Lulusar incidents had taken place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but some of the people involved were from Gilgit-Baltistan. They had returned to Gilgit-Baltistan after studying at madrassas in the ‘down area’. The intolerant militant tendency had grown over time and it would take time to overcome it.

There was not much by way of employment opportunities in Gilgit-Baltistan. There was work as a contractor or labourer or there were government jobs. Some people engaged in agriculture and self-employment. There was over-employment in terms of percentage in the Gilgit-Baltistan government; government employees were 9 percent instead of the normal ratio of 3% to 4% of the employees. Notifications to make many employees’ services permanent and ghost employees were also problem areas.

The quality and quantity of fruit, especially apricot, in Gilgit-Baltistan was exceptional. Despite the glut of fruit, there was no food processing unit. Suggesting this might not directly be the job of police but that was where the lack of employment and other social problems ended up.

The region’s potential was not being fulfilled partly because new schemes were launched even before old scheme had neared completion or even before the implementation stage began. The amount of effort that needed to be put in was not put in. In new projects, there were also benefits for contractors and those who awarded the contracts.

The mineral department was a neglected and meek department.

Not all the issues could be tackled simultaneously. There could be resentment for various reasons. The real issue was governance. There were 34,000 electricity connections and only 4,000 consumers paid electricity dues. Gilgit-Baltistan’s potential was such that it could illuminate the whole country. A regional grid should be set up in Gilgit-Baltistan.

There was corruption and it appeared from various accounts that jobs had been sold.

Diamer was a city of people of a peculiar bent of mind and they were on the KKH. Several times buses had been stopped and pelted with stones there following some rumours.

Through the history, this region had not had sectarian issues and many believed that these issues had been intentionally spread on account of the region’s special importance. The local people believed there was international involvement in Gilgit-Baltistan because of the Line of Control and the international border. “There is no smoke without a fire.”

Madrassas got money from abroad and in the same manner as in Swat, the practice had been ignored. The pattern in Diamer was not quite as visible as it was in Swat. That was because there were issues of distance. No one could hide among a sparse population and the community had not allowed the killers to penetrate them. There were also geographical advantages because of the natural factor. The international border was mainly snow-bound and sealed.

In Quetta and Karachi, truckloads of explosive made news. In Gilgit-Baltistan, someone hitting another person could lead to a Shia-Sunni fight.

Shias had a grievance about non-action against non-Shias. There was great potential for unrest in case of another sectarian attack and the anger of the youth might be difficult to contain. Elders, religious scholars and political leaders would have to push for that. The Friday sermon was being used for that.

There was a perception of intelligence agencies’ role in the sectarian bloodshed. That was because of lack of progress in bringing the killers to justice.

Non-government organisations were required to have a no-objection certificate to operate in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Various markers of identity had reared their head amid the vacuum in the absence of governance, empowerment and active political parties.

Army, intelligence agencies and civil administration had the closest liaison in Gilgit-Baltistan.

The region had a youth bulge, which, depending on how it was handled, could be an asset or a liability.