Things are getting serious in PoGB

The finance minister of Pakistan occupied Gilgit-Baltistan (PoGB), engineer Ismael, has warned that unless Pakistan provides an immediate cash supply of Rs 6.5 billion the PoGB government would not be able to pay any salaries to its employees. The current non-development budget deficit of PoGB stands at Rs 17 billion.

Employees of Northern Area Transport Corporation (NATCO) have not been paid any salary for the past two months. The promised increase of a 35% pay rise for government employees in this years budget awaits fulfilment.

According to a local daily (Editorial. Himalaya Today, daily, November 16, 2023) 70% of the population of PoGB lives in poverty, 80% remain unemployed, average monthly household income has shrunk to Rs 15,000, 95% of the population is forced to consume inedible low quality flour, and 90% are forced to drink water polluted with sewage. (ibid.)

It is reported that out of Rs 47 billion allocated for non-development expenses 80% goes toward paying for the salaries of the Chief minister, governor, special advisors, 33 members of the PoGB legislative assembly, speaker, deputy speaker, parliamentary secretaries, judges as well as officials of the bureaucracy who enjoy hefty salaries and perks as well as towards 56,000 government employees.

All of the above are siphoning off money from the PoGB treasury by various methods one of which is over invoicing of fuel and maintenance expenses. For instance the monthly fuel bill for the governor of PoGB is around Rs 700,000 and that of the chief minister falls somewhere in-between Rs 800,000 to Rs 1,000,000.

Local media claims that around three fourths of the development budget is currently being spent of maintaining the expenses of the above mentioned (Editorial. Himalaya Today, daily, November 16, 2023), not to mention the kick backs that the government ministers and bureaucracy is said to be receiving by issuing mining licences.

It is under this backdrop that by a single stoke of a pen Pakistan has increase the price of wheat by 250% for PoGB and has cut the United Nations sanctioned subsidy.

This has outraged the people of PoGB and sporadic protests have erupted from Kharmang to Gilgit and from Tangier to Skardu. The leader of GB Awami (people’s) Action Committee (GBAAC), Agha Ali Rizvi was forced to cut shot his trip to Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, and return to Gilgit city on November 13 to chair an emergency meeting of GBAAC.

GB Awami Worker’s Party, Karakorum National Party, United Karakorum Movement as well as Karakorum Students Organisation have all announced that they will be willing to join GBAAC if a call for PoGB-wide protest campaign is issued by the GBAAC, which might include sit-ins as well as a general strike.

This is a major development in the occupied region since the punishment for dissent is imprisonment or fine or both. Recently, GB People’s Rights Movement chairman Ibrahim Nagri posted a comment on Facebook for which the local police have charged him by registering an FIR against him. All Nagri posted was “to hell with Pakistan, we are concerned about Gilgit-Baltistan”. Nagri is forced to go underground and into hiding to avoid arrest.

Another popular leader, Shabbier Mayyar was recently released on bail after he was arrested and tortured for criticising Pakistan. He is facing charges of treason that are punishable by death by hanging or life imprisonment.

Prominent human rights activist, Ehsan Ali Advocate, was previously charge with blasphemy and arrested. He was released after his arrest prompted protests in PoGB, Pakistan and across Europe.

Under the brutal oppression of Pakistan, people of PoGB once again seem ready for a fight. However, unlike previous protest campaigns this time the nature of protest as well as the narrative of the campaign is quite different.

People of PoGB are entering this new episode of discontent by raising demands for the Skardu-Kargil road to be reopened and broken bonds with the families living of the other side of the Line of Actual control to be re-established. This, in order words, demonstrates their willingness to reunite with Indian union territory of Ladakh and in final analysis with the living body of the Republic of Bharat.

Being optimistic is a good thing. However, one must also be aware of the dangers that might loom over such a bold narrative. The main threat to any social or political movement in PoGB has always come from the religious right that uses Islam not only to unify a nonconforming people with Pakistan in the name of Ummah (Islamic Nation) but more importantly to divide any social or political movement on Shia-Sunni communal hate lines and weaken it.

Only the following weeks and months can tell which way the protests generated by socio-economic strife would crystallise politically.

Dr Amjad Ayub Mirza is an author and a broadcaster from Mirpur. He currently lives in the UK.