Protests intensify in PoK's Gilgit-Baltistan over land grabbing, heavy taxes

Gilgit-Baltistan [PoK], January 4 (ANI): Land grabbing and heavy taxes triggered a widespread protest against the Pakistan army in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir's (PoK) Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), reported Voice of Vienna.
Pakistan's powerful military establishment continues to exert coercive claims over the land and resources of poor regions of GB.
Pakistan has been openly misusing the 'Khalsa Sarkar' laws for land-grabbing purposes in GB. The law says that the federal government could claim 'ownership of barren or uncultivated land' in GB, even if it was collectively owned by the local community, reported Voice of Vienna.
The Pamir Times tweeted on December 30 about the ongoing protests in Gilgit-Baltistan: "Massive protest demonstrations held in different parts of #Gilgit-#Baltistan yesterday against the "Khalsa Sarkar" colonial law, imposition of taxes and the wheat and power crisis."
Local traders and members of various political and social organizations observed a shutters-down strike on December 28 in different parts of Gilgit-Baltistan, keeping markets closed and vehicles off the roads.
Most of these demonstrations were held in Skardu, Gilgit, Hunza and Ghizer, and reportedly attended by a large crowd despite freezing temperatures.
There have been regular protests in GB to highlight the 'state-backed' land-grabbing issue. The draconian practice has intensified since GB became the CPEC 'gateway' in 2014, reported Voice of Vienna.
According to a Human Rights Commission of Pakistan fact-finding report of 2022, the Khalsa Sarkar system violated international human rights standards, including the 'UN Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples', which protects indigenous peoples' "rights to their collective bio-cultural heritage as a whole, including traditional knowledge and resources, territories, and cultural and spiritual values and customary laws."
Interestingly, local opposition leaders in the so-called Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly (GBLA) moved a resolution to annul the Khalsa Sarkar laws in November 2021. Expectedly, neither the bill nor the resolution had been sanctioned by the legislature "due to differences among legislators," reported Voice of Vienna.
Several protests have taken place since November 2021, however, the military establishment, in cahoots with the civilian leadership, continues to call the shots and not allow any changes in the laws. Importantly, this law is also benefiting the land mafia and powerful local businessmen, who are associated with different mainstream political parties in Pakistan. Moreover, the illegal influx of 'outsiders' has significantly changed the local demography in GB, which was once an absolutely Shia/Ismaili majority region.
The forceful appropriation of land and natural resources by state institutions and external business enterprises in the guise of development projects, preservation of national parks and public interest schemes has created deep resentment among local communities in GB, reported Voice of Vienna.
Residents fear that they could soon become a 'minority' in their own land if the influx and settlement of outsiders remain deliberate and unregulated. Despite being a gateway to CPEC, local communities in GB are not included in the federal government's decision-making bodies on regional projects--such as the construction of roads and dams.
The region feels politically powerless in absence of a parliamentary seat because GB is not a full-fledged province yet, despite several attempts of making it one in the recent past, reported Voice of Vienna.
Moreover, GB is facing an unprecedented power crisis with daily 18-22 hours long load-shedding. Ironically, GB is a water-rich region, and Islamabad never cared to build dams to generate electricity for local consumption. Another problem confronting GB is the massive wheat shortage. It has been reported that wheat flour has almost vanished from local markets in GB as the "federal government had curtailed supply to the region."
Lastly, GB traders are continuing to protest against the "Gilgit-Baltistan Revenue Authority Bill 2022," which was passed in October 2022 and imposed new taxes on 135 items. All these factors have deepened GB's sense of political and economic alienation, reported Voice of Vienna. (ANI)