The Awami action committee in the Gilgit-Baltistan region called for a shutdown of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor(CPEC) on Tuesday. The committee demanded that their rights be given back to them. It also stated that if the CPEC remains in effect in the region, the civilian population must be entitled to their shares.The residents have been opposing the CPEC as it has failed to provide them with any tangible benefits while exploiting their resources. China has invested over 40 billion dollars for its much ambitious 3000 km- long economic corridor to link Western China to Southern Pakistan, through a network of roads, railways, and pipelines. The much talked about project is supposed to bring in a brilliant economic change in the region, but residents feel that both the involved countries have cheated them before, and have pointed out that all the stakeholders weren’t consulted.
Suffering from a power crisis, Pakistan draws most of its electricity from Gilgit-Baltistan, but the absence of even one of the power projects in the region deprives Gilgit from potential riches. Locals also feel dejected as the sheer number of Chinese workers has deprived them of jobs. They believe that the CPEC is just another attempt to exploit the region. The government and the army have been forcibly acquiring the ancestral lands of the locals in the region to fulfill certain requirements for the project to succeed.
While rigged elections have caused major protests in PoK, Pakistan government’s execution of the plans of economic ties with China without consulting the residents of the region has led to a certain anger among the public against the government. The population of these regions lives a harsh life with little or no basic facilities to avail at most times. The government is known to have ignored this resource-rich region, even after exploiting its resources. Thus the public sees no way to profit from such an economic tie with China. They also believe that such an ambitious project would adversely affect the ecology of the region. With the thought that no good can come out of it, the public may be right in raising its voice against the political and civil atrocities that have been committed on them.
The Gilgit-Baltistan region was acquired by Pakistan in 1947. Since then the troubled region has suffered badly as the unstable administration has failed to provide the population with basic facilities. The region has remained in a state of conflict since 1947. The region been neglected by the Pakistan government and have been in a sorry state of affairs, for years now.