A long awaited reform package on Gilgit-Baltistan, recently announced by Prime Minster Syed Yusuf Raza GiLlani, is regarded a significant step towards empowering local people to elect their own representatives to run their affairs. A welcome part of the package is the adoption of historical and original nomenclature of the region ‘Gilgit-Baltistan’ instead of Northern Areas.The package also offers a range of intuitions of governance and accountability both in the legislative and judiciary domains which were not available to the people in the past sixty years. According to the package Gilgit-Baltistan would have its own governor, chief minister, election commission and some other key state bodies to make the region at par with Azad Kashmir. To reduce the role of ministry of Kashmir Affairs and Northern Areas, a Gilgit-Baltistan Council would be formed with equal representation from the region and the National Assembly of Pakistan.The package largely fulfills the longstanding and consistent demand of the people of the region for their rights to participatory democracy and governance. The past governments in Islamabad had simply ignored the people’s aspirations. Unlike Azad Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan was directly ruled by the federal bureaucrats over the last six decades without being held accountable for any of their actions. Consequently, this had generated a sense of deprivation and discontent across the board particularly among the youth who felt let down and humiliated.The strategic location of Gilgit and Baltistan, too, had made citizens sensitive about their uncertain future. It is situated between the two competitive regional powers, China and India. Both the neighbors have been taking deep interest in the internal affairs of Gilgit-Baltistan for different reasons. The Western China has the shortest route through this region to reach Gawader port in the gulf waters. Huge widening and up gradation work is underway on Karakorum high way to develop north-south international trade corridor to link China, Russia and Central Asian state to oil rich Middle East through Gawadar port.India too pins its hopes on the reopening of Skardu-Ladakh route as well as Astore-Srinagar road-traditional Silk route- to have land access up to Central Asian States besides Chinese province of Xinjiang. This has made Gilgit-Baltistan a natural corridor for future trade and tourism between several regional countries.In this context, the reform package has been unveiled well in time and should be appreciated. However, the reforms package does not address some critical issues like it does not envision formation of interim constitution which is key to devise sustainable democratic system of governance. Likewise, it does not offer any mechanism to have access to higher judiciary for remedy says Hafiz ur Rahman, Pakistan Muslim League president for Gilgit-Baltistan.Additionally, the formation of Gilgit-Baltistan Council is not plausible in the context of Kashmir Council. It always drew huge criticism from AJK politicians and civil society. It has been considered as a tool to snip local autonomy and runs almost a parallel government in Azad Kashmir.Therefore, it is appropriate time to restructure the proposed Gilgit-Baltistan Council to make it a constructive body rather a competitive authority. Its current configuration is heavily tilted towards Islamabad while Gilgit appears a weaker party. Certainly, Islamabad and Gilgit both need a coordinating body to streamline the routine matters between the two authorities but not a body to overshadow the Gilgit administration. However, there is widespread skepticism about the absence of limitation on revenue generation authority and rights.Conversely, the reforms package has evoked considerable controversy in the Kashmiri circles on both sides of the line of control. It is seen a step towards an incision of a part of the disputed state, stated Yasin Malik of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chairman in presence of Azad Kashmir and Hurriyat Conference leadership in Islamabad. His provocative remarks made headlines in the media besides generating passionate debate in Pakistan. Some would see it the maximum that could be done to empower the region within the present ground realities.All political parties in Pakistan lauded this move except the Kashmiri leadership across the line of control. Most probably they were not taken on board before making public the fresh initiative on Gilgit-Baltistan. All major stakeholders, including the ruling coalition partners in AJK, maintain a unanimous position about the region and its future.A number of All Parties Conferences and AJK assembly resolutions clearly declared Gilgit-Baltistan part of the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The Kashmiri politicians fear that the emerging set up may pave the way for the division of Jammu and Kashmir State.Though, Islamabad replicated AJK template but a portfolio of Governor to Minister of Kashmir Affairs, even though interim, is widely criticized. The appointment of governor also raises doubts, widely respected Kashmiri leader Sardar Khalid Ibrahim fears that the reforms package will transform Gilgit-Baltistan into a full-fledged province in the next step.Pakistan’s official policy on the Northern Areas seems confused and uncertain, particularly after 1980. The main reason was the strategic importance of the region and hence a section of the government has always wished that the areas be merged with Pakistan. Ever since November 1947, the interior and foreign ministries have been thinking on these lines particularly about Gilgit Agency.The Interior Ministry argues that the Gilgit Agency had not been under the administrative control of Maharaja of Kashmir. The British held and administered these areas like other political agencies of the tribal areas. Hence, with the British gone, Gilgit Agency gets automatically transferred to Pakistan. And, as the people of the area have themselves opted to join Pakistan, the legal requirement has also been met, a former diplomat confided on the condition of anonymity.Another historic fact is that Khan Abdul Qayyum Khan, the first Chief Minister of NWFP, being a Kashmiri and quite active in the Kashmir struggle, had proposed in 1947 that Gilgit Agency should be transferred to Governor NWFP, like any tribal area. Thus with the time the Agency would become part of North West Frontier Province.The Foreign Office did not agree to the proposal at that time. It felt that although it was nominal yet Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir exercised authority over Gilgit. And thus Gilgit was not independent. There was also a possibility of plebiscite under the auspices of United Nations. Then why should the Gilgit Agency’s “vote bank” be lost?The above dilemma still persists, and can be seen in the initiatives of various government organs in their respective spheres. Gilgit Agency is sometimes shown on the survey maps as part of Pakistan while on some other occasions it is clubbed in with the disputed state of Jammu and Kashmir.The relationship between Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan has been deemphasized at the very outset. The Ministry of Kashmir Affairs blocked political parties of Azad Kashmir to run their political activities in Gilgit and Baltistan. Late K.H. Khurshid was not allowed entry into Gilgit.The founder president of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Sardar Muhammad Ibrahim, once said that he was not allowed to visit the region whenever he tried. Such actions by the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs were considered to mean that people of the two areas should not be allowed to forge close relations.In fact, the reforms package is intelligently designed by the government to serve multiple purposes. It does not de-link Gilgit-Baltistan from the broader Kashmir dispute which is a positive development. However, despite the reservations of Kashmiri leaders there is no likelihood that in future Gilgit-Baltistan and AJK can become one unit. This is right time for the government to dispel the apprehensions of Kashmiri leadership. At least, the office of chief minister can be replaced with the chief executive and the portfolio of governor can be abolished.(The writer is Islamabad based analyst. rawalakotjk@gmail.com)
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