What concluded by human Right commission during five days trip to Gilgit

The human rights commission of Pakistan HRCP has concluded a high profile fact finding mission to Gilgit Baltistan GB, comprising council members Salim Hashmi and Muzaffar Hussain, senior Journalist Ghazi Salahuddin and HRCP regional Coordinator Israr Uddin.

During its five-day visit to GB ,the mission found that the human rights situation in the region had detreated, with political workers ,rights activists, the legal fraternity and religious leadership expressing their disappointment at the federations failure to integrates GB should, at the very least ,be granted provisional provincial status or, as a last option, granted a governance system similar to that of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

The political leadership that met the mission also demanded that GB be made part of the electoral reforms process being undertaken to ensure free and fair elections in this region. In addition, the fact that appointments to the higher judiciary are made by the prime minister puts a question mark over the independence, integrity and impartiality of the GB judiciary , cording public confidence in the initiation.

It is a matter of great concern that freedom of expression and peaceful assembly remain under threat in GB: rights campaigners, political workers and students continues to be charged under anti –terrorism and cybercrime laws, particularly Schedule IV.

Based on the evidence, the mission believes that the abolition of state subject rule has paved the way of exploitation of local natural resources by external private corporations and individuals not resident in GB. This has led to demographic changes in region, to the consternation of residents, who also feel that GB  is ebbing excluded from development projects, primarily those being launched under CPEC.

The mission is especially alarmed by the apparent surge in suicide cases in various parts of GB, particularly in district Ghizer. A large number of these victims comprise women and the mission has reason to believe that some cases of honor killings have been labelled suicide and thus forgotten.

The mission is gravely concerned to learn that the victims of the 2010 Attabad lake disaster have still not been compensated or rehabilitated. The glacial lake outburst floods that occurred recently on the shipper glacier have also uprooted over a dozen families with worrying allegations that a state owned organization may have directed the flow of water towards the village to protect a resort.

During meetings with people affected by the kargil war, the mission learnt that they had still not been compensated for the loss of their homes and livelihoods. Respondents alleged that the civilian and military authorities continued to shift responsibility onto each other for the redressal of their grievances. The victims also claimed that security forces had laid landmines in their area, preventing them from returning home.

A detailed report documenting the mission’s findings and recommendations will be released as soon as possible.var /*674867468*/