Jabir Hussain
Jabir Hassan belongs to Skardu. He is graduated as a Mechanical Engineer from UET Taxila.
The history of our country is replete with examples demonstrating the discriminative behavior of the state towards different segments of our society. Whether it be its soft corner for the violent protestors of Tehreek-e-Labbak Pakistan or its negligent behavior towards the peaceful protestors of Gawadar.
On April 15, 2021, the interior minister stated that Government has decided to ban on Tehreek-e-Labbak Pakistan under the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997. It was responsible for the martyrdom of dozens of security personals and damaging states’ property during its violent protests. The state was unable to stand by its decision and failed to maintain the rule of law. It bowed down before the extremist outfit in reaction to their violent protests. On the other hand, the peaceful protestors like Hazaras are called blackmailers by Prime Minister, the representatives and elected parliamentarians like Ali Wazir are put behind the bars using the colonial sedition laws for demanding the basic rights for their people. The peaceful social activists are unlawfully placed in Forth Schedule for speaking the truth. This discriminative behavior reflects that only violent people would be entertained by the government even if they are on the wrong side.
Media is an important part of the state. It can play a very constructive role in society, but unfortunately, the case in our country is the opposite. It always neglects the peaceful protestors, from Gawadar to Gilgit-Baltistan. Currently, the largest protest in the history of Balochistan is on its way for three weeks for their reasonable demands. However, our government and mainstream media are neglecting these peaceful protestors. Similarly, every year dozen protests are held across Gilgit-Baltistan against the colonial behavior of the Government, but none of them are given coverage on mainstream media. The local journalists have been victims of enforced disappearances for revealing the truths. In all these circumstances, it is right to question the freedom of media in our country.
Gilgit-Baltistan, despite having the potential of more than 60 thousand megawatts of hydropower, faces severe power shortages throughout the year. Skardu City, although it is the capital of the Baltistan division faces 17-20 hours of load shedding in the winter season. In addition, the region is also deprived of gas lines, making it hard for local communities to survive in extreme weather conditions without having basic facilities. Diamer Basha Dam is being constructed in Gilgit_Baltistan. The Hydroelectricity produced from this Dam would be connected with National Grid. On the other hand, Gilgit_Baltistan is not given a share from National Grid. In spite of the fact that we have sacrificed our land and ecosystem, we are still not being entertained with the positive outcomes of this Dam.
The education in Gilgit-Baltistan is becoming dearer day by day. The region has a population of more than two million has zero Medical and Engineering Universities. There is only one Degree College for women in the whole Baltistan region. Although, the population of Baltistan is almost touching one million. In addition, the recent protest held by students in Skardu demonstrated that this Degree College is facing a shortage of teachers. Students have to walk for hours to have access to schools. Lack of transparency and negligent behavior of government has ruined the quality of education in government schools.
Climate Change has emerged as an existential threat to the world. According to the reports from NASA; high-altitude regions like Gilgit-Baltistan are suffering four times more than the regions at relatively lower altitudes. The glaciers of Gilgit-Baltistan are melting at a higher rate. 36 Glacier Lakes have been declared dangerous in Gilgit-Baltistan by Pakistan Meteorological Department. In addition, mass tourism is wreaking havoc on the environment of the region. It is contributing to the large-scale environmental degradation of the region through the conversion of isolated nature into busy travel destinations. Despite all the above-mentioned facts, the government hasn’t planned a single effective policy to mitigate the effects of climate change in the region.
The writer belongs to Skardu. Graduated as a Mechanical Engineer from UET Taxila.
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Jabir Hussain
Jabir Hassan belongs to Skardu. He is graduated as a Mechanical Engineer from UET Taxila.
