Details on the trouble in gilgit
Flashpoint Gilgit
AZIZ-UD-DIN AHMAD
While the government is finding it difficult to deal with communal terrorism in the country, Northern areas promise to turn into a rich breeding ground for Sunni and Shia extremists and suicide bombers. This is a region where the sects are almost evenly balanced and extremist elements have a strong presence on both sides. The ongoing spurt of sectarian violence has turned Gilgit into a new flashpoint. Attacks have already claimed eight lives and there seems to be no end in sight to the ongoing violence.
During the last seven months communal violence has taken toll of two score lives and caused injuries to many more. It all started in January this year after a vehicle in which a prominent Shia cleric was traveling was ambushed in Gilgit, killing two of his guards and mortally wounding him. This led to mayhem in the city and 11 people were left dead on a single day in acts of arson and killings. Curfew was imposed which was relaxed only after two weeks.
The incident had widespread repercussions. In Skardu hundreds of demonstrators burned tyres and blocked roads. There were protests in Karachi where a large number of people from Northern areas come to work or study. A Sipah-i-Sahaba cleric was later gunned down in the city. An attempt to kill a Sunni cleric in Islamabad failed but two months later former Northern areas police chief Sakhiullah Tareen was killed along with police guards. Days before he had led a crackdown on sectarian groups in Gilgit.
The recent spurt of violence started after unknown gunmen attacked a Natco bus on its way to Pindi from Gilgit, killing four and injuring six. During the last few months half a dozen attacks of the sort have happened on the strategic highway, which carries practically the entire load of Pak-China trade besides being the sole all-weather link between the Northern areas and rest of the country.
As Diamir district where the bus was attacked is predominantly Sunni and as some of the killed and injured were Shias, it was interpreted as a sectarian incident and there was a communal flare up in Gilgit. Subsequently, eight people belonging to the two sects, including a union council chairman, have been gunned down during the last few days. The town is in grip of tension, markets and shopping centres have been closed down, and tourists have left in panic. Orders have been given by the police chief to shoot at sight any suspected terrorist or arsonist.
The violence is in fact a sequel to last year's communal killings which started after protests by the local Shia community that their children were being forced to read Islamic studies books written by Sunni authors. They demanded separate courses for Shia students in line with their beliefs. As a communal minded bureaucracy opposed the demand this led to student strikes, followed by disturbances, killings, mass arrests and imposition of curfew. Six of the FC personnel posted to protect the Chinese working on the KKH were kidnapped along with their weapons. In case anyone of the Chinese had been harmed, this would have led to international repercussions. Foreign NGOs were in the meanwhile warned against suicide attacks. The greatest loss to the area was that the schools in Gilgit remained closed for over six months.
The continuing communal strife in the Northern areas is bound to have ominous repercussions for the country. The region supplies Pakistan army with men and officers with greater capability to fight in some of the most difficult terrain along the LoC than men recruited from the plains of Punjab. Rise of communalism can affect their morale.
The Gilgit region was a part of Kashmir before 1947. Soon after partition, its people rebelled against the Dogra rule and decided to join Pakistan. Those who led the rebellion were both Sunnis and Shias. The Northern areas were not integrated into Pakistan for being technically a part of Kashmir and because the people were supposed to take part in the referendum promised under the UN resolution. Sectarian infighting is bound to send a negative message to Kashmiris living under the Indian rule as Shias and Sunnis live there in harmony and are struggling together against India under the leadership of the APHC.
Keeping in view the fact that Northern areas border China, religious extremism expressing itself in sectarian killings is likely to raise hackles in Beijing where it would be seen as a destabilising factor in the highly sensitive Muslim majority Sinkiang. What is more the closure of the markets in Gilgit flush with Chinese goods, and insecurity on the KKH, the sole route for the Pak-China trade is a bad omen for the trade between the two countries. Lack of security on the KKH will affect the prospects of the Gwadar port.
The Northern areas have the largest number of peaks, glaciers and mountain passes that attract mountaineers and backpackers from all over the world. The region is one of the most popular destinations of the foreign tourists coming to Pakistan. The sectarian violence which has gripped the area, particularly during the last two years, has acted as a disincentive and is already hitting hard the fledgling tourist industry.
Instead of taking the communal issue in the Northern areas lightly, its ramifications need to be properly understood. Special measures should be taken urgently to promote tolerance and communal harmony. Unless this happens, there is a likelihood of the whole country being affected by the communal hatred being promoted in the region.
E-mail queries and comments to: azizuddin@nation.com.pk
AZIZ-UD-DIN AHMAD
While the government is finding it difficult to deal with communal terrorism in the country, Northern areas promise to turn into a rich breeding ground for Sunni and Shia extremists and suicide bombers. This is a region where the sects are almost evenly balanced and extremist elements have a strong presence on both sides. The ongoing spurt of sectarian violence has turned Gilgit into a new flashpoint. Attacks have already claimed eight lives and there seems to be no end in sight to the ongoing violence.
During the last seven months communal violence has taken toll of two score lives and caused injuries to many more. It all started in January this year after a vehicle in which a prominent Shia cleric was traveling was ambushed in Gilgit, killing two of his guards and mortally wounding him. This led to mayhem in the city and 11 people were left dead on a single day in acts of arson and killings. Curfew was imposed which was relaxed only after two weeks.
The incident had widespread repercussions. In Skardu hundreds of demonstrators burned tyres and blocked roads. There were protests in Karachi where a large number of people from Northern areas come to work or study. A Sipah-i-Sahaba cleric was later gunned down in the city. An attempt to kill a Sunni cleric in Islamabad failed but two months later former Northern areas police chief Sakhiullah Tareen was killed along with police guards. Days before he had led a crackdown on sectarian groups in Gilgit.
The recent spurt of violence started after unknown gunmen attacked a Natco bus on its way to Pindi from Gilgit, killing four and injuring six. During the last few months half a dozen attacks of the sort have happened on the strategic highway, which carries practically the entire load of Pak-China trade besides being the sole all-weather link between the Northern areas and rest of the country.
As Diamir district where the bus was attacked is predominantly Sunni and as some of the killed and injured were Shias, it was interpreted as a sectarian incident and there was a communal flare up in Gilgit. Subsequently, eight people belonging to the two sects, including a union council chairman, have been gunned down during the last few days. The town is in grip of tension, markets and shopping centres have been closed down, and tourists have left in panic. Orders have been given by the police chief to shoot at sight any suspected terrorist or arsonist.
The violence is in fact a sequel to last year's communal killings which started after protests by the local Shia community that their children were being forced to read Islamic studies books written by Sunni authors. They demanded separate courses for Shia students in line with their beliefs. As a communal minded bureaucracy opposed the demand this led to student strikes, followed by disturbances, killings, mass arrests and imposition of curfew. Six of the FC personnel posted to protect the Chinese working on the KKH were kidnapped along with their weapons. In case anyone of the Chinese had been harmed, this would have led to international repercussions. Foreign NGOs were in the meanwhile warned against suicide attacks. The greatest loss to the area was that the schools in Gilgit remained closed for over six months.
The continuing communal strife in the Northern areas is bound to have ominous repercussions for the country. The region supplies Pakistan army with men and officers with greater capability to fight in some of the most difficult terrain along the LoC than men recruited from the plains of Punjab. Rise of communalism can affect their morale.
The Gilgit region was a part of Kashmir before 1947. Soon after partition, its people rebelled against the Dogra rule and decided to join Pakistan. Those who led the rebellion were both Sunnis and Shias. The Northern areas were not integrated into Pakistan for being technically a part of Kashmir and because the people were supposed to take part in the referendum promised under the UN resolution. Sectarian infighting is bound to send a negative message to Kashmiris living under the Indian rule as Shias and Sunnis live there in harmony and are struggling together against India under the leadership of the APHC.
Keeping in view the fact that Northern areas border China, religious extremism expressing itself in sectarian killings is likely to raise hackles in Beijing where it would be seen as a destabilising factor in the highly sensitive Muslim majority Sinkiang. What is more the closure of the markets in Gilgit flush with Chinese goods, and insecurity on the KKH, the sole route for the Pak-China trade is a bad omen for the trade between the two countries. Lack of security on the KKH will affect the prospects of the Gwadar port.
The Northern areas have the largest number of peaks, glaciers and mountain passes that attract mountaineers and backpackers from all over the world. The region is one of the most popular destinations of the foreign tourists coming to Pakistan. The sectarian violence which has gripped the area, particularly during the last two years, has acted as a disincentive and is already hitting hard the fledgling tourist industry.
Instead of taking the communal issue in the Northern areas lightly, its ramifications need to be properly understood. Special measures should be taken urgently to promote tolerance and communal harmony. Unless this happens, there is a likelihood of the whole country being affected by the communal hatred being promoted in the region.
E-mail queries and comments to: azizuddin@nation.com.pk
posted by India News Watch at 2:19 PM
<< Home