GILGIT-BALTISTAN, THE JEWEL OF PAKISTAN DRAFT MANIFESTO OF PTI GILGIT-BALTISTAN (Gilgit-Baltistan for Nayya Pakistan) Drafted by Party Workers in GB December 2014 A PREAMBLE A-1 Introduction The region of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) has been strategically so important that global and regional powers have been playing dagger and cloak games here since the early 19th Century, known as the Great Game. Historically ruled as a collection of independent mountain states, GB has enjoyed a distinct political identity for much of its history. The region was suddenly and without any consultation with indigenous political leadership, handed over to the Maharaja of Kashmir by the departing colonial administration in 1947. A war of liberation ensued in GB, against the new colonial rulers, and the heroic struggle culminated in independence on 1 November 1948. On 15th of November 1948, the newly founded Republic of Gilgit declared its unconditional accession with the state of Pakistan. What many people in mainland Pakistan know, but do not want to acknowledge is the fact that a strategic region spanning over an area of 74,600 sq. km., was handed over to Pakistan. Without the liberation of Gilgit on 1st of November 1948, Pakistan’s northern borders with India would have been on Babusar and Shandur passes, and Pakistan would not have had any physical border with its strategic friend China, and would have been surrounded by hostile to unstable borders from all sides. There would have been no KKH, no Economic Corridor, and no US$ 44 billion Chinese investment in Pakistan, without GB’s liberation and voluntary accession to Pakistan. Contrary to the aspirations of people who whole heartedly wanted a full, constitutional, political and cultural integration with Pakistan, the region was unfairly given a conditional status until the resolution of Kashmir dispute. Only recently has GB received greater political and administrative autonomy—in 2009, GB was granted self-rule and a legislative assembly was set up for the de facto “province”, but with a slight of hand, real policy making was kept in GB Council dominated and controlled by Islamabad. The present arrangement is tenuous at best, and the political reforms introduced do not go far enough to satisfy longstanding demands of the people to recognize them as full citizens of Pakistan. All people, despite their different political and religious affiliations want to remain with Pakistan, but with full constitutional rights, including proper representation in the Federation. The sense of alienation can only benefit those seeking to use violence as a means to power. There is also a practical and pragmatic reason why this issue should be settled rather urgently. In the absence of a larger unifying goal, communities in the area remain vulnerable to outside influences, and are gravitating toward narrow sectarian missions. The region has already experienced serious sectarian strife in the past, and it would be a devastating experience if it were to be hit by another wave of communal violence. Self-rule premised on participation in the development process is key to ethnic and sectarian harmony and national integration. The region of GB is a treasure-trove of natural resources. Its water resources alone are considered as a sustainable ‘white’ goldmine, which can generate over 100,000 MW of clean hydropower. It has huge reserves of industrial and gemological minerals in its mountains; its climate is ideal for growing high quality fruits and other agricultural products. The area is home to one of the biggest clusters of mountain peaks and glaciers in the world. As well as a highly educated and vibrant youth are increasingly enthusiastic to contribute in development process of the region. Yet these human and material resources have remained dormant for the last seven decades because of the uncertainty as to the nature of relationship with the federation. Bordered and connected with China through KKH, GB serves as gateway to the Pak-China economic corridor; it can be the forerunner for a New Pakistan if constituted to progress in a rightful manner. The overwhelming popularity of Pakistan-Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) as an inclusive political movement across the country is seen by the people of GB as a source of new hope towards gaining concrete solutions to the outstanding questions of their constitutional and legitimate rights. The PTI is determined to provide a credible new leadership that can restore Pakistans political and economic sovereignty through building a new bond of trust between the government and the people. The PTI believes that human and material resources can only be mobilized through active participation of the people to forge ahead on the road to a confident and self-reliant nation. Fortunately, the political aspirations of people of GB strongly converge with the ideology, mission and long term goals of PTI to the point of highest strength. This naturally gives the PTI an advantage whereby it can potentially emerge as the most vocal and strongest political voice for the people of GB. In fact, the increasing number of local people supporting PTI’s political agenda signals a massive victory for the party in the forthcoming GB elections. A-2 Mission and Goals The PTI stands for the social development and economic prosperity of all citizens, especially the poor and underprivileged masses whilst establishing the rule of law and ensuring protection of fundamental human rights. In line with its long term national Goals, the PTI in Gilgit Baltistan aspires to achieve: • Full integration of GB with the Federation as a constituent unit addressing the longstanding demand of the people of the region • Strengthen regional institutions of governance to promote democracy and complete political, economic, cultural and religious freedoms for the people and provide an accountable and efficient government that ensures the protection of life and property of its citizens. • Reform and establish a modern and equitable social sector, including the provision and promotion of quality services in health and education sectors in the region. • Develop, manage and promote the natural resources of the region in an effective and equitable manner and give highest priority to poverty alleviation through policies aimed at creating more job opportunities and enabling ownership of assets to the poor • Encourage a merit based system that provides equal opportunity for employment and upward social mobility for all, specially the working classes and create an environment which encourages the private sector to grow and create greater wealth and employment opportunities. Foster a self-reliant and vibrant economy in the region • Ensure an accountable and responsible system of law and order and promote the regional peace and reconciliation B. INSTITUTIONAL REFORMS The institutional framework in place cannot deliver and needs to be revamped and redesigned to make sure that it works through the mandate of people of GB and addresses their sense of deprivation, their current needs and future aspirations. To serve this imperative and long overdue purpose, the PTI will make sure that the following fundamental confidence building measures and institutional reforms are implemented to bring GB at par with other provinces of Pakistan. B-1 Integration with federation For the past seven decades, the people of GB have been demanding full integration with the federation of Pakistan. But the political and constitutional status of the region has been kept in limbo for misconstrued historical reasons. Due to the strategic importance of the region and the resource potential it offers, Pakistan can no longer afford to question its own sovereignty over a vital part of the country, and deprive the people of GB of their legitimate rights. The time has come to recognize the liberation of GB on 1st November 1948, and welcome the offer of accession to Pakistan made on 15 November 1948, by the leaders of a liberated GB, free of colonial yoke. The time has come to re-write the social contract between the people of GB and federation of Pakistan. PTI will recognize GB as federating unit in the 1973 constitution and honor the legitimate rights, privileges and liberties of the people of the area thereafter. PTI proposes to go further and give GB a special province+ status, to make up for the deprivation of the past seven decades. The special province+ status will entail a series of affirmative actions and constitutional safeguards to protect the rights of people of GB as equal citizens of Pakistan, and compensate for seven missing decades of development and recognition. The article 370 of Indian constitution grants special autonomous status and privileges to the Indian side of Jammu and Kashmir. In order to compensate for alienation and political deprivation of 67 years, GB will be given an autonomous provincial plus status. In order to protect the people of GB against many vulnerabilities stemming from their under-development, the basic citizenship of the province will be restricted to the indigenous people, only. The people of the region will have dual nationalities – that of Gilgit-Baltistan and Pakistan. This is necessary as the small and economically and politically weak population of GB can be very easily overwhelmed and potentially displaced and disposed of their land and other resources, by more economically and numerically strong groups from all directions. Similarly, special provisions and constitutional protections will also need to be given to the new province+ of GB in the political, economic, and cultural domains. B-2 Political autonomy The political autonomy mandates that the people of GB shall have capacity to make their own decisions and that those decisions will be honored, respected and heeded in the larger political and national context of Pakistan. This has to be demonstrated and embedded while defining the nature of relationship between the GB and the Federation as well as other federating units. The region of GB has to be a mainstream stakeholder in the affairs of state of Pakistan. Right to vote in general elections and representation in National Assembly and Senate is the essential first steps. The provincial assembly of GB will have all the constitutional powers as a federating unit as available to other provinces. In recognition of its political autonomy as a federating unit, GB will be a beneficiary of National Finance Commission (NFC) award and member of Council of Common Interest (CCI). As upper riparian of Indus River, GB will be member of Indus Water System Authority (ISRA), like other provinces. The rulings of Supreme Court will apply to GB and a High Court will be established. The people of GB will have a say in all the matters of national import formerly supported by requisite institutional infrastructure. In addition to meaningful provincial autonomy, the PTI government will enact amendments to the Local Government Law recently passed by GBLA, creating strong local government bodies, such as District, City, Union and Village Councils, and empowering them with policy making authority, and resources. B-3 Fiscal autonomy The process of decentralization and devolution of powers is incomplete without economic and fiscal autonomy that comes with rights to make laws or rules to administer affairs of revenue, finance and self-governance. Currently, the region is dependent on annual funds from the federation and has no say in developing its massive natural resources and generation and utilization of revenues for the wellbeing of its people. This imposed dependence and fiscal constriction so far has crippled the governance, social and political fabric of the region. Fiscal autonomy comes from policy and resource ownership. In order to provide a generous fiscal space and develop regional resources, a fully authorized and independent finance and revenue commission will be established that will be responsible to collect and pool all the internal and external revenues in the regional exchequer. It will be empowered to collect internal tax revenues within the region, issues bonds, and award concessions and licenses. The commission will collect external revenues including the royalties and transfers from center and other federating units. It will also be responsible to administer and appropriate the funds according to the local needs and developmental priorities of the region. Under the PTI government, GB will have the right to raise its own revenue from licenses and concessions for mining, hydropower development, tourism, and other investments in the region’s natural resources and transit facilities under the KAshgar-Gawader Economic corridor. Under a special provision in the Constitution of Pakistan, GB will have two-third ownership in all natural resources found in the area, while the federation will own the remain 30%. To facilitate trade and commerce, GB will be declared as a special economic zone, just like the Guangzhou province of China in the mid 1980s, which served as a pre-cursor for the economic miracle in China. Moreover, the PTI government will connect GB with the National Grid from both Chitral and Kohistan sides, and invest in all-weather airports, including an international airport, build a GB-wide smart power grid, and fast-track investments in hydropower projects of all sizes, from Micro to Macro projects, including Diamer BAsha Dam, Bunji Hydropwer Project, improve road and social infrastructure, by engaging a range of national, international, community and private sector partners. B-4 Cultural autonomy Like all mountain areas, Gilgit Baltistan has a difficult geography and high natural and social diversity. This inherent diversity can be turned into a tremendous opportunity by building an inclusive and pluralistic political system that fosters cultural autonomy to its fullest. The regions’ estimated population of 2 million includes four denominations of Islam and at least twenty-four ethnic and linguistic groups. Cultural autonomy is a must for all these religious denominations, and tribal, ethnic and linguistic groups living in the region. It means complete individual and group freedom for all communities to follow their beliefs and way of life, without any perception of insecurity. In order to formalize the key elements of cultural autonomy in the region, a peace and reconciliation commission will be established having broad based representation of people from all the communities, professions and gender and age groups. The commission will build consensus for the collective good of all the stakeholders and work for ensuring peace, reconciliation, social and religious harmony. The commission will also address the past grievances of the aggrieved communities in order to inculcate a culture of trust in the institutions of the state and creating hope for the future. It will engage in research and development in order to stay relevant and to address the changing needs created by changing social and cultural dynamics in the region. C PUBLIC SECTOR REFORMS The effectiveness and efficiency of public sector is crucial for the success of development agenda of a country. This inevitably calls for employing the available resources in the best possible economic use and disperse its benefits amongst the people equitably. The enormous economic potential of GB has so far remained dormant due to absence of a pro-development political and governance discourse. The PTI aims to emerge as a political force that will bring about public sector reforms in ways that will serve the interests of the people of the region in best way possible. Following are some key proposals to reform key components of public sector in the region. The power vacuum created by the meek political institutions in the past has allowed the public sector departments to assume disproportionate power and authority. The excessive power enjoyed by the bureaucracy is often misused and results in destroying rather than creating an enabling environment for development. This should change once the public sector departments are made accountable to an autonomous political government in GB. As a further check, the role of these departments should be redefined, giving them a clear mandate and targets to achieve. They should also be made result-oriented, linking their budgets with performance, and re-oriented and renamed as Services rather than Departments, to emphasize their primary role as providers of public services. An important part of the civil service reform is to privatize possible services, cut back on waste, and eliminate political appointments. State institutions for development planning, financing and administration will be cleansed of political influence and put on more professional and long-term footing. For this purpose, development policy will be separated from execution. One of the key reforms of the PTI Government will be to introduce strong systems of monitoring and evaluation into the public sector agencies. At the local level, community participation will be actively promoted, especially to ensure that the project selection process is transparent and free from abuse, and the entire village councils collectively decide their priorities in open meetings. Second, the PTI will promote PPPs at the local level, encouraging local communities, groups and individuals to co-invest as partners in local development projects, through their savings, labor and local material, and take ownership of micro level utility companies, such as hydropower units and drinking water supplies, and rural infrastructure, such as toll-bridges and link roads, as well as social services, such as schools, Daycare Centers and health facilities. The government can provide small matching grants, loans and technical and policy support in creating such economic assets at the local community level. C-1 Economic sector GB is known for its rich natural resources, which include water, minerals and land. The economic policy of the region needs to be geared towards exploiting the potential of these resources in a sustainable and equitable way. GB should be economically independent and its development should come from within and should be driven by smart policy. Energy: The Indus River and its tributaries running through the region have potential of producing at least 40,000 MW of low cost hydropower, under the present surveys, the real potential is believed to be much greater. In addition to long-term projects like Diamer-Basha and Bunji dams, there are hundreds of small to large projects, which can be developed to cater for the needs of local small industries. The urgent need is to link the National Grid, ideally through Chitral to tap all major perennial water resources from rivers and tributaries. The public sector should invest in a regional grid, while power generation should be decentralized, privatized and made more service oriented. Agriculture and land use: Agricultural production in the GB is constrained by shortages of arable land, absence of relevant research and technology development, and lack of investments. Per capita landholding, which was already small historically is fragmenting and diminishing through division and sub division in generations. Pressure is also placed on land from urban sprawl and unplanned construction is turning pristine villages into ugly piles of concrete and solid waste. Overall, the regions comparative advantage lies in high-value horticultural crops, rather than in cereals. The previous governments have recognized this but now, without much thinking, plan to withdraw the wheat subsidy. The high elevation and cool-climate of this area can produce high-value and off-season horticultural fruit crops, such as strawberries and cherries at a time when the supply of these highly perishable products runs out in the rest of the country. With a reliable transportation service, these products can be shipped to major urban centers and exported to Chinese markets. The various public sector agencies and NGOs engaged in agricultural research, extension, teaching and development would be reorganized and better regulated. Food security can be enhanced by increasing the productivity of food and fodder crops, and improving the quality of alpine pastures, selective breeding of local animals, especially yak and goat populations, whose productivity has declined owing to centuries of inbreeding, and introducing new aquaculture methods. The PTI government will work with UN and international agencies as well as with counterparts in China to modernize mountain agriculture by investing in relevant research, technology transfer and market development. Minerals: The mountain ranges in GB have one of the greatest deposits of high quality marble, granite and other types of soft stone. As well as Pakistan is the 6th largest producer of raw gemstones in the world, and the northern mountains in GB supply 80% of these raw material. These mineral resources if developed to their full potential can contribute tremendously in economic development of the region. The Mineral development policy of GB will focus on small scale, partnership based with local communities, ethical and environment sensitive, and value added, rather than extractive and exploitative. Tourism: GB’s unique mountain landscape is unparalleled that includes the largest concentration of tallest mountains in the world, and highest amount of permafrost stored in longest glaciers, outside the Polar Regions. From many perspectives, such as scientific, nature, adventure and winters sports, health food and leisure, this area can be a heaven for responsible tourism. New products and services can be developed in the form of health food and healing resorts, summer trekking and mountaineering, winter sports, and cultural events. 2 Social sector Social sector plays fundamental role in the process of development. It is responsible to formulate and implement policies, strategies and programs that would reduce the extent and severity of poverty and improve the overall quality of life of the people. An effective social sector catalyzes the progress towards higher levels of sustained economic development. Health and nutrition: Access to quality healthcare is fundamental right of every citizen. The government is responsible to provide equitable access to healthcare facilities and services to the people. Equitable financing of public sector healthcare needs that the system subsidizes the poor without compromising the quality of care. Due to its harsh geography, the living conditions including access to basic necessities of life are difficult and scarce in GB. Indirect healthcare costs including travelling costs to medical facilities are higher compared to many parts of the country as public healthcare facilities in the region are sparsely scattered over its vast geography. In case of sophisticated medical conditions, patients have to travel down the country incurring huge costs. A comprehensive public health system is needed to be established that can ensure equitable access to quality and effective health facilities. A medical college and nursing school will be helpful in developing human resource for creating quality medical services in the region. To support those who cannot afford medical treatment should be provided social protection through health insurance schemes. Moreover, over the last many decades, nutrition has remained a neglected subject in which many healthy eating habits have disappeared. Under a PTI government, research and development in this area will focus on developing many local nutritional products using local ingredients and raw material, such as apricots, apples, buckwheat, nuts and local meat. Education: GB has become increasingly pro-education, and even in more socially conservative groups, children’s education is now broadly accepted. The trend of female education in GB is increasing at a faster pace than for men. Moreover, exposure to global good policies and practices in community and educational development through social mobilization and capacity support by development sector in the region has contributed to creating awareness and demand for education. However, education system in GB is not immune to fallout of paucity of resources and such other endemic problems. The government needs to focus on defining standards and parameters for education, including balancing the needs for religious and regular education, and regulating institutions and service providers. Whereas, the products and services and management of education should be left to parents, teachers, researchers and subject specialists, the state has a role to ensure equal opportunity and standards. Under PTO Government, a Gilgit-Baltistan Education Authority (GBEA) shall be created with a mandate for independent research, draft legislation, and investment decisions in education (including technical education) and for engaging with the wider society, including clergy and civil society in an educational dialogue, resolving differences in outlook, syllabi, and finding common goals. Population welfare, Housing and Poverty Reduction: The population of GB is currently estimated at around 2 million. However, high population growth rate of nearly 3.0% per annum raises the question as to how to balance and match the resources with growing housing, social and economic needs of the rising population. While the GDP per capita of GB is half of the national average, there is need to focus on sustained efforts to increase productivity and economic growth in conjunction with social development particularly in the areas of population welfare and poverty reduction. Comprehensive integration of long term pro-development policies with social development policies are needed to be in place to address several structural issues that are linked with the society as a whole. Environment and Ecology: GB is prone to backlash of climate change due to its typical geographical nature. Nearly 20% of its area is covered with glaciers and snow clad mountain peaks. Deforestation and environmentally unfriendly human interventions in the region can prove to be detrimental to its fragile ecosystem. There is an urgent need to create land use planning, and build mountain resilient infrastructure and smart towns and cities that are designed to withstand climate change impacts that are predicted to be sever in fragile mountain ecologies, such as in GB, and the impacts of natural disasters, which will accentuate and increase the severity of them. A serious effort will be undertaken in identifying and protecting the geographical areas that are at the risk of natural disasters. This will be helpful to mitigate any eminent risks and to do the forward planning. The 2010 incident of Attabad Lake is an eye opener. GB needs to have a comprehensive environment policy to ensure a safe and secure future. D PRIVATE SECTOR DEVELOPMENT The economy of a country is propelled by the success of a thriving private sector. Due to a fragmented political and governance system in the region, the private sector in GB has so far largely remained underdeveloped despite the fact that it has huge potential in terms of economic resources, opportunities and entrepreneurship. The following proposals are given to revitalize the private sector in the region. D-1 Investment: The investment in private sector in GB is marginal and conventional due to political uncertainty. The economic policy of the region needs to be directed towards creating an environment conducive for wealth creation through legal means and removing bureaucratic and other impediments, which inhibit investment. To reverse the cycle of ever increasing poverty, the PTI aims to formulate policies for a sustainable at least 8 per cent annual GDP growth rate. This is achievable when the economy policy and investment policy of the region is formulated to attract high investments from national and international investors. GB offers virgin investment opportunities in various sectors including energy, minerals, tourism, hoteling, fruit processing, gemstone processing and crafts development to name a few. Requisite institutional infrastructure is needed and supported by political will and popular support to make GB a choicest destination for high value investment for development of these sectors. GB is suffering from an acute shortage of investment capital. The number of commercial banks operating in the area has increased in recent years, but they are essentially in the business of ‘exporting’ capital to other, more developed parts of Pakistan. From the start of their operations, bank branches have hardly lent 1% of their deposits in the region itself. Development banks, especially in the public sector, are not immune to the corrupt political culture prevailing in the whole of Pakistan, and GB is no exception. Under PTI government, the Karakoram Cooperative Bank will be upgraded as a commercial bank and recapitalized, allowing it to fund agricultural value chains, agribusinesses, housing schemes and other productive sectors. D-2 Industry: Agriculture makes the largest part of GBs’ regional economy, followed by services and development sector whereas the industrial sector is non-existent. There is need to formulate a regional industrial policy that aims to pave the way for development of large scale and small-scale industries. One of the impediments in the way of creating a thriving industrial sector is the lack of power and road infrastucture in the region. Development of industries is linked with inflow of investment in various sectors. While energy and minerals are good candidates for large-scale industry, there are a number of sectors that can be developed as small scale industries. The industrial sector can provide tremendous leverage in creating in employment opportunities and in fueling the engine of economic development. In order to conduct detailed planning and research on industrial development in the region, a GB industrial authority needs to be established that will be responsible to encourage and manage the growth of industrial sub-sectors in the region. Industrial development policy of PTI will focus on creating special economic zones, especially bordering on China, and promoting industrial estates in resource rich area, and investing in infrastructure and energy development projects on BOO/ BOOT and other long-term concessions. D-3 Creating a Border Economy: The PTI government will work closely with the Chinese counterparts to develop specific projects to include and integrate GB in their long-term plans for the economic development of border areas. Under bilateral agreements, the PTI government shall offer tax breaks for a specified period to the private and state-owned firms of China for investments in GB, especially in the exploration and processing of industrial minerals, particularly marble and granite, which have a growing demand in an increasingly prosperous China. In addition, the government can offer Chinese firms exclusive contracts to build the airport, hydropower stations, and other infrastructure projects. In return, the GB Government can ask for financial assistance in terms of long-term soft loans or even a grant component. The chances are that this will be an acceptable deal to the Chinese Government, which has an interest in a stable and economically sound Pakistan, especially in areas close to its borders. China has already committed upwards of US$ 40 billion in Pakistan, but so far it is not clear how much of this investment will be in GB and in what sectors. Given the fact that the number 1 economy in the word is our friendly neighbor, it makes sense to develop close economic ties with China. E Conclusion GB is at the cusp of change. Its resources, geography and proximity with China, as well as a young and increasingly literate population, provide it with unprecedented opportunities to find its rightful place in a rapidly changing world. The PTI is seen by people of GB as an emerging new political force popularly supported by the young generation. It has come out as the voice of people who want to materialize their future aspirations with PTIs’ mission of creating a better tomorrow through fair, transparent and equitable system of governance in Pakistan. The people of GB are supportive of this mission and are willing to play their part in this struggle of political emancipation and social justice. Let’s seize this moment, win the upcoming elections, and bring about a real revolution in GB, as the first step towards changing the country and creating a new Pakistan. Long Live our Motherland! Long-live Nayya Pakistan!
Posted on: Fri, 12 Dec 2014 18:06:55 +0000
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