New Delhi, Oct 1 (IANS) The situation in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) is set to turn worse as the Pakistan Army continues with its atrocities, and the protesters do not relent.
The PoK administration has ordered an indefinite lockdown amidst protests by Pakistan’s Jammu and Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JKJAAC).
The organisation has decided to take the issue international, with calls being made to Kashmiris globally to raise the issue. The JKJAAC has been flagging major issues that include brute force being used against the people.
The organisation also called the people to lay siege to Muzaffarabad. A 38-point charter of demands has been submitted to the Pakistan government. This includes the removal of perks for the elites.
While the protests have intensified over the past week, it got worse when the security forces began firing at people who were protesting peacefully. It is now being alleged that there is a systematic attempt to kill people, and a plan has been set in motion by the Pakistan government. Since the protests began, Pakistan has suspended mobile and internet services in PoK.
The Pakistan government does not want the real issues to reach the world and hence is trying to suppress the agitation by force. There is an unprecedented deployment of security personnel in the region.
Estimates by the Indian agencies suggest that a force numbering over 2,000 has been deployed. There are strict instructions to the personnel to use brute force and even kill if they feel that the protesters are not relenting.
Further, all roads leading up to PoK have been closed, and there is immense scrutiny of people who are trying to enter the region. To keep the protesters in check, Paramilitary forces have been deployed in all districts. The security forces have resorted to both shelling and aerial firing to quell the mob.
Protests in PoK are nothing new, and it has been on for quite some time. The Pakistani government has long neglected the region, and the leaders are highly corrupt. This has been the major reason for the protests lingering on for so long.
The people have also complained that PoK is not getting electricity at a lower cost, despite it being generated locally through the Mangala Dam situated in Mirpur district of the region.
India is watching the developments closely, and the borders remain on high alert to avoid any sort of spillover. India has noted that the agitations are a result of the systematic plundering of resources from the region.
India maintains that the region is under forcible and illegal occupation by Pakistan. Pakistan, however, is worried about the trouble escalating.
Officials say that this time it is not likely to die down anytime soon. What the Shehbaz Sharif government is worried about is that the demands could only increase, and the people may now start demanding Azadi (freedom from Pakistan).
For Pakistan, there are problems galore. There is trouble in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with protests raging in those regions. The security forces remain engaged and continue to face huge losses at the hands of the Balochistan Nationalist Army (BLA) and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
These developments come amidst pressure from both the US and China to ensure security in these regions. With the US, Pakistan has signed a minerals deal, which the BLA has opposed.
Further, there is the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Project 2.0, which Pakistan has been asked to raise funds for and also ensure security. All these protests and assurances sought by China and the US have put the Pakistan mechanism under stress, and hence, there are orders to quell the protests, even if it means killing their own people.
–IANS
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