Gilgit-Baltistan: The Roots of Political Alienation

Alok Bansal

Archive data: Person no longer works for IDSA. Joined IDSA September 2004 – October 2009 Expertise South Asia, Maritime Issues, Indian Diaspora and Defence Studies Current Project Internal Disorders in… Continue reading Gilgit-Baltistan: The Roots of Political Alienation read more

Gilgit-Baltistan in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir has witnessed a series of political disturbances and violence over the past years. Though many analysts have viewed the often-violent assertions by otherwise peaceful residents of this remote and mountainous region as occasional eruptions of the Shia-Sunni sectarian divide, a careful examination will indicate the deeper roots of alienation of the population in this long-neglected region. Almost total absence of democratic rights, lack of participation in the government and economic exploitation of the region coupled with ethnic, cultural and linguistic marginalisation appear to be the main factors that have led to this alienation.