AWP Gojal to march for compensation
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The party demands payment of land compensation; an end to power crisis, allocation of two more seats for Hunza in GBLA, jobs for local youth; opposes revival of numberdari system; land grabbing, mining exploration leases
Herald Correspondent
GOJAL: The Awami Workers Party Gojal unit has decided to march for demands including payment of compensation for the land used in KKH reconstruction.
The party has also decided to resist any move to revive numberdari system and issuance of mining exploration leases and land grabbing by non-locals.
These and other decisions were made at a meeting of the Gojal Sub-division chapter the other day held at Khyber.
The meeting was attended by senior leaders of the Gojal Unit, including senior AWP leaders Jalaluddin, Sher Afzal, Akhun Bai, Mohammad Ramazan, Farman Baig, Safdar Ali, Abdul Rafi, and Asif Sakhi and discussed various important agenda points including party organizational matters and other issues.
Land compensation
They expressed concern over the inordinate delay in payment of compensation despite falls promises by the district administration and the National Highway Authority for the last 11 years.
They criticized the National Highway Authority (NHA) and district administration for using delaying tactics in payment of the compensation.
They demanded immediate payment of the compensation with compound interest of 11 years. They will launch a movement and a long march for pressing their demands to mobilise people.
No option has been left except to march on the road and the date will be announced later, said press secretary of the AWP-Gojal Asif Sakhi.
The meeting also expressed concern over the rising joblessness which is frustrating the educated youth and demanded the GB government to ensure appointment of local youth on district government posts and repatriate non-locals to their respective districts.
The reports that government is reviving the outdated regressive numberdari system with more administrative and financial powers is a caused unrest among the people.
Criticizing the GB bureaucracy’s move to revive the Dogra-era numbardari system to further strengthen the oppressive bureaucratic rule and to suppress the radical resistance politics for rights in Gilgit-Baltistan. Numberdari system is a symbol of oppression and an instrument to exploit and suppress people during the 900 years rule of Mirs in Hunza and other princely states.
The government instead of holding local bodies elections and to strengthen democratic institutions, is trying to bring back the old system that was rubbished to history’s dustbin with the abolition of princely states in 1974.
These states were abolished as a result of mass movements in 70s. They said the only objective behind the move is to use numbardars as Informers to spy on political activists, and to sabotage the struggle for people’s rights, they said.
Hunza district has been without any elected representative in the assembly and it is part of a conspiracy to deprive the district of all important decisions and development funds. They demanded allocation of two more seats in the GBLA for Gojal and Shinaki.
The whole region is in darkness for the last six months. Delay of Passu 2MW project proves that the government is not serious to solve the problems in the region.
GB’s division
The participants of the meeting condemned the statement of PTI state minister Ali Gandapur about the division of Gilgit-Baltistan and described it highly provocative and a bid to harm the unity of the people.
“We will oppose any such conspiracy and disallow any non-local minister or bureaucrat to divide Gilgit-Baltistan,” they warned.
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