PROTESTS against extensive power outages are not uncommon in Pakistan, particularly in the hot summer months. Yet the people of Gilgit-Baltistan have been demonstrating against power cuts even in winter. This is understandable when the region`s residents have to daily put up with 22 hours of load-shedding. Only a few weeks ago, region-wide protests were held over a range of issues, including removal of the wheat subsidy and imposition of the Finance Act 2023. Load-shedding was also a key driver of the protests.

Matters appeared to be heading towards a resolution when on Feb 5, members of the Awami Action Committee an umbrella body bringing together political parties and civil society that led the demonstrations met representatives of the regional government to `temporarily` suspend the protest campaign. But on Thursday, the protesters were back on the roads in several GB towns, saying that nothing had been done to end the power cuts. The demonstrators further claimed that VIPs were being provided 24-hour electricity through `special power lines`.

The problem in GB is not just about inhumanely long hours of load-shedding; it is about an apathetic state that does not listen to the people, and does not deliver on its promises. Though the region has an elected government, this dispensation has failed to meet the aspirations of the people, perhaps because the final say on GB`s matters comes from Islamabad. The incoming federal government needs to provide the regional administration with the tools needed to alleviate the concerns of the locals, while the centre must use all powers at its disposal to give GB`s people their full rights. When all other avenues fail, people use their democratic right to protest in order to highlight their concerns.

If the GB administration had listened to the local population, and if the centre had done more to improve the region`s quality of life, people would not have to frequently demonstrate.