Islamabad June 28, 2008: Pakistan Peoples Party has expressed concern over deliberate attempts that seem to be afoot in Gilgit and Hunza to create a law and order situation and disturb peace in the region by remnants of past administration and called for an
immediate halt to such activities.

The plan to disrupt peace in the region came to light when several hundred people including women and children were forced to stage a protest demonstration leading to the blockade of Karakoram Highway at the Sust border against excessively coercive measures adopted
by the local administration harassing and intimidating the people.

The protesting demonstrators blocked the highway and chanted slogans against the Chief Executive of Northern Areas for deliberately creating a law and order situation in a otherwise peaceful region.

The law and order situation developed after a local court vacated a stay order against the former management of the dry port. Locals were taken aback when the court order came at a time when chairman and other members of the Board had left for Kashghar to attend
the joint Board meeting of directors with the Chinese counterparts.

Within minutes of the court order the local administration was geared up for the forceful occupation of the port even though the court order did not envisage it. Quite surprisingly and going out of the way the local administration braced itself to use brute force
to take over the port offices while the management was out of the country and in China and without regard for the sensibilities of the local investors.

In a statement today spokesperson of the Party former Senator Farhatullah Babar said that peace, development and empowerment of the people of Northern Areas was a top priority of the government and any attempt to subvert it will not be allowed.

The PPP said that it was heartening that the federal minister of Northern Areas Qamar Zaman Kaira had already issued necessary instructions to restrain the trigger-happy elements in the local administration from provoking a clash.

The spokesperson said that a thorough probe into the affairs of the Silk Route Dry Port Trust (SRDT) is also necessary to redress the grievance of stake holders who had make huge financial contributions for the setting up of the dry port trust.

He said that the PPP had been demanding the carrying out of a detailed audit of the accounts of the Trust.

He said that the dry port was set up at the border town of Sust in Hunza to facilitate border trade between China and Pakistan and any scandal leading surrounding it could create law and order situation that would negatively impact on the border trade with China.

The local community members claim to have made an investment of over 17 million rupees in the project by donating land and cash. However they have not even been shown the accounts of the Trust let alone paying them any dividend. Local investors have also flung
accusations that two fictitious companies have been formed by the management to skim off the profits that belong to the actual investors.

 

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