PoGB: Tensions rise as traders protest at Sost point on CPEC

Sost [PoGB], August 26 (ANI): Tensions are running high in Pakistan-occupied Gilgit-Baltistan (PoGB), where traders have intensified a sit-in protest at the Sost point, a strategic hub on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Led by local trade unions and supported by residents, the movement seeks to challenge what protesters describe as illegitimate taxation and decades of exploitation by Pakistan.

Attempts by authorities to disperse the demonstrators with tear gas and stun grenades have failed, only fuelling further anger. Protesters allege that security forces even opened live fire, leaving some injured. Yet, in a striking show of humanity, locals say they rushed injured policemen to the hospital reflecting the contrast between state aggression and community solidarity.

"We have video evidence of it. Straight fire was opened, some of our people were hit as well. And our character was such that those very policemen who shelled us, who fired live rounds at us, when they fell and got injured, we took them to the hospital. This is what we were taught," said one protester.

Protest leaders have also raised deeper questions about the region's political status and long-standing neglect. Trader Rehan Shah reminded that Pakistan itself has declared Gilgit-Baltistan a "disputed territory" under its own constitution. He accused Islamabad of systematically suppressing the region for over 78 years while exploiting its resources without granting fundamental rights. "We have a two-point agenda regarding the future of the youth in Gilgit-Baltistan. You have declared this region disputed, your constitution, your law, all affirm this. For 78 years, you have kept us oppressed and subjugated, and we did not even utter a word," he said.

With livelihoods threatened by taxation policies that protesters call unjust, the agitation has transformed into a larger struggle for justice and dignity.

For decades, Pakistan has systematically exploited Pakistan-occupied Gilgit-Baltistan (PoGB) while denying its people basic political, economic, and social rights. Despite being rich in natural resources like gold, gemstones, forests, and vast hydropower potential, the region has been kept outside Pakistan's constitutional framework. Locals accuse Pakistan of extracting minerals, timber, and hydropower from PoGB without reinvesting in the region, leaving residents to face poverty, unemployment, and even electricity shortages while their resources fuel Pakistan's economy. (ANI)

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