karakoram knowledge highways (kkh) issue 4

8/2/2019 Karakoram Knowledge Highways (KKH) Issue 4

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Karakoram Knowledge Highways (KKH)Whistling with Knowledge

The First Research and Development Journal from Karakoram

www.kkh-journal.org

Volume 1, Issue 4 , October-December

Online ISSN : 2074Print ISSN : 2074



Karakora

m Knowledge

Highways

(KKH

)

ADVISORY BOARD

GHULAM ALI

GHULAM AMIN BEGFARMAN ALI

DR.HERMANN KREUTZMANN

EDITOR IN CHIEF

ZULFIQAR ALI KHAN

GRAPHICS DESIGNER

KARIM KHAN FAYAZI

EDITORIAL SUPPORTCHRISTEN ROMERO

EJAZ ALI

MARKETING TEAM

SHAHID KARIM

SULTAN AZAM

PHOTO CREDITS

KADO STAFF

The Journal is a product of the Knowledge Managment

component of Karakoram Area Development Organization

(KADO).

The opinions expressed in the various articles are those held

by the contributors and are not necessarily shared and re-

ects the thoughts of KADO. KKH welcomes articles from

contributors. All articles are subject to a review and ap-

proval process by the Editorial Board.

KADOKarakoram Knowledge Highways

KADO Head Ofce,Aliabad

District Hunza-Nagar,

Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan.

Tel : (92-5813)-455816/458135

Fax : (92-5813)-455813

Email : [email protected]

www.kkh-journal.org

www.kadohunza.org



Contents

Editorial 7

1

The Promise and Challenge of Pluralism for Sustainable Develop-

ment in Moutain Areas : Experience and Encounters from Northern

Areas and Chitral

9

Abdul Malik & Ihzar Ali Hunzai

2 Changing Lives in Northern Pakistan (Gilgit-Baltistan) 23

Kanwal Bokharey

3

Societal Development and Change in Hunza Valley: A Study of

Ghulkin 29

Fazal Amin Beg

4An investigation of Environmental Impact of Mountain Tourism

Activities in Hunza: A Tourist’s Perspective51

Rehmat Karim & Dr.Adarsh Batra

5Modern Media and Democracy: A Case Study of Election Coverage

in GBLA-6, Hunza63

Noor Muhammad

6 Social Conict and Deforestation: A Case Study of Tara-gat Moun-tain, Malakand 75

M. Nafees and Zahid Ullah

7Village Wheat & Fodder Banks Wakhan : An Innovative Idea to Re-

duce Proverty and Enhance Food Security83

Aziz Ali



Editorial

It is a moment of delight and pleasure for KADO that the Karakoram Knowledge Highways-KKH

successfully completed one year of its quarterly publication as the first research and development

journal from Karakoram. The communities trapped in the lap of the mountains with the struggle

to triumph against hardship and immensity ultimately succeeded in transcending its imagination,

knowledge and potential.

It was pleasure that during this short period the journal attracted a large number of renowned

international scholars and researchers along with immense participation from the regional devel-

opment thinkers and youth. The team extends warmest felicitation to all well-wishers and

supporters for making KKH a successful platform for mountain-specific knowledge creation and

dissemination.

Our apologies for the delay in publishing the last quarter Issue of the year 2009 due to the devas-

tating landslide in Hunza, took lives of 19 people, made 143 families homeless, blocked KKH and

Hunza River and created an atmosphere of uncertainty and helplessness under the natural

phenomena. The disaster situation is not over and the blockade of Hunza River is forming dam

and submerging Ayeenabad, Shishkat villages and moving further towards Gulmit. The first Issue

of 2010 would preferably present different research papers and scholarly articles on historical and

contemporary natural disasters in mountains of Karakoram, Hindukush, Himalaya and Pamir

region.

This issue presents different interesting research papers on the socio-economic and environmen-

tal aspects of the communities living in Gilgit-Baltistan, in particular, and high mountains, in

general. The first paper shares the lessons acquired from Gilgit-Baltistanm and Chitral regarding

the critical role of pluralism for sustainable development. The following write-up highlights the

impact of social investment of Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation in Northern Areas

(renamed as Gilgit-Baltistan). The subsequent write-up presents the second part of the case study

regarding the societal development and change in Hunza from the perspective of local community.

A research paper on the environmental impact of tourism on mountain communities elaborates

the impact of tourism on mountain environment. The following paper presents the critical role of

alternate media in democracy with a focus on the coverage of the election compaign 2009 in

Hunza. The subsequent case study focuses on the social conflict and deforestation issue in Swat.

The last paper presents a case study from Wakhan, where through an innovative idea of wheat

and fodder Banks the community tried to overcome the food security issue.



THE ALIABAD CO-OP: THRIFT & CREDIT SOCIETY LTD.

Incorporated on December 01, 1962, the first branch of the society formally opened doors for

operations in Aliabad followed by Gilgit Branch and Aga Khanabad Aliabad Branch just recently.

The society now has 745 shareholders from all over Hunza and Gilgit regions.

Pleasant and computer-based sophisticated atmosphere has been provided in the branches to

facilitate the customers with a strong vision to be the most respected Financial Institution in

Gilgit-Baltistan..

If you join us you’ll not only benefit from a great range of products and services, you will also

get a say in the development of the region.

e essence of our business philosophy is to cater to the nancial requirements of

small & medium sized entrepreneurs, credits for construction of school buildings,

water channels and other local development projects as well as for the immediate

nancial needs of local farmers by providing them qualitative & competitive services.

The essence of our business philosophy is to cater to the financial requirements of small &

medium sized entrepreneurs, credits for construction of school buildings, water channels and

other local development projects as well as for the immediate financial needs of local farmers by

providing them qualitative & competitive services.

An Indigenous Financial Institution, dedicated for the Local Development



THE PROMISE AND CHALLENGE OF PLURALISM FOR SUSTAINABLE

DEVELOPMENT IN MOUNTAIN AREAS: EXPERIENCE AND ENCOUN-

TERS FROM NORTHERN AREAS AND CHITRAL

b y : Ab d u l Ma l i k & I h z a r Al i Hu n z a i

The Promise and Challenge of Pluralism for Sustainable Development

Pluralism1 can be looked at both as a ‘means’ towards sustainable development as well as an ‘end’ in

itself. This paper presents an argument that emphasises the importance of pluralism as a development

imperative in the specic context of the Northern Areas (now Gilgit-Baltistan) and Chitral (NAC). The

basic premise of the paper is that while pluralism is a desirable strategy for peaceful coexistence eve-

rywhere, the importance of this strategy is even higher in mountain areas like the NAC where factors

such as limited physical access, higher dependence on common resources, and inherent diversity of

social groups form the preconditions for conict as well as peaceful coexistence. The need, therefore,

is for explicitly placing pluralism at the heart of development discourse similar to the question of physi-

cal accessibility that has gained centrality in mountain development.

I. THE SETTING

Nestled among the famous mountain ranges of Karakoram, Himalaya, Pamirs, and the Hindukush, the North-

ern Areas and Chitral (NAC) region of Pakistan is no exception to the peculiarities of mountain livelihoods

that can be characterised by a high dependence on fragile natural resource base, high physical vulnerability

rooted in fragile ecological conditions, and greater dependence on social capital as a shield against socio-

economic adversaries. However, like many other mountain regions, this delicate equilibrium of livelihoods,

resource management systems and social organization is undergoing a major transformation process due to

rapid changes brought about by a number of factors such as greater communication between previously iso-

lated and insulated communities, cohabitation challenges faced by diverse groups in new urban centres, and

exposure to inuences from larger social, economic and political systems in the country and from outside. In

other words, the effects of globalisation are being felt at two levels in the context of NAC: rst, the challenge

of coming to terms with each other at the local level; and, second, coming to terms with the broader world.

Specically speaking, three landmark developments have taken place in the NAC over the last four decades

that have transformed the socio-economic landscape of the area. These are the abolition of princely states

and their incorporation into the state of Pakistan; construction of the Karakoram Highway2 and other major

road and telecommunication networks created by the public sector; and, development initiatives undertaken

1The concept of pluralism can be understood at various levels ranging from individuals, groups to civilizations. In this paper,

we are using the concept to elaborate relationships between broader levels of aggregations such as sects, ethnic groups,

and geographic regions. At many points, the paper uses the term pluralism and peaceful coexistence as interchangeable

terms. The concept of pluralism is, however, broader than a mere acknowledgement of differences and diversity across

values and groups but it represents a philosophy of life where variety and differences are valued as such. (Adapted from

the speech delivered by Dr. Elizabeth Frazer at AKU-ISMC Seminar on “Approaches to Pluralism in Muslim Context.”)

2 For the developments of 1970s, see Kreutzmann, H. (1991): “The Karakoram Highway - Impact of Road Construction on

Mountain Societies”. In: Modern Asian Studies 25, Part 4, pp. 711-736.

A b s t r a c t


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/karakoram-knowledge-highways-kkh-issue-4 10/820- Karakoram Knowledge Highways (KKH)0- Karakoram Knowledge Highways (KKH)

by the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) institutions in partnership with local communities in support

of government investments (Wood and Malik 2003). The combined impact of these key initiatives has been

huge. The once isolated valleys of the Northern Areas are now linked with major towns and cities of Pakistan

for exchange of goods, services and ideas. Local communities are now enjoying better access to health and

education facilities both within and outside the NAC. The ultimate impacts include increased incomes, declin-

ing poverty and better performance on health and education indicators (Rasmussen, et al 2004).

II. EMERGING DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGE: REBIRTH OF MAJOR CONFLICTS

Besides witnessing impressive socio-economic transformation over the last two decades, the NAC has also

seen a sharp increase in the occurrence of large-scale conicts that often leave a very profound and negative

impact on the development process. It is important to note that the emergence of conicts is neither specic

to the NAC nor new to the region. Researchers have long recognised a wide prevalence of conicts in the

mountain regions across the globe (Starr 2002) and the NAC itself has witnessed various major conicts in

the past, particularly between princely states that existed in what is now Northern Pakistan in the early 20th

century and before3.

The distinction however lies in the nature of the conicts that have surfaced in recent times. Notwithstanding

the common conicts between various ethnic groups that are usually of limited magnitude and exhibit less

violence, conicts involving sectarian differences (mainly between Shia and Sunni traditions of Islam) have

emerged as a major source of widespread, armed violence in the NAC. Although, on the surface, these sec-

tarian clashes appear to be rooted in religious differences, evidence suggests that the root causes of these

conicts are not necessarily limited to differences in belief systems. Other factors such as socio-economic dis-

parities, political marginalisation and the fear of major shifts in the pre-existing sectarian composition of the

population due to possible political or administrative redrawing of the map of the region, provide added thrust

to such violent manifestations.

CASE 1: From National to Local: A Wave of Intolerance

Today, sectarian violence is a common phenomenon in Pakistan. The Shia-Sunni violence

has mostly become a contest of body counts among rival sectarian death squads, claiming

1,287 victims between 1990 and 2002. In the year 2003 alone, at least 76 people were

killed during sectarian violence, mostly carried out by unidentied gunmen who were be-

lieved to belong to organized sectarian groups (Khan 2004).

In the Northern Areas alone, between 1988 and 2005, 373 people lost their lives in only

ve major sectarian clashes; this includes a recent spree of killings that started on January

8, 2005 and incidences of armed violence were still occurring when this case study was

being written. Over the last four months, it is estimated that over Rs 50 million were spent

on the deployment of security forces alone. The magnitude of losses accruing to socio-

3 For instance, struggles for territorial dominance, internecine warfare, proselytising among neighbouring denominational

groups were common manifestations of communal conicts that found partial support from the colonial administration

when serving the external purposes of dominance. For more details, see Kreutzmann, H. 1995: Globalisation, spatial inte-

gration and sustainable development in Northern Pakistan. In: Mountain Research and Development 15 (3), pp. 213-227.


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/karakoram-knowledge-highways-kkh-issue-4 11/82The Promise and Challenge of Pluralism for Sustainable Development

economic spheres of life can at best be described as huge4.

The freshness and magnitude of sectarian violence should not, however, preclude us from considering other

forms of conict that also hinder the development process, albeit at a relatively small scale. Among other

forms of conict, disputes between different ethnic groups over common natural resources tend to have wide-

spread prevalence across the region. Interestingly, some of the recent conicts have emerged out of the very

development initiatives undertaken by government and non-government institutions (Northern Areas Report

2003).

III. PRECONDITIONS AND DRIVERS OF CONFLICTS IN NAC

Many intrinsic and extrinsic factors combine together to provide a fertile breeding ground for the different

kinds of conict noted above. Some of the common internal factors include inherent diversity in mountain

areas, economic deprivations faced by different groups and a weak base of political and governmental insti-

tutions. Among the external factors, increased interaction with the external world and its negative spill over

stands at the top. Interestingly, these drivers are not unique and specic to the NAC, but similar factors have

been instrumental behind most mountain conicts (Starr, 2002).

In the following paragraphs, we briey discuss each factor. The reader may notice that most of the following

factors are largely relevant to the debate on sectarian conicts. This has been done deliberately to highlight

the root causes of the widespread problem faced by people of the NAC today.

A. MOUNTAINOUS NORTH AND INHERENT DIVERSITY

The NAC presents a rich blend of diverse communities dened along the lines of ethnicity, belief, language and

locality. This heterogeneity is a common feature of many mountain regions and needs further explanation. The

Fig 1: The mountains of NAC hosts a mosaic of cultural & ethono-lingustic heritages

4Statistics obtained from government sources.



population of Hindukush and Karakoram mountains in NAC is characterized by more than 25 ethno-linguistic

groups from four distinct language families. The core of the population is formed by autochthonous groups,

which migrated into the mountain valleys centuries ago. In addition we nd a number of immigrants from

neighbouring areas such as Afghan Wakhan, Xinjiang, and Kashmir as well as from the southern parts of the

mountain belt. These immigrants had different reasons to look for an abode in NAC including nomadic life-

styles, risk of persecution and search for new settlements and pastures. All these migrations reect a picture

of high mobility that has resulted in patterns of ethno-linguistic diversity5

. These diverse cultures, however,grew largely in isolation from each other due to physical barriers to mobility posed by vertical mountain walls.

This limited interaction between adjacent cultures was reinforced by dened boundaries and interests of local

states that often fought wars with each other in the name of ethno-geographic interests.

Today when there are no princely states and communication between previously isolated regions of the NAC

has increased tremendously, new sources of discontent such as economic inequities and injustices across

evolving identities (e.g. denominational groups, regionalism) have emerged that sometimes take the form

of ethno-geographic rivalries, while at other times, they erupt into outright violence. It is worth noting that

many of these conicts emanate from urban centres within NAC where arguably most of the new economicand political assets are concentrated, and where the inherent diversity is further deepened by increasing in-

migration of people from different parts of the NAC as well as from low lands of Pakistan. Additionally, urban

centres contain a greater concentration of unemployed youth who are more educated and articulated than

their rural counterparts and hence more sensitive to inequities and deprivations; crime is another by-product

of urbanization, particularly when urban services are underdeveloped or overused. Under these circumstanc-

es, sectarian issues, whether created deliberately or by default, provide a highly volatile environment serving

as a trigger for violence.

B. DIFFERENTIAL DEVELOPMENT AND ITS NEGATIVE SPILL-OVER

The NAC is no exception to growing economic challenges of high unemployment and socio-economic dispari-

ties that are prevalent within and across different sects and ethnic groups. This unequal and inequitable dis-

tribution of development gains not only sets the stage for social disharmony, but it provokes the perceived

victims to take extreme measures such as armed violence to express their discontent. In fact, many of the

recent conicts including the sectarian clashes have drawn substantial support from unemployed youth and

sometimes, even from religious and political leaders, on the basis of perceived economic victimization in jobs,

businesses and other development projects6.

5 For background on migration and minorities Kreutzmann, H. 2000: Geo-linguistic variegation in the Eastern Hindukush

and Karakoram. In: Dittmann, A. (ed.): Mountain societies in transition. Contributions to the Cultural Geography of the

Karakoram (Culture Area Karakorum Scientic Studies 6). Köln, pp. 155-178; Kreutzmann, H. 2003: Ethnic minorities and

marginality in the Pamirian knot. Survival of Wakhi and Kirghiz in a harsh environment and global contexts. In: The Geo-

graphical Journal 169 (3), pp. 215-235.

6 Findings from focus group discussions



C. INTEGRATION WITH EXTERNALWORLD AND IMPORTED INTOLERANCE

While greater communication and integration7 of the NAC with the outside world has fetched many develop-

mental gains, there is little doubt that this increased connectedness has also facilitated the inux of extreme

behaviours. From the perspective of sectarian violence, three negative inuences are worth mentioning: First,

increased exposure of local people to extreme ideas through media and direct interaction with religious opin-

ion leaders from the major cities of Pakistan has in fact highlighted the perceived differences between differ-

ent sects and created further divisions. Second, in recent years, the deeply entrenched tradition of religious

militancy – fostered during the Cold War against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan and reinforced during the

Kashmir conict – from mainland Pakistan has found its way to NAC. Third, it is believed that sectarian mili-

tancy is thriving upon the contacts with other networks and nancial support coming from outside the NAC8.

As a result, a highly fragile environment has developed where any sectarian mishap in the rest of the country

or even outside Pakistan can potentially cascade into the NAC with devastating effects.

D. WEAKENING RULE OF LAW

An important driver of conicts in the NAC has been weaknesses in the justice system, which is equally true for

rest of the country (Khan 2004). This absence of a potent and fair law and order system not only emboldens

extremists to commit crimes without being held accountable, but also leaves the aggrieved parties with no

options other than taking the law and order in their own hands in the name of revenge (Khan 2004). Besides,

there are numerous instances where conicts between rival sects started precisely because one group tres-

passed and infringed upon the rights and beliefs of another group – a common phenomenon that is experi-

enced across the NAC and rest of Pakistan.

CASE 2: Managing Diversity in the High Mountains

The inherent diversity and associated conicts in the NAC have traditionally been managed

by indigenous institutional mechanisms at the village level under the ultimate patronage of the rulers of princely states. For conicts of larger scale such as inter-village and inter-eth-

nic conicts, the role of Mirs and Mehtars was more direct. Similarly, to reduce the chances

of inter state conicts and to mitigate the impact of such events, marriages between mem-

bers of royal families of adjacent or rival states was a norm. Physical isolation also played

a hedging role against such larger conicts by conning and insulating different ethnic and

religious groups in separate ‘islands’.

With the invasion of colonial forces, especially after the Hunza Campaign of 1891 and the

Struggle for Chitral in 1895, the British administration attempted to streamline the tra-

7 There is a local dimension of integration as well. Increased physical contact between previously isolated local people with

differing attitudes, orientation and belief systems also led to conict at least initially. Anecdotal evidence in support of this

thesis is overwhelming. In AKRSP’s experience of promoting dialogue among communities, the rst dialogue in a given

community often started with a forceful expression of ‘discord’. Even today, in remote villages of Baltistan, Hunza, Diamer

and other valleys, pre-existing perceptions of local population about people living in other valleys are full of suspicions and

similar to that of demons.

8 See Khan 2004 for similar examples from mainland Pakistan



ditional ruling set-up by strengthening supportive Mirs and Mehtars on the one hand and

by appointing governors and rulers from outside on the other hand. As a result equally

strong and competitive administrative units were created and could be managed for their

purposes. This duality in administrative set-ups resulted in weakening of the traditional

system and its effectiveness in managing administrative affairs, including conict manage-

ment, started to decrease.

With the abolition of princely states, formal institutions of justice and administration took

over the charge of dispensing solutions to local and regional conicts. Experience suggests

that the effectiveness of these formal institutions of justice and administration has, none-

theless, remained unsatisfactory in most cases. As a result, not only do many existing con-

icts remain unresolved, but this weakening of justice system also emboldens the criminals

to commit crimes with impunity.

E. A DIFFERENT FORM OF REMOTENESS: POLITICAL ISOLATION

Perhaps the greatest challenge of all is the political isolation and marginalisation of the region from main-

stream decision making institutions such as the National Assembly and the Senate. More than 55 years have

passed since the accession of the Northern Areas to the state of Pakistan, but the constitutional status of the

area is yet to be dened. As a result, articulation of local interests at the national level is often missing and

in turn, responsiveness of the state to local issues of the region is often very weak (Cyan and Afzal 2003). If

not a direct cause of conicts in the NAC, this continued political isolation of the region has created conditions

(e.g. lack of local representation in decision making) that result in worsening of the situation.

The problem of political isolation is further deepened by a weak base of local political and civil institutions.

Consequently, the importance and effectiveness of these local institutions in brokering dialogue and peace,

particularly in the case of sectarian and regional conicts, is often not understood. Experience suggests that

whenever opportunities for balancing diverse and often contending interests are seized, these local political

institutions have been highly effective in brokering peace. For instance, the successful coalition government

of Tahreek-e-Jaafaria and Muslim League during (1999-2004) itself is an indicator of how elected representa-

tives from two completely different constituencies (in the case of Northern Areas, followers of Shia and Sunni

traditions of Islam respectively) can sit together and work on pluralistic grounds.

IV. DUAL DRIVERS: INCENTIVE FOR COEXISTENCE OR CONFLICT?

Having underscored the importance of preconditions and drivers that promote conict, we must also recognise

that there are some features intrinsic to the NAC that provide an incentive to show greater tolerance towards

each other, particularly when it comes to conicts between sectarian groups. These features include shared

but limited accessibility options, socio-economic interdependencies and mixed settlements (ethnically and

sect-wise), which form the preconditions for pluralistic coexistence. However, paradoxically, these inherent de-

terrents, if not nudged in the right direction, can actually exacerbate conictual situations and their outcomes.



A. LIMITED PHYSICAL ACCESS AND SHARED OUTCOMES

Lack of diversity in physical access, i.e. limited number of road links, is a common feature of the NAC. The

harshness of terrain and associated high cost of developing alternative communication links often forces di-

verse groups to share same communication routes. For instance, the whole of Northern Areas is linked with

the rest of the country through the Karakoram Highway (KKH). Similarly, people of Chitral largely depend on

the Lawari route or road link via Afghanistan for their communication with mainland Pakistan. Even most of

the valleys and villages within the NAC have a singular road link.

On the one hand, this limitedness of access provokes a unied sense of geographical belonging and, on the

other, it forms the basis of a bargain in the event of sectarian, ethnic and regional conicts where the adver-

saries of a conict at one locality threaten the opposite groups by denying access.

CASE 3: Basis of a New Bargain: Violence on the KKH

Recent outbreak of sectarian violence in Gilgit has triggered a series of targeted shoot-

ings along the KKH on the Gilgit-Islamabad route, which predominantly falls in a Sunni

populated belt. Reportedly, the assailants have targeted members of the Shia sect on the premise that they are behind the killings of many Sunni members in and around Gilgit

town. Following suit, a vehicle carrying some Sunni passengers was red at when it was

passing through a Shia populated village near Gilgit town.

This series of killings and counter killings is not new to the region. Similar kinds of inci-

dents have also occurred in the past where the aggrieved groups have used ‘location’ to

their advantage and forced sufferings upon the opposite group. Arguably, one can say that

recent sectarian violence could have been even worse, had there been alternate exit and

accessibility options for one group or the other.

In the specic case of Northern Areas where sectarian and ethnic diversity is very high, singular access option

also means that one negative incident and disruption of communication can bring huge economic and social

hardships to the whole population irrespective of their stance and afnities. In the past, such sectarian disrup-

tions have increased the economic vulnerability manifolds by compounding the chances of road closure that

itself is a very common phenomenon due to harsh weather conditions and frequent landslides. Alternatively,

it can be argued that this inherent potential to make every one worse off has forced different groups to follow

co-existential strategies.

B. SOCIO-ECONOMIC INTERDEPENDENCIES

Another important driver of coexistence can be found in the evolving socio-economic relationships between

different geographic, ethnic and sectarian groups. Historically, local people depended heavily on their local

resources and hence interacted largely with their immediate neighbours (within a village and at most from

adjacent villages) for their social and economic exchanges. As a result, very few exchanges and hence de-

pendencies were found with communities who lived in distant localities such as other local states. This high

internal dependence often saved people from major socio-economic losses in case of extreme eventualities



such as wars with other states.

The situation has completely changed now. With the increase in communication and monetisation of local

economy, the breadth of economic interdependency of a remote household has now stretched beyond its im-

mediate village to include markets that are located in places that were previously considered to be so-called

enemy zones. This re-orientation of economic ties has added an element of mutual interest that forces people

to work and live together. In other words, sustained economic and social relationships across different groups

are becoming a prerequisite for economic survival.

Yet there are other developments that are weakening the internal social hedges against conicts. For instance,

previously a common practice, marriages between people from different sects is now becoming rare due to

the advent of extreme ideas.

CASE 4: Internal Hedges: Family Relations across Different Sects in Ghizer and

Upper Chitral

Two contrasting pictures emerge when two districts in the NAC – Chitral and Ghizer – are

compared in terms of incidence of sectarian violence. In the 1980s, Chitral saw an outbreak of sectarian violence between Sunnis and Ismailis that led to the killing of seven people. On

the other hand, Ghizer, a neighbouring district also having a mixed population of Ismailis and

Sunnis has not experienced sectarian violence of this size in the recent times. This higher level

of violence in Chitral can be attributed to a variety of factors including events of trespassing on

each others beliefs, socio-economic disparities across the two sects, and spill over of extrem-

ism from the situation in Afghanistan. However, one prominent factor that differentiates the

two localities is the tradition of intermarriages and ethnic ties between the two sects, Ghizer

representing deeper social ties. Even in those parts of Chitral where social ties between the

two communities have been strong, for instance in upper Chitral, families belonging to differ-

ent sects have protected each other in the case of extreme eventualities. Similar cases have

also been witnessed in other parts of the Northern Areas where social ties have served as

internal hedges and buffers.

V. PLURALISM: A DESIRABLE DEVELOPMENT OUTCOME

In the previous sections, we looked at various exogenous and endogenous factors that come together to form

a very fragile environment where chances of social breakdown are often very high. Seen in the context of

a “livelihoods framework”, the net effect is high social and economic vulnerability 9. This added vulnerability

invariably leaves very profound and negative impressions on the development process and its sustainability

by slowing down economic activities, diverting productive resources and human energies to non-productive

9 It is worth noting that shocks like religious or ethnic conicts are distinct from natural shocks in terms of their after ef-

fects. In case of natural shocks such as oods and earthquakes, communities usually work together in solidarity irrespec-

tive of ethnic and sectarian belongings to cope with the adversaries; a response that often complements the development

work that is founded on collective action such as the work of AKRSP. The case is completely opposite for shocks induced

by religious or ethnic divide where the collective action across rival groups becomes an invalid option and people tend to

seek solutions that are less pluralistic.



and often dangerous uses and creating an environment of distrust that weakens the incentive for concerted

development efforts on the part of various local groups whose economic interests are often intertwined. The

obvious and long lasting answer to the problem lies in the pursuit of peaceful coexistence. In other words,

pluralism can be used as an effective tool for promoting sustainable development.

Nonetheless, we must also recognize that the debate of pluralism is broader than a ‘means’ argument. It

needs to be promoted as an important development outcome where people not only live with differences but

also defend each others right to be different. In other words, pluralism as a development outcome can be seen

in two distinct ways: a) protecting basic rights of different groups, and b) promoting diversity of cultures. From

a rights perspective, acknowledgement of different identities and actively protecting the interests of those who

hold those identities is essential so long as such actions do not take away the basic liberties of other groups.

From the diversity of cultures perspective, preservation and promotion of diverse cultures as an essential facet

of development becomes a central argument. Like other indicators of wellbeing, such as income, health and

education, this approach recognises culture as an integral part of holistic development.

VI. Encounters and Experiences

In this section, we present two examples from the work of AKDN that has been engaged in the promotion of

equitable socio-economic development in the Northern Areas and Chitral for over two decades. The idea is

to highlight the case of pluralism from a practitioner’s perspective and see how far these non-governmental

initiatives have been able to promote pluralism as a development imperative.

A. THE CASE OF AGA KHAN RURAL SUPPORT PROGRAMME

The Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) has been working in the NAC since 1983 with an explicit

Fig 2 : V/WOs Provided platform to discuss issues of community interest



focus on developing institutional capacities at the grassroots level. Mandated to improve the living standard

of local communities, the AKRSP has helped catalysed a participatory development process through organis-

ing over 80% of rural households into 4,000 village-based institutions. Recognising its effectiveness and rel-

evance, the AKRSP model has now been widely replicated within as well as outside Pakistan.

From the perspective of promoting tolerance and pluralism, AKRSP’s role can be understood along the follow-

ing dimensions:

1. Village-Based Institutions: A Forum for Dialogue and Conict Management

Through organizing the majority of communities into village-level and some times supra village-level insti-

tutions, AKRSP has, in fact, provided a viable platform for local people to articulate their diverse views and

needs. By design, these institutions are broad-based and ensure inclusion of voices from different quarters of

their constituencies. As result of this broad-based participation, an atmosphere of trust and condence has

been created that is often missing in non-participatory approaches. Ultimately, this institutional mechanism

allows people to voice their concerns and jointly nd out ways in which these concerns can be addressed.

Furthermore, not only did these institutions ensure the inclusion of diverse groups from their constituencies,but they also play an important role in resolving conicts arising out of the very development interventions.

Through promoting dialogue and negotiations amongst the local people, these institutions have been able to

resolve conicts related to common resources and accomplish many development projects.

CASE 5: Conict Resolution and Development Initiatives

Over the last two decades, AKRSP has helped resolve hundreds of conicts that surfaced

before or while implementing community based infrastructure projects. In most cases,

these conicts were rooted in decades old disputes over common property rights, ethnic

differences and sectarian divides. In these circumstances, the formation of village-based institutions and initiation of infrastructure projects was in fact a new opportunity to recon-

cile these chronic differences.

Among numerous cases, three recent examples of conict resolution include the Shedi ir-

rigation project in Chitral, Shahtot micro hydroelectric project in Gilgit, and Hakuchal water

tank in Nagar valley. The Shedi irrigation project in Chitral presents a classic example where

Kalash people (a non-muslim ethnic minority) and Sunni Muslims, despite a long history

of religious friction, have come together to construct an irrigation channel and develop a

mixed settlement. Similarly, in Shahtot at Gilgit, an old conict on the distribution of water rights between the old and new settlers of the village Shahtot and Sasi was resolved during

the course of construction of a hydroelectric power generation unit. Finally, Hakuchal water

reservoir project in Nagar enabled local people of Hakuchal village to go above a persistent

conict between two clans and build consensus around development initiatives.

Experience suggests that AKRSP fostered grass-roots institutions are effective in managing diverse interests

and conicts at the village or inter-village level, a natural outcome of the scope and mandate of the village-

based institutions. For conicts that appear at broader levels of aggregation such as sectarian clashes emanat-



ing from urban centres, such as Gilgit town, the effectiveness of these village level institutions is often limited.

In this connection, it was also noticed that AKRSP has largely been unable to recognise and engage other

players in the civil society institutions such as rights groups and other forums that could play an effective role

in managing new challenges. Furthermore, it also appears that AKRSP’s rural focus has somehow reduced its

interaction with the newly emerging urban poles in the NAC that have now become fertile ground for conicts

and violence. This limitation points towards the need for fostering civic institutions in urban centres along lines

similar to rural-based, civil society institutions.

In recognition of these limitations, AKRSP is currently retooling itself to include diverse groups of civil institu-

tions that could eventually play an important role in addressing emerging development challenges including

conicts of wider scope such as sectarian clashes. Furthermore, AKRSP has also started to implement new

concepts such as Multi-stakeholder Forum that could serve as an institutionalised system of dialogue for issues

and challenges that affect higher levels of aggregations such as valleys, districts and even regions.

2. AKRSP and Equitable Development

As noted in the previous sections that inequitable development is a major driver of conicts in the NAC.

AKRSP’s development model pays explicit attention to the importance of equity to put in place a long lasting

and desirable development process. Various evaluations have conrmed that AKRSP has largely been able to

incorporate the interests of different groups e.g. gender, sects, and regions. However, evidence suggests that

the development in the NAC has not fully beneted everyone. This inequitable development is not necessar-

ily an outcome of AKRSP or AKDN interventions but there are other factors such as differential government

investment10 that have also contributed toward this skewed development outcome and differential articulation

of demand for social sector services such as education, health and sanitation.

Experience also suggests that wherever AKDN was not able to actively work towards the equitable develop-

ment, a fragile atmosphere emerged where likelihood of conicts between local communities increased. For

instance, inequitable development between northern and southern Chitral—mainly an outcome of the non-

willingness of communities in southern Chitral to participate in the social programs aimed at women and

micro-enterprise through micro-credit as well as the initial communal focus of some of the AKDN agencies

prior to 1980s—has been one of the major drivers of tensions between southern and northern Chitral.

B. THE CASE OF AGA KHAN CULTURAL SERVICES PAKISTAN

AKCSP has been working in the Northern Areas since the early 90s to revive local soft and hard cultural sym-

bols in different parts of the Northern Areas. The essence of this program is to recognise and promote cultures

and their diversity as an important facet of human life. To this end, AKCSP has been working on the revival of

local heritage by highlighting its economic value and modern applications so that these cultural assets could

become living and relevant symbols for local people as opposed to a case where cultural heritage merely be-

comes a fossilised item.

Perhaps the greatest value of AKRSP’s work is its ability to revive identities and traditions that transcend be-

yond the religious and ethnic divides in a particular locality. For instance, the restoration of Altit and Baltit Fort

10 See pervez and Rasmussen 2002 for more details on different investment in the NAC



in Hunza and Shigar Fort in Baltistan today offer a new opportunity to various groups within the project areas

to identify themselves with a common and shared heritage.

CASE 6: Beyond the Connes: Preservation of Buddha Rock and Jaam e Mosque

in Shigar

Around the same time when Taliban were blasting down the gigantic statues of Buddha in

Bamyan province of Afghanistan, AKCSP was working with Baltistan Cultural Foundation

(BCF)—a local organisation with representation from all three local sects i.e. Shia, Noor-

bakhshi and Sunni— to preserve the ancient carvings of Buddha in Baltistan. This ancient

heritage was under the risk of disguration due to continuous bombardment of stones from

local people who used to throw stones into a hole just above the carving of Buddha to com-

ply with a local myth. Cognizant of this problem, AKCSP-BCF took new measures including

hiring of a watchman and fencing of the area with barbed wire. These immediate steps

have mitigated the imminent risk of damage. Currently, plans are underway to buy private

land around the Buddha Rock and turn the place into a protected heritage.

The second example comes from Shigar Baltistan where local communities are currently

working with AKCSP to introduce traditional architecture in the design and construction of

the Jaam e Masjid (central mosque). Inspired by restoration work at Amburiq mosque (600

years old), Astana (a 300 years old shrine that has received an award of distinction from

UNESCO), and Shigar Fort, local communities have decided to follow traditional cribbage

structure with a Tibetan tower (a symbol of Buddhist architecture) instead of constructing

F i g 3 :

R e n o v a

t i o n o

f S h i g a r

F o r t : h a r n e s s

i n g

h e r i t a g e s

f o r

l o c a

l d e v e

l o p m

e n

t



a concrete dome that is a common feature of mosques in the region and elsewhere! In

fact, this blend of traditional heritage in modern architecture has set a unique precedence

in the region.

VII. THE CHALLENGE AHEAD

Based on the experiences and encounters from the NAC, we can conclude that the current development proc-

ess in the Northern Areas and Chitral partly caters to some of the challenges articulated at the onset of this

paper. The civil society institutions, particularly those that are broad-based and rooted in the communities,

play a crucial role in balancing the interest of diverse groups, both proactively through inclusiveness as well

as reactively through conict management. Similarly, some of the development interventions by non-gov-

ernment institutions such as agencies of the AKDN play a crucial role in building peace and harmony through

ensuring equity in their programmes.

Nonetheless, the greater challenge lies in managing conicts that represent broader levels of aggregation

such as sectarian clashes and regional tensions. The current institutional responses in the public and citizen

sectors are not aligned enough to entirely address these emerging, yet prominent, threats to sustainability of

development. Therefore, comprehensive solutions need to be sought that involve actions from public, private

and citizen sector institutions. Some of the possible actions are mentioned below.

A. PLURALISM AS A PRIORITY MOUNTAIN DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH AGENDA

There is a need for investigating the concept of pluralism as a development imperative in the specic context

of mountain areas. So far, at least in the NAC, not much has been done to explore the link between social fra-

gility and sustainable development. A clear understanding of conict drivers and their preconditions in the NAC

and other mountain areas will help elicit strategies that could assist development practitioners in combating

this emerging, yet daunting, challenge.

B. BUILD ON WHAT HAS WORKED SO FAR

Programmes that promote broad-based participation of communities often help neutralise the drivers of con-

ict by promoting inclusion, equity and customising of the development package according to the needs of

actual constituencies. Experiences from other mountain areas also point towards this fact (Starr 2002). The

need is therefore, for continuing, ne tuning and replicating current participatory and holistic development

interventions to increase their outreach to underserved and unattended populations. In the specic context of

the NAC, this would mean a redoubling of development efforts in the conict prone areas, particularly in the

emerging urban poles.

C. PROMOTION OF FORUMS FOR DIALOGUE AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION

Currently, most of the institutions and institutional mechanisms for dialogue are not catering to the new de-

velopment challenges that often appear at broader levels of aggregation. As a result, in the event of social

closures, independent and timely initiatives are not often seen. This challenge can be addressed through pro-

moting forums that can provide platforms for diverse set of stakeholders to engage in a constructive dialogue

for enduring peace and development. The effectiveness of these dialogues and forums can be enhanced by

introducing modern techniques and tools that facilitate multi-stakeholder negotiations and conict resolution.



D. GOOD GOVERNANCE IS A PRE-REQUISITE FOR PLURALISM

Finally, no efforts for pluralism can be enough and effective if two important preconditions, political empower-

ment of local institutions and the rule of law, are not ensured. Ultimately, it is the state that balances the di-

verse and conicting interests of different groups by putting in place a system of justice and a mechanism for

equitable participation in the decision making process. In this regard, three important areas need attention.

First, bring constitutional reforms to include the voice of local people in the highest national forums, e.g. the

National Assembly and the Senate. Second, promote the principles of participation, transparency, meritocracy

and accountability in public sector decision making to ensure equitable development. Third and nally, estab-

lish the rule of law and justice by bringing needed reforms11.

VIII. REFERENCES

Cyan, Musharraf Rasool and Latif Afzal. (2003): “Governance”. Northern Areas Strategy for Sustainable

Development. ICUN.

Khan, Zaigham. (2004): The Unholy War: Religious Militancy and Sectarian Violence in Pakistan. Centre

for Democratic Governance & The Network for Consumer Protection.

Kreutzmann, H. (1991): “The Karakoram Highway - Impact of Road Construction on Mountain Societies”.

In: Modern Asian Studies 25, Part 4, pp. 711-736.

Kreutzmann, H. (2000): “Geolinguistic Varieagation in the Eastern Hindukush and Karakoram”. In Moun-

tain Societies in Transition.

Kreutzmann, H. (2003): “Development problems in the mountain regions of Northern Pakistan”. In:

Mufti, S. A., Hussain, S. S. & A.M. Khan (eds.): Mountains of Pakistan: Protection, Potentials and Pros-

pects. Islamabad: Global Change Impact Studies Centre, pp. 164-179.

Rasmussen, et al. (2004) : Scaling Up RSPs :Pakistan Case. Shanghai Conference.

Parvez, Safdar and Rasmussen, Stephen F. (2002): Sustaining Mountain Economies: Sustainable Liveli-

hoods and Poverty Evaluation. akrsp

Starr, Fredrick. (2002): Conict and Peace in Mountain Societies. BGMS Thematic Paper C2.

Wood, Geof and Abdul Malik. (2003): Poverty and Livelihoods. Aga Khan Rural Support Programme,

Islamabad.

(2003): Between Hope & Despair: Pakistan Poverty Assessment Northern Areas Report. Planning and

Development NAs.

Mr.Izhar Ali Hunzai is the General Manager of Aga Khan Rural Support Programme.

Mr.Abdul Malik is presently afliated with AKF, Geneva.

and

11See Cyan and Afzal 2003 for details on the need for constitutional reforms; Also see khan 2004 for suggestions to encounter the chal

lenge of religious militancy in Pakistan.


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/karakoram-knowledge-highways-kkh-issue-4 23/82Changing Lives in Northern Pakistan

CHANGING LIVES IN NORTHERN PAKISTAN BY UNLEASHING

WOMEN ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT

b y : Ka n wa l Bo k h a r e y

For the last 13 years Switzerland has been working in the Northern Areas (now Gilgit-Baltistan) of Pakistan to un-

leash entrepreneurial potentials, improve technical skills and support the set-up and strengthening of small enter-

prises. The interventions have been primarily focussing on women in business lines such as embroidery, fabrics

carpets, apricot oil, wooden furniture and gem stones. This has resulted in an annual average increase of 20-30%

in the incomes of over 10’000 poor households and enabled them to improve access to basic services, build smal

assets, increase savings to cope with shocks, improve nutrition and ensure education for their children. Over the

years, SDC has invested about 5.6 millions US$ in these projects through two local civil society institutions.

Rasheeda, a 30 year old women working since 2006 says: “The biggest breakthrough is bringing

us (the young women) in gem business which everyone thought it is men’s business…I learnt cut-

ting, faceting and polishing of semi-precious and precious stones. I am skilled now and am making

a respective living”

ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT

Life in the Northern Areas of Pakistan is marked by re-

moteness, poverty and hardship. People live in small

valleys in the world famous mountain ranges of Hima-

layas, Hindukush and Karakoram which include 5 peaks

of more than 8’000 meters in height. The population of

these valleys suffers from extreme deprivation due to

a combination of natural and manmade factors. These

include inaccessibility, unforgiving winters as well as

gender inequality, social exclusion for the poor and the

disabled and widespread poverty.

The total population of the Northern Areas is 1.1 million,

of which 86% live in rural areas. Subsistence farming

on tiny patches of land, small fruit orchards and live-

stock had been the only sources of peoples’ livelihoods

until recently. With no other income opportunities and

negligible access to the outside world, poverty and food

insecurity were pervasive. But things have started to

change. Thanks to the fo-cused investments made by

Switzerland, men and women of the region have man-

aged to diversify the sources of their livelihood.

However, achieving this was not an easy task, it is the

result of an unrelenting struggle spread over more than

a decade in pursuit of one goal: economic empower-

ment of the poor, especially women. With this clear

end in view, Switzerland remained the most signicant

source of nancial and technical assistance for existingand potential entrepreneurs which enabled people to

learn new skills, access capital, get exposure to new

markets and receive an array of business development

services over extended periods of time. A wide range

of new products were developed and new businesses

started. Not all products have attracted customers, nor

have all businesses succeeded. But a well designed sys-

tem of continuous learning ensured that the reasons


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/karakoram-knowledge-highways-kkh-issue-4 24/824- Karakoram Knowledge Highways (KKH)

were carefully analysed and lessons were fed back into

the programme.

Results achieved so far include important contributions

to sustainable employment generation. Around one

dozen new enterprises have emerged which are wholly

owned and managed by local women groups and em-

ploy over 3’500 home based women workers. Besides

300 people with special needs (mentally and/or physi-

cally challenged) have been rehabilitated through this

programme. Local institutions with the support of Swit-

zerland have been able to enhance economic viability,

protability and employment creation in key sectors,

i.e. woodwork, apricot oil, handicrafts and gem stones

In line with the Swiss foreign policy objective of re-

lieving need and poverty, preserving the natural en-

vironment and respect for human rights, Switzerland

invested about 5.6 million US$ in the last 13 years of

partnerships with two local civil society institutions: the

Karakoram Area Development Organisation (KADO) in

Hunza Valley and the Baltistan Culture & Development

Foundation (BCDF) in Baltistan Valley.

SHORT TERM RESULTS OF KEY INTERVENTIONS: SOME EXAMPLES

FROM UNEMPLOYMENT TO ENTREPRENEUR

From unemployment to skilled employment:

In 1996 Switzerland started supporting the local or-

ganisation KADO (Karakoram Area Development Or-

ganisation) in Hunza Valley, in the Northern Areas. The

objective was to develop and promote culturally sensi-

tive and environmentally sustainable micro enterprises

which could create income and employment opportuni-ties for women artisans and small producers.

As part of a carefully developed value chain based on

market analysis, more than 3’000 poor women artisans

were trained in embroidery. They were then organised

into “Primary Production Units” as home based work-

ers to do the local embroidery. Later, seven “Secondary

Production Units” employing 70 women were set up in

different villages to develop nished products using the

materials produced in the Primary Units. Capacities of

another 40 men and women from local communities

were enhanced in various business functional skills to

manage designing, product development, quality as-

surance, production, sales and marketing. Main product

lines included embroidery and needlework, carpets, tra-

ditional rugs and hand-woven fabric.

The arrangement was most suitable for women artisans

living in remote areas as it enabled them to make a

living without leaving their homes. As the production

volume increased, the products were given the brand

name of Thread Net Hunza and supplied to 46 retai

outlets in the urban areas throughout the country. In

acknowledgement of their contribution towards the re-

K-2



vival and conservation of the local culture and for main-

taining quality, the products were also granted the seal

of excellence by UNESCO. The Government of Northern

Areas replicated this model in the other six districts of

the Northern Areas, in which the women artisans were

engaged as master trainers.

From Artisans to Entrepreneurs:

As the objective of the programme was not to run a

business but to broaden the local base of viable busi-

nesses, a strategy of gradual withdrawal was followed

by the local organisation KADO. The idea was to con-

tinuously enhance the capacities of the women so that

they could take over the Thread Net Hunza business and

run it independently. The women groups went through

an in-depth capacity building process to graduate from

‘workers to owners’ and from ‘employees to employ-

ers’. Although reaching this stage took much longer

than expected due to multiple challenges, this crucial

milestone was nally reached in 2006 and six new inde-

pendent companies were established wholly owned by

local women. In addition to each company’s (women’s)

own small equities, SDC also contributed equity to be

used as working capital in ve of these companies.

Mahee Parveen, the president of one of the ve

woman companies says: “I worked initially in one

of the Secondary Production Units as a worker. The

year 2006 was a turning point in my life when ve

of us formed this company. Our family was initially

not in favour of us taking risk but now they are very

happy when we take money home. We feel very

condent now as we are our bosses. I am takingmost of the family decisions now. It also gives me

great satisfaction that we are helping women in re-

mote areas by giving them work”.

Today these companies are successfully running and

providing livelihoods to more than 3’500 women. Five

out of the six are protable. In addition to the direct

tangible benet of increased household income, the

businesses are contributing towards improved food se-

curity for the households, better education for children

and asset creation for the poor. Moreover, as women

are in the driving seat of these enterprises, their un-

precedented success is helping to successfully challenge

the deeply entrenched gender roles in the communities

Gradually, women’s standing and respect in the societyis increasing and women have gained a greater share

in decision making at household and community level.

RIGHTS TO THE WRONGED

Due to inter-marriage and iodine deciency, about 6%

of the population of the Northern Areas suffers from

some form of disability. As most of the people with

special needs are also very poor, they face discrimi-

nation and exclusion of all forms. After carrying out a

situation analysis of people with special needs, the lo-

cal organisation KADO with support from Switzerland

started a safety net cum empowerment programme for

them by setting up the Sharma Rehabilitation Centre

Sharma selected production of rugs from goat wool as

the means for helping these persons to become sel

reliant and productive members of the society. Work

was categorised according to their capacities and their

skills were built accordingly. A production based value

chain was worked out including wool separating, thread

making, spinning, weaving, sewing, stitching and rug

making. Special Olympics and music classes are also

organised for recreation.



Kalb-e- Ali 55 years: “I have been coming to the

centre since last 8 years. I come from Momina-

bad, a socially marginalised community of the

valley. Before coming here, I used to beg from

people. Now I am skilled, I don’t have to beg… It

hasmade a difference to my life. My son is also

special like me,I made it a point to bring himhere. He was very shy before but now he has

improved and talks to others, I am happy. We

both have a place to work like you all (the normal

ones), earn money with which we buy wheat, on-

ion, match box, soap, sometimes milk also, an-

dalso paying school fee for my other son who is

physically disabled, life is much better now…”

The centre has so far been able to make more than300 people with special needs self-reliant, earning an

average of US$ 35-60 per month. Attainment of skills,

increase in income and special attention has helped to

enhance their self-esteem and self-worth and at the

same time has improved their standing in the eyes of

their families.

The achievements of Switzerland supported pilot ef-

fort also attracted widespread appreciation and sup-port from key stakeholders. The demonstration effect

helped KADO to mobilise funding from the Ministry of

Social Welfare and Special Education for construction

of a state of the art rehabilitation centre for which local

community generously donated land worth US$ 50’000.

Furthermore, as a result of the resource mobilisation

capacity building efforts undertaken by Switzerland for

its partners, KADO and Shell Pakistan are working out

to set up a gas station in the Northern Areas where

disabled people will be rehabilitated and provided em-

ployment opportunities. Since the Sharma centre ini-

tially catered to men with special needs only, KADO has

replicated the model for women with special needs with

additional support from the government, private foun-

dations and local philanthropists.

CASHING IN ON NATURAL RESOURCES

Bano Ali is one of the several thousands Balti women

whose incomes have increased as a result of Switzer-

land’s investments in promoting the apricot oil business

in the Northern Areas of Pakistan. She says:

“I got training in apricot oil expelling and pack-

aging and decided to set up my own business. I

invested some equity and US$ 360 loan from a

local bank, I set up an apricot oil expelling busi-

ness which has resulted in doubling my monthly

household income.”

Pakistan is the 3rd largest apricot grower in the world

and within the country almost 80% of the fruit is pro-

duced in the Northern Areas. Remoteness and transpor-

tation difculties coupled with highly perishable nature

of the apricot fruit result in high local consumption. Var-

ious efforts to promote the export of apricots through

improved preservation, processing and packaging have

so far only been partially successful. Besides, apricots

are one of the most important sources of food and nu-

trition for the local communities who cherish this fruit

using many indigenous recipes. High local consumption

inevitably yields large amounts of oil rich apricot ker-

nels. Apricot kernel oil is unique in many ways and it

can be used for both cooking as well as cosmetic pur-

poses.

With a view to capitalise on the abundance of apricot

kernels in the area, Switzerland supported the Baltistan

Culture & Development Foundation to develop a mode

enterprise to demonstrate the commercial viability of

the apricot oil business. The organisation established

the rst modern oil extraction unit in the area and or-

ganised women farmers into apricot community groups

A large number of women were trained in picking, nut-

cracking and storing the apricot kernels. The kernels

produced by these women were bought at fair price by

the production unit established by the organisation. The

oil thus produced was used to develop various prod-



ucts for sale in the relatively higher income areas of

the country. Within a few years, the production unit has

become protable and is now serving to inspire local

entrepreneurs for replication. During this period, the

foundation also trained local millers in better oil expel-

ling techniques and quality control. The apricot model

enterprise has gradually expanded its product range bydeveloping facial oil, massage oil, hair oil, moisturis-

ing cream, apricot scrub and apricot lotion. Although

the enterprise is directly beneting only about 500

poor households in 20 remote villages of Baltistan, the

number of indirect beneciaries of this intervention is

very large. This is because the demonstration of value

addition has resulted in a sharp increase in the demand

for apricot kernels, which in turn has increased its price

from US$ 0.60 to US$ 1.60/per kg. As a result, thou-

sands of women involved in picking and selling apricot

kernels are receiving signicantly higher incomes for

their produce.

THE ROAD LESS TRAVELLED

Furniture from Soft Wood: Intricate lattice designs

in wood are among the notable cultural heritage of

Baltistan. Doors, windows and ventilators of old build-

ings can still be seen adorned with this eye-catching

woodcraft. However, unfortunately, ethnic lattice motifs

are among the rapidly disappearing genre of traditions.

The need to revive and promote traditional motifs was

identied to serve the dual purpose of conserving cul-

tural assets and creating new employment opportuni-

ties. However, the use of wood usually has negative

implications for the natural environment. Therefore the

down-side of promoting this art had to be managedrst.

”I had to quit the schools due to economic reasons.

Soon after, my father kicked me out of the house say-

ing that I don’t earn. My mother left me in Skardu with

my uncle where I started working as a helping hand in

his carpentry shop. I received only food and a place to

sleep in return for my day’s labour. Then I heard on

radio and that’s how got the opportunity to get train-

ing through this woodcraft programme (supported by

the Switzerland) and ever since my life changed. I am

skilled and earn US$ 170 per month plus over time. With

this income, so far, I have renovatedmy small dwelling

marriedoff a brother and a sister and now sending myother siblings to school. I feel elevated as I am now

called an ‘ustaad’ (master) because now I train people”

In Baltistan, like elsewhere in the country, timber is

mostly used in construction and furniture. Since timber

producing species of trees typically mature in 30 to 50

years, use of timber is environmentally unfriendly due

to the long replacement time of trees. On the other

hand, some species of trees such as poplar have much

shorter lifecycles but still yield a reasonably good qual-

ity of wood. Poplar matures in 10-15 years and, there-

fore, substituting timber in construction and carpentry

with poplar wood, contributes positively to the environ-

ment.

Primary research, analysis and broad-based consulta-

tions nally led Switzerland to support the Baltistan Cul-

ture & Development Foundation for the “perfect recipe”

– revival and promotion of traditional woodcraft using

softwood instead of timber. The work started in 2004 on

multiple fronts including sensitising stakeholders about

the benets of using softwood instead of timber, train-

ing local unemployed youth in woodcraft, establishing a

seasoning/drying plant for wood and nally establishing

a model enterprise which could demonstrate the com-



mercial viability of this type of woodcraft.

Despite many challenges, the model enterprise is now

thriving, demand for traditional lattice designs has in-

creased, use of softwood in place of timber is gaining

popularity and the demonstration effect of this success

has inspired many existing and new woodcraft busi-

nesses. In a few years, 12 new businesses and four

new mini seasoning plants have emerged and the trend

is likely to continue in the future. The model enterprise

currently occupies about 70% share of the wood mar-

ket in Baltistan and is protable. A woodcraft business

association has also been constituted to advocate and

protect the interests of the sector.LONG TERM EFFECTS OF SWISS INVESTMENTS

Effects on Poverty: The Swiss investments catalysed

entrepreneurial activity in Northern Areas which has re-

sulted in annual average increase in income by 20-30%

of over 10’000 poor households. Increased incomes

have enabled the poor to improve access to basic serv-

ices, build small assets, increase savings to cope with

shocks, improve nutrition and ensure education for

their children.

Effects on Growth: Swiss investments have helped

expansion, strengthening and competitiveness of sec-

tors such as woodwork, apricot oil, handicrafts, carpet

making, and gem stones. This has resulted in entry of

new players, rened workmanship skills, enhanced ca-

pacities of entrepreneurs and emergence of effective

industry associations.

Institutional Building: A hallmark of Swiss invest-

ments in the Northern Areas has been the creation of

vibrant civil society organisations playing the role of

trailblazers and catalysts through piloting new busi-

nesses and demonstrating their viability. These capaci-

tated institutions have gradually become not only big-

ger but also the partners of choice for other funding

agencies and private sector entities. As a result, the

scale and scope of their programmes is continuously

expanding.

Gender Equality and Advancement of Women: The

journey on the road to gender equality begins with the

correct identication of gender based power imbalances

and their causes. In the Northern Areas, like elsewhere

in Pakistan, economic marginalisation of women is one

of the most visible manifestations of gender discrimi-

nation. Swiss investments in the Northern Areas chal-

lenged the gender status quo by enhancing capacities

of women and girls to realise their full potential. This

has resulted in marked reduction in gender disparities

in terms of access to services, opportunities and contro

of resources. Economic empowerment of over 8’000

women led to the improvements of the quality of their

life and of the life of their families. There is evidence

of increased school enrolment, better food intake and

enhanced access to and use of health services by these

women and their children.

Sustainability of Results: Local entrepreneurs as welas the Government of the Northern Areas have taken

Thread Net Hunza, the wood and apricot businesses as

model examples to reproduce; hence the momentum is

likely to be sustained. Once built, the capacities of the

people and of the women companies will stay even afte

the Swiss support phases out. Partnerships formed with

both private or public sectors will ensure sustainable

results.

Although many challenges lie ahead, Swiss investments

in the Northern Areas herald a big positive change. Fo

many families and their next generations, this change

has already begun.

SDC Pakistan: SDC: http://www.sdcpakistan.org http://sdc.admin.ah

The writer is working with SDC Pakistan as Programe Ofcer. She had a close

watch on the SDC’s interventions in Gilgit-Baltistan



SOCIETAL DEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE IN THE

HUNZA VALLEY : A STUDY OF GHULKIN

b y : F a z a l Ami n Be g

P a r t 2

SOCIETAL DEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE IN THE HUNZA VALLEY -

This study presents a holistic picture of the development and change from the people’s perspec-

tive in the mountain society of Hunza valley by taking the village of Ghulkin as a case study and

the AKRSP’s intervention year in the rural settlement [1983] as a reference point. Development

and changes are seen against different indicators within the social, economic, political, cultural

and environmental realms. Many facets of this study could be generalized on the development and

change in the regional contexts.

The previous issue presented a detailed account about the oral history, etymological interpreta-

tions of Ghulkin and the status of social organizations before and after AKRSP’s intervention year.

This issue further elaborates the status of different socio-economic indicators and summarises the

case study.

3.7 Agricultural practices, livestock and food

Before 1983, Ghulkin community had a subsistence economy depending almost entirely on livestock and agri-

culture1. The main crops cultivated were faba beans (baqla) and barley. The climatic condition was cold for the

wheat cultivation: it was therefore given less importance. Among the fruits, there existed primarily apricots

while few dwellers would grow pears. There was no tradition of growing various kinds of vegetables, except

for growing some potatoes, which they were on limited scale for the households’ consumption, and not for

commercial purpose.

In order to produce more and better quality of crops, the people would make more focus on manure produc-

tion (human or animal wastes). Domesticated animals (ruminants and non-ruminants) included cattle, sheep,

goats, hens, horses, and donkeys. Some peoples petted cat but no dog. The livestock contributed signicantly

to the wealth generation such as dairy products, meat besides meeting the peoples’ needs on special occa-

sions like the rite of passage. From the hairs of the livestock, the people made the traditional caps, woolen

clothes, rugs and the like.

The oxen were utilized for plowing purpose with some exception for plowing with horses. Cows, young oxen,

donkeys were tied and threshed the crops for hours and hours, sometimes taking the entire day. The threshed

pile was winnowed to separate the grains from the chaff which was subject to an adequate breeze.

After 1983 , AKRSP with focusing on social organization and savings, also introduced different varieties of

seed-potatoes, plants (both of fruits and timbers) and so on. Above all AKRSP built the community’s capacities

in a variety of elds including agriculture, horticulture, sericulture, preserving and drying fruits, forestry and

1 Besides agro-pastoral activities, some peoples of the village were also engaged with services/employment (e.g., the military &

teaching) and very few in businesses.

A b s t r a c t



plantation, livestock, wildlife, internal lending (V/WO banking), bookkeeping, leadership, community partici-

pation, enterprise initiatives, tourism, and the like.

Consequently, the subsistence economic mode of the people diversied—not conned only in agriculture

or livestock. The community has ended up the crops of faba-beans, and somehow peas, too. The previous

limited number of potatoes’ production for the community’s subsistence has transformed into highly produc-

tive and marked-based item that has been contributing signicantly to the people’s economy and addressed

2 There are some households who still use oxen for plowing the arduous terraces that are inaccessible for tractors.

the devastating poverty. People produce variety of vegetables mostly for their domestic consumption. Less-

productive fruit plants (including apple trees) have been replaced by more-productive varieties of fruits trees

like apricot, apples, cherry, and almond trees. No cows, young oxen and donkeys are used for threshing rather

tractor machines have replaced them in threshing and plowing2.

All households now not have enough dairy products because of either reduced number of livestock or they

gave up rearing sheep and goat or even cattle. A latest survey (September 2009) shows that out of 153

households, 83 households (54.3%) in Ghulkin have totally abandoned rearing sheep and goats; while 70

households (46.7%) are still engaged with: more people who have even one or two goats or sheep in number

and very few have retained maximum 45 or 50. Today, instead of rearing more traditional cows, many peo-

ple prefer rearing one or two hybrid heifers(s) and replacing the previous category of breeds that were less

productive in milk. Previously, there were more experts in the community who made traditional hats, woolen

cloths, rugs and so on; but at present these activities have signicantly decreased in some thematic areas.

Local long shoes and leather overcoats (krest) et cetera ended.

Fig 1: An historical picture (1963) of Ghulkin village, depicts the traditional

dependency of people on livestock.


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/karakoram-knowledge-highways-kkh-issue-4 31/82SOCIETAL DEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE IN THE HUNZA VALLEY

3.8 Food insecurity and internal credit system or lending in kinds

The poverty among the masses of the principality was grave, and the food consumption among the people var-

ied seasonally from house to house. The previously key indicators of wealth were the landholdings, livestock,

agricultural produces, trees/plants and forests in addition with mental capacity. There were three tiers in the

society such as upper tier, zharzhon or usham (ctive/foster relatives of the Mirs); middle tier, darqan(ey),

and lower, borwar ( laborers). But these social tiers would not necessarily reect the state of wealth or poverty.

Even instances are found that among households of the upper social tier, peoples reportedly confronted food

security. Through raising more livestock, more manures were produced, which contributed to more and bet-

ter agricultural produces. Through mental and physical capacity, and hard-work in agro-pastoral adventures,

people produced more yields of grains. But majority of the population could not do so. The agro-activities

were also susceptible to the natural factors (weather condition), especially during the summer. For instance, if

there was more rain or the weather was cold or otherwise, it would also negatively effect the crops. The food

security in the spring season for the community was really a tough period to reach in summer till ripping of

the crops. The autumn and half of summer (for those who had fruit trees) were really the rejoiced seasons

(having food availability).

3.8.1 Internal lending system: a social protection mechanism against food insecurity

Keeping in view the above cited bitter socioeconomic circumstances, the community of the region had an

internal lending or credit system of grains. This traditional credit system in kinds was called tol , meaning

weigh and give grains to the needy-persons during the spring season. Tol was both at house to house level

(within or out of kin groups); and community to house level; and even among the community to community

(inter-village) level in the region. The community of Ghulkin had a grand store in the premise of the present

jamatkhana. The borrower would lend 1 ghilbel (= 13.7 kg) grains (žaw); and would return the amount of

grains in addition with one j ʉṭi [ =1.7 kg] in autumn as interest after harvesting of the crops. Getting the inter-

est was however dependent on an individual’s will. A borrower could exempt (either within the kin groups or

between a well-off and a poor) the interest or leave the credit as a philanthropic assistance.

The AKRSP-led internal credit system in cash in the V/WOs evolved from the traditional lending system in kind.

“Following the set V/WO banking rules, we provide the members loans, when s/he meets the lending criteria,

without any bias of kinship relationships or otherwise. After granting and issuing the credit, three reminders

are sent to the borrowers: one, three months before the recovery, one in the beginning, and one in the middle

of the recovery period. The borrowers thus enable themselves to successfully return their lending. Thank God we haven’t had any recovery problems” , add the VO and WO presidents. “In the beginning, there was a bad

precedence, but the borrowers were from outside the village. Nonetheless, ”We got the recovery,” explains

VO’s manager.

Mainly because of the V/WO banking system, the savings increased exponentially. Presently3, the V/WOs

3 Such effective rural community banking system led Dr. Isharat Hussein, Governor State Bank of Pakistan,, to visit the V/WO

Ghulkin in order to approve micronance banks. After examining the system, he asserted his satisfaction and called for the estab-

lishment of the Micronance Banks.



Ghulkin have obtained a saving of more than 15.6 million rupees The table hereunder illustrate how the V/

WO members increased their saving, especially after the internal credit system. The total savings of the VO

was 4764 in 1983 which is increased to 11,393,154 whereas of the WO in 1984 was 1516 which increased to

4,224,347. The VO banking started in 1988 when the total saving was 40,604 and the WO banking in 1991

when the total saving was 170,746.

4 Eight families, living outside the village in Gilgit, Islamabad and Karachi, have their lands but not houses in the village.

V/WOs

Total Savings (Audited)

1983/1984 1988 19911996 2006 2008

* ** **

VO 4764 40, 604 --- 3, 259,490 9,323,542 11,392,154

WO 1516 --- 170,746 1, 793,541 3, 329,238 4,224,347

Total 6280 5053031 12652780 15,616,501

Table-1: Saving Statement of V/WOs Ghulkin for 2009

*VO was formed in 1983; and WO in 1984. **VO banking started in 1988 and WO banking in 1991.

Source: V/WOs Ghulkin, September 2009.

V/WOs

Total number of members in different years (1983-2009)

1983/1984 1988 1991 1996 2006 2009

VO 80 83 -- 131 183 192

WO 81 -- 100 145 215 228

Total 161 276 398 420

Table-2: Members in the V/WOs in different years from the beginning.

Source: V/WOs, Ghulkin, September 2009

The internal credits are granted to the members for business and enterprise; addressing health and educa-

tional issues; meeting agricultural needs such as purchasing seed potatoes, chemical fertilizers; buying the

livestock, developing land, meeting marriage requirements and so on. The following table (hereunder) shows

the increase of membership in the V/WOs since their inception.

In 1983/4, out of 83 households in Ghulkin, almost each households got membership in the V/WOs. Initially,

for four years, the momentum remained slow in membership, but after introducing the V/WO banking, the

speed increased. Today, among 153 households (in September 2009)4, more than one person from each

households are members in the VWOs. By bringing the savings of the VWOs in circulation within the members

through internal lending since the inception of VO in 1988 and WO in 1991, the collective saving of the VWOs

till 2008 has risen marvelously.

3.9 Food consumption and clothing of the peoples

Because of the dire poverty in the so-called kingdoms of Hunza and Nager, the subjects could hardly make

their ends meet. In Gojal (including Ghulkin), the subjects’ food for three times could include soup of low



quality (e.g., dried-apricot) in breakfast; dried-breads with water or sometimes with buttermilk (if someone

had) for lunch; in supper, some would subsist on mulberries and apricot during summer; and few fortunate

would have some vegetables: e.g., carrots, turnips, pumpkins. In winter (those who worked efciently from

spring to summer), would get appropriate produces and very few dried-vegetables—besides cooking modest

pieces of meat, animals slaughtered in winter for food called gušti (gushti) by some well-off people. In spring,

people would begin clandestinely lending grains for food from the better-off. Apart from the routinely poor

food menu, the people had variety of special dishes served during marriage ceremonies, death rites, festivitiesand guests’ visits to one’s home, which included bat, molida, ghuelmindi, semn, gral, chamuerki, shuelbuet,

chilpindok (a speciailty of Shingshalik) et cetera. The local beverages and liqueed items comprised on milk,

chmos (apricot juice) , pistov (made out of apples), buttermilk , dughov (made up of buttermilk), tea made out

of čumuru, bozlanj , yogurt, qanda, and a variety of soups5 from kernels, bones, apricots and so on. Tea was

reportedly introduced in the 1940s but consumed with the then elites. Rice could also be seen diffused in the

village in the 1950s; but consumed as a special dishes by those who could afford it.

Not all peoples of the valley (including Ghulkin) had appropriate clothing. They had woolen clothing (hardly

two pairs) with a few exceptions of non-woolen-cloths brought by the Chinese traders in the caravans. Further,some local businessmen brought consumers items on the horses from Gilgit.

People had locally made long-shoes called ṣʉṣk (shueshk) and sandal, that would torn sooner when one would

walk to a longer place; but not necessarily all community had these shoes6. There were a few skilled persons

who could make it for their families and kinspersons7. The company-made short and long shoes were intro-

duced in the region in the 1960s and 70s. Besides, men had woolen caps, and women had initially plain but

later crafted caps (old women still wear). In 1960, the people of the region walked barefooted for minimum

50 km and maximum 300 km from Gojal to Altit (Central Hunza) and back due to poverty but lled with the

affection of their Imam (Aga Khan-IV) to see him.

Today, the Ghulkin community could be termed self-sufcient in managing foods for themselves, especially

by producing and selling potatoes, both table-potatoes and seeds. The previous expensive time, tea8, has

5 The beverages or liqueed items and soups were not necessarily available with majority of the peoples; even the then well-off

persons would also use them conservatively. The herbal products were mostly used for healing purpose.

6 In Central Hunza (Kanjut) and Shinaki, the situation was even further aggravated. There was no sandal or ṣʉṣk instead there was

tawching, That is why these traditional shoes were an attraction for them. A famous Burushaski proverb indicates it vividly: “Guic

[Quits] e deli, sandal isheer”, means “Don’t hit a Wakhi, [rather] snatch his sandal (the long-shoes).”

7 Muhammad Aslam, a religious scholar of this village, narrates an interesting story that when he along with his friends/classmates

used to go to school in the neighboring village of Gulmit in the 1960s, they had no shoes or if someone had the shoes, that were

torn and again became barefooted. They therefore would walk barefooted for 8 km daily, even on the snow during winter. When

they found the dried soil under roofed-places on the way, they would put their feet in the soil, which soothed them from the severe

coldness.

8 Tea has ingrained/engrafted itself in the peoples’ custom so strongly that if a person visits a house, not only in Ghukin rather in

the region, the host would offer tea. If the visitor doesn’t drink tea and s/he is, for instance, offered a cup of milk, but the host(s)

won’t value the milk. Instead would say: “Sorry we did not make tea for you” despite the fact that tea has its negative effects on

the human health.



become commoners main item of breakfast with oven-cooked wheat breads or otherwise. In meals (lunch &

supper), all people eat variety of vegetables, pulses, rice, meats, and better quality of soups are cooked and

drank besides other beverages available in the bazaars. The traditional dishes of festivities and rituals are

present, but not cooked frequently. Among the beverages, pistov , teas of bozlanj and other herbal liqueed

items are not in use.

Opposed to the local-made woolen clothes (trousers and shirts), today we see a revolution among the localcommunities in the village (and the valley) who make company-made clothes of polyester, cotton, felt, silk,

velvet and son on imported from China. People had only one pair of clothe, especially among the conjugal

partners; and when a husband got a new clothe, his wife would put on his used one. Now, we can observe

that an individual has at least six to ten pairs of clothes in different variety and fashions for different social

events in a year.

Previously, parents would make hardly two pairs of clothes for the bride but at present minimum 15 otherwise

20 pairs are made for her; and the bride goes shopping herself. In the previous period, it was hard to get burial

cloths for the corpse, but these days they are found at their doorsteps in their villages. Today, men and womenput on variety of shoes and change them quarterly. The children cannot see the previous in-house-made

leathered sandal or šʉšk , or the company-made rubber-type of shoes, rather they put on the company-made

leather, canvas and other good quality shoes brought in the village from China and down country.

3.10 From the exploitation to nature’s conservation

When heavy snow would fall and roaring wind would blow9 in winter, the human-hunters would adventure

in hunting the ibexes and Marco Polo sheep for the purpose of alternative taste of food. These hunters were

termed palwon or paliwun (i.e., champion).

The predators such as snow-leopard and wolves would then enter in the villages and hunt the peoples’ live-

stock. For this reason, peoples of the twin-villages of Ghulkin and Gulmit would collectively pursue and hunt

the strong predators to save their livestock. This collective predators’ hunting campaign was known as Šapt

Škor (shapt shkor : i.e., wolf hunting) or Pes Škor (snow-leopard hunting). Such food-battles between the

paliwuns and predators (snow-leopard & wolves) continued: human eating wildlife food and wildlife eating the

livestock.

Besides, the people were also enthusiastically hunted shes, ducks, geese, partridge, and different kinds of

sparrow etcetera. In summer, a brutal night-game was played called basa (hunting sparrows) where people,especially youth, would hunt the birds with their sticks and stones; and a group may hunt at least one or two

hundred birds.

There was no kerosene, no electricity, no gas or otherwise; and the people of Ghulkin, like other villages, had

their full dependence on natural forest that survived not only round the settlement, but down to the Hunza

9 In the entire Hunza, Lower Gojal is prominent/notorious for its strong and awesome wind because its eight glaciers starting from

the famous Bʉṭʉr e yaz [Batura glacier] and ending to the Brundu Bar glacier in Shishkat.



River. With the passage of time, the natural forests receded because of heavy exploitation; and the natural

plants such as juniper, birches, willow etcetera were they were depleted after construction of the road-links,

more particularly after the opening of the KKH. After the AKRSP’s awareness raising campaign, people’s mind-

sets signicantly changed; and they became champions of conserving the nature after Khyber and Avgarch

communities.

3.10.1 Formation of the Nature’s Conservation Committee

The Nature’s Conservation Committee (NCC), founded in 1992 to conserve the nature for development, func-

tions under its legal and umbrella organization named Ghulkin Educational, Social Welfare and Nature’s Con-

servation Association (GESWANCA). NCC initiated the rst challenging task by protecting the seasonally mi-

grated Siberian birds/ducks coming to Borith Lake, 4 km away from the settlement. Hunters from Ghulkin,

other surrounding villages and alien peoples, would come to lake for hunting. This situation disturbed the

natural and cultural environments. In order to safeguard their cultural environment, the people materialized

the AKRSP’s ideas of conserving the nature.

For this venture, NCC members faced strong reactions from the hunters, within and around the village, even

some high government ofcials like the Chief Secretary, but they were determined and continued their jour-

ney.

The Borith lake is preserved, which is a host for ducks, geese and other birds10. The surrounding mountains

10 A senior chemistry lecturer of the Aga Khan Higher Secondary School (AKHSS) has his technical reservation. He is of the opinion

that the birds (ducks/greese) which travel a long distance and come to the lake, they loose their strength (weight) because of the

saltywater. When those birds leave in couples of days, they die on the way, or some hunters, too, could hunt them.



of the conservancy ourish ibexes, blue-sheep, snow-leopards and other wildlife. The social environment has

become secured. Furthermore, campaigns against pollution have also helped in combating for and maintain-

ing a healthy environment. The environmental conservation efforts and the promotion of sustainable human

development is thus in progress.

3.11 Political institutions: governance and social control

In the former Hunza’s principality, Ghulkin like other villages, was run politically, administratively and judicially

under the arbob (village headman); and his position known as arbobiγ or arobi . In addressing and resolving

the societal conicts and disputes, there was a traditional mechanism of ‘holding astam’ [i.e., council]. The

arbob in consultation with some judicious elders11 of different descent groups used to mediate, reconcile, pe-

nalize and resolve the issues and conicts in the village12. For the ofcial tasks , the arbob would gather the

community through his chorbʉw ( information-communicator) and would assign them the tasks such as forced-

laboring, ashar /rajaki or otherwise.

The chiefdom of Hunza was abolished in 1974 Zulifqar Ali Bhutto and the old political system transformed into

the modern governance structure. This phenomenon led to a political bifurcation among the community even

within households. The conservatives (adhered to the former rulers and their like-minded party) came under

the umbrella of the Pakistan Muslim League (PML). But those who were poor, suppressed, and right-based

joined Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP). The absolute roles and responsibilities of the arbob ceased and the term

arbob was named as lumbardar .

After transformation of the political system, candidates of the PML for the District Council and Northern Areas’

Council (now as Gilgit Baltistan Legislative Assembly) have been winning in majority from this village. At the

grassroots level, Ghulkin has a councilor who represents the village in the Union Council (UC). Previously,

there remained selection for the UC, but for the rst time, an election in 2004. Interestingly, contestants of UC were from the same party, the PML; but, in the local context, two different descent groups. To what extent,

the local election between the same afliated party effects the upcoming election in November 2009 is a ques-

tion. Some respondents envision and hope for an educated and honest person for the UC. Whosoever, but one

thing is important to note that how the 689 voters of Ghulkin (330 female and 359 male )13 prove themselves

in honestly using their votes to choose their representatives at union, district and legislative assembly levels

will be a big question mark.

3.12 Construction of the road-infrastructures

Before construction of roads in Gojal, people either travelled on foot, or rode animals like horses, donkeys or

yaks for transportation from one place to another on the footpaths, tracks and trails in the arduous terrains.

For the rst time in the history of Hunza, the small narrow jeep road was constructed for up to Baltit/Karima-

11 The judicious elders were called astamgar.

12 If there dispute was of strong nature or the disputant(s) were not satised with the decisions made in the council of the headman

then it was left for or referred to the Mir’s court who would come to Gulmt during winter time or would go up to Bobo Ghundi to

pay his respect and on the way he would settle the dispute.

13 The Government of Pakistan recently conducted an ofcial survey of voters in September 2009 for the upcoming election in No-

vember that shows 330 female and 359 male voters in Ghulkin.



bad in 1958 and then extended up to Passu (Lower Gojal) in 1962. In 1963, the community constructed the

Ghulkin jeep-road14. Afterwards, the asphalted KKH linked the community of Gojal in 1970 for the rst time in

its history and the people’s hardships in long travels reduced and days of travel turned into hours. The com-

munity constructed link-road of Ghulkin in 1963 was improved and expanded in 1982 by the government; and

currently being expanded and asphalted up to the main settlement since 2007.

Within the village, non-asphalted (coarse) link-roads were constructed around the main settlement; and the

sub-villages have also been connected to the main settlement, besides linking the neighboring villages of Gul-

mit and Ghulkin at the top below the Kamris glacier. The small and medium size vehicles, especially tractors

for plowing and threshing, could drive easily on these link-roads.

3.13 The state of telecommunication and other electronic media

We can trace telephonic communication back in the British-Indian period. Apart from Baltit and Gulmit, Mis-

gar had a call center in 1912. Likewise telephones were in Murkhun, Passu, Husaini etcetera, run under the

arbobs. A telephone facility was given in Ghulkin in the 1970s, but that was taken back after the State’s aboli-

tion. Then in the rst half of 1980, a public call center was reopened; and in rst half of 2000, the government

provided the digitized telephone sets to the people; presently having more than 70 landline-telephone users.

Besides, there are presently innumerable mobile sets with people in the village using the Telenor’s and/or

Zong’s SIMS. Within a house, 2 or 3 mobile-sets could be nd. What are the pros and cons of these mobile-

sets is a different but valid question.

The rst radio set entered in this rural society in the 1960s. Some say, late Ali Shafa introduced the rst radio

in the village; and some advocate Amir Dil of Kirmin (Chipursan), an emigrant of Ghulkin brought it. Today,

in an average, every household seems to have the radio set with them, though the TV channels are preferred

upon radio, when there is no electricity. The TV set and dish antenna was rstly introduced in the village in1992 by Qurban Hussain. Today, at least 50% of the houses have the TV sets.

3.14 Business and trade initiatives

Historically, some individual level small businesses might have been in practices, especially taking into ac-

counts the caravans coming from China to Hunza and going back.

A formal enterprise at collective or group level was initiated in the 1950s in Ghulkin when the community

formed a society and opened a shop in the village. This shop fullled some basic requirements of the people.

The items were brought from Gilgit on horses. The villagers seen the currency at this period and the transac-

tions they made was in kinds. In the second half of 1960, late Quran and Habib Shah of Ghulkin opened shops

in the village. Probably in 1971, Habib Shah also bought the rst ever jeep. He was then followed, after KKH’s

construction, by late Muhamamd Baig and group in venturing in the transport business. Thus, peoples mind

was given a direction towards the transport business.

14 Some respondents narrate that the community constructed the rst link road to Ghulkin in 1966 when Mir Jamal Khan, the last

ruler of Hunza, was coming to inaugurate the present Jamatkhana of Ghulkin and he came to Ghukin by jeep and before there was

no road.



Fig 3: The owner-cum artisans of Silk Route Pvt Ltd displayiing handicrafts.

In 1980, a group of ten members took an initiative for a cooperative society and opened a shop in Ghulkin. Not

a single year had elapsed, a soldiers’ group (in the army and Northern Light Infantry) also formed a society

in 1981 with the name of Al-Karim Ghazi Multipurpose Society. The denial of civilian membership in the Ghazi

society led to the formation of Awami (i.e., civilian) Multipurpose Society.

The Ghulkin community who had once just a couple of existing shops and transactions done mostly in kinds—

have now dozens of enterprises, not conned only within their village, but have out also. Apart from seasonal

business of the entire community in selling the potatoes and fruits, there are at present in total 28 shops

of general stores, garments, cosmetics, electronics (8 in Ghulkin, 4 in Gulmit, 10 in Sost, 3 in Aliabad, 3 in

Gilgit); 1 sawing mill, 2 handicraft centers; VWO banking (all of them in Ghulkin); 5 hotels and restaurants

(2 in Ghulkin; 3 in Gilgit); 6 marble shops (2 in Sost, 2 in Tashkurghan & Kashghar, 2 in Karachi); 1 buckthorn

processing unit in Ghulkin; and 3 women vocational enterprises, run by groups of women in the village.

Besides, some of the community members have also invested in buying the land-pieces and houses, espe-

cially in Glgit city. The following table illustrates the number of houses and property owners out of Ghulkin.

At present, we can see that there are 13 householders and 20 landowners in Gilgit; 6 landowners in Sost; 1

householder in Islamabad; and 13 householders in Karachi.

The status purchased houses, stated above, in Gilgit and Karachi varies. Some of them the owners have given

on rent; and in some, the owners (especially those employees) reside themselves and liberated themselves

in paying the rents.



Besides, the people of the village are also actively engaged in transport businesses. As mentioned earlier,

there were two initiators in transport business in the 1970s, but after 1983 we can see that the community

has 45 vehicles (2 jeeps, 7 cars, 8 vans, 7 suzukis, 5 tractors, 2 trucks, 15 motor-bikes).

3.15 Women Vocational Center (WVC)

The women vocational center was established in 1992 in order to enhance women’s skills in low-income

households and other unskilled women in Ghulkin. Since its inception, the WVC has been providing training

courses on weaving, knitting, stitching and cooking. This has enabled women to produce market-based prod-

ucts besides performing their domestic obligations. Currently, there are three vocational centers of women

groups who have do their business independently.

3.16 Interventions of the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in the village

In 1950s, the Aga Khan Education Board (AKEB) intervened and opened its primary school in the village. The

Aga Khan Volunteers Corp for Ghulkin was formed. In 1981, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP)

had its development intervention hat experimented on the soil of the village for crops production. In 1983,

the AKRSP intervened in the village for the rst time and formed the village organization (VO) and women or-

ganization (WO) in 1984, which started contributing enormously to uplift the people’s quality of life. In 1984,

the youth of Ghulkin founded the Prince Ali S. Khan Boy Scouts headed and Girl Guides by Niyat Ullah Baig

and late Jameeda respectively registered with the Ismali Council for Gulmit. In the 1990s, the long abbrevi-

Fig 4 : An antisan weaving fabric at Ghulkin Fabric Center



ated GESWANCA (Ghulkin Educational, Social Welfare and Nature’s Conservation Association) with its broad

development mandate of this tiny village emerged to stand as a legal umbrella and entity, and an intermedi-

ary for the already initiated committees in the elds of education, social welfare and nature’s conservation.

CIDA through AKRSP funded a pipe project of clean drinking water and the VO successfully completed it.

The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF); Ministry of Women, Islamabad; and Karakoram Area Development

Organization (KADO) partnered with GESWANCA and very effectively worked in the elds of nature’s conser-

vation, women vocational centers and capacity building. In the eld of performing arts, Wakhi Tajik CulturalAssociation (WTCA) organized two programs in Ghulkin and the community wholeheartedly hosted them. A

conservation project on an old mosque (Durbin e Masjid) was accomplished in collaboration with the Aga Khan

Cultural Service, Pakistan (AKCSP), and restoration of the old house of Busing, apical ancestor of the Busing

clan is in the pipeline.

In 2000s, GESWANCA successfully completed construction of the school building of Nasir-e Khusraw Model

Academy in partnership with Global Environmental Fund (GEF) and UNDP, and technical support by the Aga

Khan Planning and Building Services, Pakistan (AKPBSP). In 2008, a network of pipes was spread in collabora-

tion with WASEP to all houses of the village and clean drinking water reached for the rst time in its history tothe households in their washrooms15.

3.17 The language and its concerned position

The old Wakhi Pamiri language in Hunza valley has a unique characteristic, which distinguishes it from the

Wakhi languages of other regions in the districts of Ghizer and Chitral in Pakistan; Wakhans of Afghanistan and

Tajikistan, and Xinjiang of China. Besides difference in pronunciation, the distinctive characteristics could be

found in the innitive’s forms, usage of transitive and intransitive verbs, nominative and possessive pronouns

15 For the rst time, a pipe project was given to the community in 1981 and clean drinking water was not available to the peoples in

their houses, rather at certain points in the neighborhoods. The 1992 pipe project was also of the same nature .

F i g 5 :

T h e c o m m u n

i t y b a s

e d N a s

i r K h u s r a w

M o

d e

l A c a

d e m y



and so on.

Before the British occupation of Hunza and Nagar, the Wakhi language was inuenced by Farsi and Arabic

languages, in addition with Burushaski. From 1891-1947, we can observe that along with Arabic and Farsi,

some Urdu and few English words also entered in the Wakhi of Hunza. From 1947 onward, Urdu then English

language gradually held their strong grips in the local languages. The local languages including Wakhi thus be-

gan retaining the previously inuenced vocabularies, on the one hand; and on the other, absorbing the words

of British colonial languages. In the 1980s and 1990s, the entire Hunza strongly switched over to the English

medium language as a medium of education in the schools. In Hunza valley, 1990s and 2000s also witness the

media invasion (a facet of globalization) on the local cultures and languages. Variety of TV channels through

dish antennas, cable networks, internet and so on are on rise. The cellular phones, these days, have their own

drastic and long term effects on peoples’ minds, then denitely on the local languages, especially through text

messages either in English or in Urdu. In such circumstances of global languages’ strong inuence, on the

languages like Wakhi or Burshaski, Shina or other mountain and rural languages in the region are having hue

and cry that are at the brink of endangerment, if necessary steps were not taken.

Some tangible examples are found in the context of Wakhi language of Hunza. The respective Wakhi speakers

in Ghulkin and the region have given up many indigenous words that the language, being a vehicle, possessed

and carried along for centuries. Even the indigenous kinship terms for parents, grandparents, children, sib-

lings, uncles and aunties et cetera (that traveled for millennia) have been given up 16 not only by the young-

sters, but even by those Wakhi speakers who claim as educated and are in their 30 plus or 50 plus of age. This

is abasing phenomenon and a serious concern, not only for the Wakhi speakers, rather for other languages

spoken in the entire region.

3.18 Festivities and Sports

In the Wakhi society, festivities start from Kitδit 17 , cleaning the dust and smokes of the traditional houses’

ceilings. Kitδit is celebrated in the rst week of February to mark moving towards the spring, getting-off and

saying goodbye to the harsh winter. The houses were though timely cleaned but the ceilings would be cleaned

annually especially for this festivity; and a collective gathering would take place in the jamatkhanas. The spe-

cial dish for this festivity was Khista (leavened bread) of faba-bean (and in some instances of wheat), while

butter and oil on the top. Some people may cook shulbut, a savor food having meat in it. Womenfolk would

carry foods and visit their patri-locals, immediate families and neighbors.

In the rst week of March, the plowing festivity,Taγ m(roughly pronounced taghm), would be celebrated. Thespecial dish of this festivity is semn 18 prepared in both pudding form and in a chapatti. The sports activities

16 If a non-Wakhi person is once in a Wakhi society, s/he can better observed, realize and get adequate insights that what the

youngsters or middle age people are talking about in their dialy life. There is a number of Wakhi youngsters and the middle age-

group, who would continuously speak in Urdu (and some in English). More particularly, one can observe this phenomenon clearly

in the meetings of the Wakhi people, especially those claimants of Wakhi language preservation, would speak in Urdu instead of

their mother tongue.

17 Kitδit (native English speakers could pronounce it as “Kit-thit”) seems contraction of “Kut e δit”, means smoke of the ceiling.”

18 Semn is made out of wheat or barley after its fermentation. Overall, semn involves one to two weeks or more depending also on

the season/weather condition.



for male group remained polo on horses and on-foot; while the female group would have “ put-din”, tossing the

ball (of cricket’s size) or strike it against the ground, besides yupk f ə zdak, splashing water on the passersby

whosoever encountered or crossed them, particularly the men. Womenfolk would pay courtesy visits to their

kinspersons in their houses and carry along the food. Presently, the pivotal role of both the oxen and horses

were replaced by the tractors: horses winded up and is for oxen. During the plowing festivity, the ceremony

is celebrated symbolically. There is no more polo activity on horses. After two decdes long break, the WTCA

revived the polo on horse and on-foot. The youths played on-foot polo, but was banned after the ball was hiton a gentleman’s eye in 1994. The fun of splashing water, rather apricot juice (chmos) of the Wakhi women

on each others, especially on any male passerby exists in the village.

The rst summer festivity would begin with Wingas Tuy, literally as “marrying the sparrow.” When the barley

grains would start growing, the sparrows attack and destroy the crops. The festivity was therefore innovated

and celebrated that prevented attacks of sparrow on the crops. The special dish for festivity was bat, a kind of

savor food. The religious clergies, without any academic exploration, ended this festivity.

When the barley is ripen, the harvesting festivity, Činir (roughly pronounced as chinir) comes up. The special

dish in Chinir used to be bat, semn and shʉlbʉt, addition of meat with bat. As customary, the womenfolk would

carry foods to the houses of their dears and nears. The sports activities remained polo, and girls would enjoy

having seesaws (qardang). Chinir is celebrated today also, but there is no sports’ activities like polo.

In autumn (end of September) the pastoral peoples would come back from the pastures with the ocks of

livestock. Some villagers peoples would go 2 to 5 km away of the village to receive them. The village’s pasto-

ral people would bring some special cooked foods from the pasture-houses like jige,k əδek e ptok, and qurut .

The villagers who gave their sheep and goats to the respective persons would now formally visit the houses

of people in transhumance. The pastoral and settled foods are exchanged. Another festivity of the autumn is

Xʉδoyi (Khudoyi) , thanksgiving, which shows celebration of summer ending and the people and livestock’s safe

arrival in the villages.

Besides the old traditional festivities, the religious rites are also celebrated not only at Ghulkin but rather

amongst all Ismaili communities. These ceremonies include anniversaries of His Highness, Shah Karim al-

Hussein, Aga Khan-IV, on the days of his accession to the throne of spiritual leadership on July 11, his birthday

on December 13, his rst ever visit to Hunza on October 23, in addition with the revered days of Eid-e Ramzan

and Eid-e Qurban.

3.19 Creativities and Entertainment

Music, poetry, dance and singing are those expressions which have their own signicance in the Wakhi culture

and society. Like other villages, Ghulkin is also functional in cultural activities. The young and elders alike

do participate in the grand programs within and out of their village, and express their artistic skills. Music

and dance are the integral part of marriages and festivities; but comparatively, poetry and singing were not

encouraged before 1983. After formation of the Boy Scouts in Ghulkin, the scouts (and volunteers), carried

out such activities gradually. The poetry, poetical contests, music, singing, dance and dramas intensied and

got exposure to the broader audiences in the grand festivals and programs (at regional, national and inter-



national scales) after formation of the WTCA in 1991, which frequently campaigned, patronized, fostered and

stimulated the community in these specic elds. At present, the artistes of Ghulkin are really champions in

the performing arts.

There are 15 poets (three are well recognized), 25 singers (20 male and 5 female), 10 traditional music ex-

perts in addition with dozens of music players of the Scottish band and 3 artists. Besides, there are also doz-

ens of devotional female singers too and the history goes back in 1983. Although, in there is a good progress

in the above elds, but there is a dearth of folksingers in the village along with music expert in ghizhek.

3.20 The state of voluntarism

Kiryar, voluntary corporate laboring (a facet of social organization), Khudoyi ( Thanksgiving or to get intentions

fullled) , swob-e yark ( philanthropy/volunteering to get God’s reward), and nomus-e yark (philanthropy for

fame )19 remained an integral part of the agro-pastoral community of the region from the old days. The scope

of kiryar, Khudoyi, swob-eyark and nomus-e y ark can be within or out of the families or descent groups, and

within and out of the village. The nature of these works comprised on agrarian and pastoral; constructing

buildings, bridges or footpaths on the arduous terrains ( piryen); ceremonial and ritualistic; giving foods and

or clothing to needy or otherwise, and so on. Today, kiryar within their descent groups has been replaced by

the paid-laborers from out of the village and region.

Other voluntary offerings still exists among the community, besides kiryar . Today, the nature of work has

somehow changed from the previous period. The current mode of voluntary services is more through formal

organizations like VWOs, GESWANCA and their committees, religious institutions like the Ismali Councils and

its subsidiary organizations or committees, Ismaili Tarqia and Religious Education Board’s and its committees,

cultural and youth’s forums, and so on.

We need to recognize that today’s witnessed societal change in Ghulkin or in the valley could not come so

rapidly and effectively, if the respective communities were not mentally prepared and mobilized through the

community leaders (being opinion makers) and social activists (being motivators) who volunteered their pre-

cious time, resources and energies to carry out the development projects through their local civil society or-

ganizations. Here lies a secrecy behind effective and rapid development and change.

4. Summary and Conclusion

Today’s society of Ghulkin is not that society which existed prior to the AKRSP’s intervention year, but rath-

er has evolved itself and/or transformed in many respects. Economically, the community does not depend

solely on the agro-pastoral mode of life, but men and women have diversied their livelihood strategies in

also doing businesses (within and out of the village); and engaged in employments in public and private

sectors, and civil society organizations. The community has abandoned cultivation of faba-bean (millennia

old crop) and is adopting cultivation and production of a large scale potatoes used for in-house consump-

tion, and more particularly for commercial purpose. Out of 153 households, 83 households (52.3%) have

19 There is a Wakhi saying: yʉwep nung wereṣt, yʉwepṣung wereṣt. The gist would follow as: “if someone does something extraordinary in

immaterial form, his/her name and fame would remain alive; and if someone does something in material form, again his/her name

and fame would be alive”. Means, s/he will be remembered ever.



totally abandoned rearing sheep and goats; and 100% of the population has no horse and donkey. There

is less dependence on manures (feces) and more dependence on chemical fertilizers bought from the mar-

ket. Opposed to the previously excessive exploitation of the natural resources such as hunting the wildlife

(ibexes, blue-sheep, birds, predators like snow-leopards and wolves), or intensied deforestation of the

natural forests, today the community organization, called GESWANCA, aggressively works for the nature’s

conservation and environment.

In contrast to previous ignorance for education, the people now advocate for quality education and prefer

female education. There was no master’s degree holder from the village before 1983; and currently, there

are 54 masters’ degree holders (40 male and 14 females) with dozens more pursuing their higher degrees.

Previously, there were two primary schools in the village; but presently, there are two middle schools in

addition with one government primary school and one community-based AKESP school for secondary

level. The schools are equipped with some computers but no adequate computer instructors/teachers. Be-

sides, all students (numbering 287) in the village also do get their religious education in the three religious

centers that have 8 religious guides and more than a dozen volunteers who offer their services to educate

the students/juniors religious education. Out of the village, there are 249 students pursue their educationin different institutions (schools, colleges and universities). There is a rst-aid-post in the village since

1984 that deals patients with initial heath issues; and for serious issues, patients are taken either to the

not-equipped hospital in Gumit, otherwise to the hospitals in Aliabad and Gilgit, or Islamabad and Karachi

(Aga Khan University Hospital).

Opposed to the previously extended/joint family system, the nuclear families are increasing (currently

47.8%). Children’s roles as a labor-force have decreased and/or transformed from agro-pastoral and other

laboring work to educational activities and pursuance. Decision on mate-selection (conjugal partnership)

has signicantly changed from the arranged marriage to marriage of consent, understanding and love;and age limit of minimum 18 years is pre-requisite for the wedlock as opposed to the previous marriages

which took place even before 18 or before reaching their teenage. Polygyny is no more in practice today,

as we could nd examples in the previous period. Levirate and sorrorate marriages depend on the situ-

ation, however. Women’s roles have changed to a signicant level from the conned in-house activities

to organizational employments and voluntary services. In the previous agro-pastoral society, the parents

produced more children. At present, the parents are motivated for less children and they do practice the

family planning techniques and tools.

The old internal lending or microcredit system in kinds ( called tol) transformed into the modern internal

lending in cash, introduced by the AKRSP in the V/WOs 1988 has its signicant effects in improving the

quality of life of the village community in the elds of education, health, enterprise development, land-

development, marriages, and so on; although, some negative issues could also prospected, if in case non-

payments came up.

No more travel on horses or donkeys could be dreamt of. The main link-road to Ghulkin constructed in

the 1960s, improved in 1980s is currently being widened and asphalted. The coarse link-roads around the

main settlement and sub-villages have been constructed. More than 50% of the households have the land-



line telephone system in addition with, an average, almost 100% households having mobile-sets. Almost

50% of the households have the computers.

Each household is currently having clean-drinking/tap water in their houses as opposed to the previous

situation where the people consumed muddy water of the glacier (before 1981) for cooking and drinking.

All households, like other villages in the region, have electricity (since 1987) and having variety of elec-

trical appliances, as opposed to the previous situation where there was no or no adequate light system.

Previously, there was the old toilet system in the traditional Wakhi house. In 1976, when the rst toilet

was introduced, the community did not accept this change because of human manure production from

the human excrements. But at present, 100% of the households have replaced the previously traditional

manure-based disease-oriented toilets in addition with removal of the pens or cattle-houses.

No more traditional long shoes called š ʉṣk or səndal, or a traditional outt like krest (a overcoat made

out of goats’ or sheep’s skin), or in-house made woolen clothes can be seen that the people wore previ-

ously. Instead the company-made outts of polyester, woolen, felt, velvet, and cotton et cetera are bought

from the bazaar. The traditional robe called bet and the traditional caps are seen that the people put onespecially during the winter. The youths, both male and female, seem indifferent in this regard. There is

no more subsisting foods at meal because the community has diversied their modes of income; and sig-

nicantly improved their nutrition at homes. The community still retains the traditional Wakhi dishes, but

comparatively not cooked very often for the guests as those dishes had their special social signicance.

These days, for instance, if the high-ranked traditional dishes like molida, γulminid or bat are offered to

the guests instead of meat and rice (and no milk-tea in the aftermath), the guests or hosts may not el-

evate the food status: and no mention if there are vegetables, rice or pulse. So holds true to beverages like

fruit juices (e.g., chmos), milk, soup, yogurt, or buttermilk versus milk-tea: .milk-tea would be preferred

upon the harmless traditional beverages.

Unlike the previous period, poetry, singing and dramas are encouraged. Music and dance had their awe-

some prominence before, especially during the weddings. Both music and dance; andthey still retain their

signicancel although, some melody changed. The folksongs and folkdance is not highly prominent. Today,

we can nd more than a dozen artistes each in the elds of poetry, singing, dance, music and dramas at

Ghulkin. The traditional voluntary modes—except for the corporate laboring (a facet of social organiza-

tion)—still exist in addition with organizational voluntarism.

The local languages of Gilgit-Baltistan including Wakhi, as vehicles of cultures and traditions, are witnessed

losing their important vocabularies 20 and encountering robust challenges for its survival. On the one hand,

globalization (besides its positive realities) has negatively affected the languages of small population; and

on the other, the discouraging behaviors of the respective community members, especially apparently

educated peoples (especially between 25-60 years old) towards their languages and not preserving the

fundamental vocabularies of their ancient languages like the Wakhi Pamri.

20 Besides losing vocabularies, many youngsters are observed talking all time mostly in Urdu and then in English.



In conclusion, being a continuous process, societal change that occurs when effective come in the human

mindsets and the community effectively volunteer themselves. The gloomy past of the society in socio-

economic and politico-cultural terms has gone. The society is being developed impressively in a short

span of time, but gloomy times could come again, if adequate and considerate measures were not taken

ahead to address same or different kinds challenges in an organized and united manner. Majority of the

community has abandoned their livestock (sheep & goats) and full focus on the children’s education. More

than a dozen degree-holders are coming annually out of their education institutions and would face unem-ployment in the job markets. Those students, unable to continue their education after their matriculation

or even under-matriculation or otherwise, are already in the unemployment bazaar, and engaged with

variety of business activities or otherwise within and out of the village. With the growing population and

nuclear families (47.8%), the land distributions among the siblings are reducing. Hanging on their aca-

demic certicates or degrees, they may not aspire to continue their agro-pastoral mode of life. They would

also come across issues in mate-selection (getting the desired conjugal partners), which would further

aggravate the frustrations of the youths.

Some may opt for exogamy (marriages not only out of the clan or village, rather out of their language-groups, out of their religious afnity or out of their nationality for their survival and social prestige. Im-

plicated social issues could emerge, if positive adjustment could not come. What the respective social

institutions, community leaders and organizations could do to address such future challenges would be a

big question mark.

The author is specialized in Social and Cultural Anthropology, and works as a “Development Researcher

& Consultant”

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http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/karakoram-knowledge-highways-kkh-issue-4 47/82AN INVESTIGATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF MOUTAIN TOURISM ACTIVITIES IN HUNZA

AN INVESTIGATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF MOUNTAIN

TOURISM ACTIVITIES IN HUNZA: A TOURIST’S PERSPECTIVE

b y : Re h ma t Ka r i m & Dr . Ad a r s h Ba t r a

Environmental impact of tourism is a critical issue in the mountain regions around the world. This

research aims to study the tourists’ perspective on the environmental pollution and their behavior

about mountain tourism activities in Hunza valley. The data was collected by a set of questionnaires

distributed among 300 foreign tourists, who visited Hunza during September, 2009 to October, 2009.

Descriptive statistics along with one-way ANOVA was performed to analyze and test the hypotheses.

The research outcomes revealed that eco-tourists identied more pollution in terms of human waste

and animal litter, sanitation, scattered rubbish, noise pollution and crowding than mountaineers,

trekkers and general tourists visiting Hunza. They strongly agreed that their behavior is positive

towards environmental preservation, following the codes of conduct, local laws, customs and car-

ing about health issues. Tourists staying for more than a week felt more pollution than those whostayed in Hunza for less than a week. Tourists also agreed to behave positively during their visit to

Hunza. Furthermore, research revealed that group of more than 6 persons identied more pollution

than those travelled in a small travel party size. The larger group also indicated that they behave

positivly towards environmental preservation. Results of statistical analysis indicated that there are

statistically differences in tourist’s perception of environmental pollution and their behavior in terms

of tourist type, travel party size and length of stay during their sojourn in Hunza. On the basis of

results, researchers recommend to attract more eco-tourists in Hunza valley because of their friendly

nature towards the environment.

1.1 Introduction

Mountains are particularly attractive destinations for

exploration, expedition, penetration and outdoor rec-

reation. They offer a wide range of activities options,

like snowmobiling, trekking, mountaineering, mountain

biking, water rafting, etc. The gradual development of

mountain tourism, which today represents an impor-

tant segment of the global tourism industry, accord-

ing to European Commission (1998), 25% of European

travelers, in 1998, chose mountains for their holidays

(cited in Maroudas et al., 2004).Mountain tourism (ad-

venture, mountaineering, trekking, general tourism,

eco-tourism etc) has become an important type of tour-

ism in mountainous region of the world.

The Northern Areas of Pakistan, Gilgit-Baltistan with

their high altitude mountains of the Himalayas, Hinduku-

sh and Karakoram ranges attract a particular group of

tourists, mountain trekkers and mountain climbers. The

Northern Areas of Pakistan are unsurpassed in natura

beauty. It is the conuence of the world’s three mighty

mountain ranges – The Himalayas, the Karakoram and

the Hindukush. Some of the world’s highest peaks are

found here (Ministry of Tourism, 2006).

Mountain landscapes are particularly fragile and vulner-

able to change and degradation. Landslides, avalanch-

es, lava ows, earthquakes, torrents and rock falls can

alter the landscape unexpectedly. Mountain ecosystems

include a wide range of small and unique habitats, with

ora and fauna that may have very short growing and

reproductive seasons, and may be particularly sensi-

A b s

t r a c t



tainous areas (Ata & Siddiqui, 1993).

1.2 Study Area (Hunza)

The opening up of the Karakoram Highway in 1978 end-

ed this isolation and saw a rapid pouring in of tourists.

With an altitude of over 2,400m, Hunza receives an an-

nual rainfall of 145 mm. April to August are the wettes

months and October to March is the area’s dry period

The Valley is divided into three regions, the lower (Shi-

na) region, the central (brushal) region, and the upper

(Gojal) region (Al-Jalaly et. al, 1995).

The Northern Areas (Gilgit-Baltistan) with their high

altitude mountains of the Himalayas, Hindukush and

Karakoram Ranges attract a particular group of tour-

ists, mountain trekkers and mountain climbers. It is

the conuence of the world’s three mighty mountain

ranges – The Himalayas, the Karakoram and the Hin-

dukush. Some of the world’s highest peaks are found

here. These attract large number of mountaineers from

all over the world. In between these peaks, there are

tive to disturbance by human activity. Tourism activi-

ties often involve the development and intense use of

tracks, paths and sports slopes by vehicles, non-motor-

ized transport and pedestrian trafc. Visitors presence

is also usually concentrated in small areas, contributing

to increased noise and waste. The negative environ-

mental effects of poorly managed tourism activities can

include vegetation clearing and soil erosion, removal of

scarce habitat, altering of critical landscapes and water

ows, water and air pollution, and wildlife relocation

or behavioral changes. The introduction of exotic and

invasive species and diseases can also have a signi-

cant negative impact on local plant and animal species

(UNEP, 2007).

The large amount of solid waste left by the expeditions

on all popular trekking routes and base camps is not

only an eye sore for the tourists, but also serious threat

to the natural environment. These mountain tourism

activities (Climbing, mountaineering, trekking, and hik-

ing etc.) also have negative impacts on these moun-

F i g 1 :

M a p o

f D i s t r i c

t H u n z a - N a g a r



heavenly valleys, the largest glaciers outside the polar

areas, bubbling springs, blue lakes and rivers. The area

is ideal for mountaineering, trekking and just nature

walking (Ministry of Tourism, 2006).

1.3 Literature Review

Mountaineering is a palpable form of adventure tour-

ism. It involves such activities as rock climbing, back-

packing and physical tness programmes (Mitchell,

1983) (cited in, Pomfret, 2006).While there is a dearth

of research that examines mountaineering and its par-

ticipants in an adventure tourism settings (e.g. Elmes

& Barry, 1999; Ewert, 1985; Magni, Rupolo, Simini, De

Leo, & Rampazzo, 1985; Rossi & Cereatti, 1993) (cited

in, Pomfret, 2006). Studies of mountaineers’ person-

alities reveal that they have sensation seeking traits(Breivik, 1996; Cronin, 1991; Goma Freixanet, 1991;

Jack & Ronan, 1998; Rossi & Creeatti, 1993) (cited in,

Pomfret, 2006). Mountaineering demand active en-

gagement from participants involving such activities as

scrambling rope work, travelling across glaciers, use o

ice axes and crampons, acclimatization and navigation

Trekking is dened as “a journey to be undertaken on

foot for sightseeing in areas where normally modern

transport system is not available”. Trekking activities

are conned to certain popular routes and contribute to

environmental problem (Gurung, 1991).

The most negative impact on the local environment as-

sociated with mountain tourism is caused by littering

solid waste, and bad hygiene (Gurung, 1991). The pol-

lution of water sources from setting toilets too close to

streams and drinking water sources (both lodge latrines

and portable trekking toilet tents), use of chemica

soaps for bathing, and the washing dishes and clothes

in steams or close to water sources have been reported

Water pollution can also be caused by disposition of hu-

man waste directly into rivers and streams, as is cus-



tomarily done by lodge owners, a common practice also

of local people (Banskota & Sharma, 1995).

Ecotourism is a highly fragile activity. Its continued ben-

ets can be enjoyed if the product is managed strictly

and protective measures are in place. The long-term

future of the Pakistan ecotourism industry is closely

linked to environmental protection. Support for ecologi-

cally sustainable development is now emerging strongly

in the tourism sector as the logical way of balancing

environmental concern with growth and development

(Niazi, 2002).

Studies focused on perceptions of the environment

have found that tourists generally have limited percep-

tions of wear and tear impact but are more sensitive

to the direct impact resulting from litter, human waste,

and vandalism etc. (Lucas 1979; Marion and Lime

1986:229). More recent work (Hammitt, Bixler and Noe

1996:60) showed that tourists are still most observ-

ant of the direct impacts of other participants (trails

use for more than one activity, litter etc.) but that they

may also be growing more aware of other impacts on

the environment (like trail erosion). The suggestion of

increased awareness and sensitivity to environmenta

impact over the past decades (Lucas 1985; Hammitt et

al 1996) highlights this issue in planning for a sustain-

able tourism industry into the future (cited in Hillery et

al. 2001).

The debate of environmental realism vis-à-vis the post

modern view that the environment is purely a socia

construction (Dickens, 1996) (cited in, Holden, 2003),

is one that is pertinent to how nature is perceived, and

subsequently managed. The activity of tourism is de-

pendent upon the perception of the environment of a

destination as being desirable.

1.3 Methodology

In order to conduct the research, a total of 345 question-

naires were distributed among tourists who participated

in tourism activities and out of these, 300 question-

naires were lled by the tourists and 45 questionnaires

were unusable. Researchers could have distributed

more questionnaires but due to Islamic holly month o

Ramadan, many hotels and lodges were closed during

Fig 3 : Tourism-led urbanisation in Karimabad



Nationality Percentage

North Americans 10

Europeans 30.7

Australians 21

Asians 37.3

Others 1

Age

Less than 25 8

25-34 52

35-45 27

Over 45 13

Gender

Male 59.3

Female 40.7

Education

High School 11

Diploma 15.7

Bachelors 42

Masters 19.7

Doctors 3.7

Table 1: Statistics of tourists in terms of demographic characteristics (n=300)

the time of data collection.

Questionnaires were distributed at camps, lodges, ho-

tels and trekking routes during September, 2009 to Oc-

tober, 2009 in Hunza. Data collection process took 35

days and on an average 9 questionnaires were distrib-

uted per day, one respondent took on an average 15

to 20 minutes to ll a questionnaire. Semi-structured

interviews were conducted with two tour leaders at Ho-

tel Embassy, Karim Abad, Hunza on 14th October, 2009.

Another interview was conducted at the same place on

17th October, 2009. Before distributing the question-

naire, researchers asked for respondents consent to ll

the questionnaire and briefed them about the study.

Questionnaire mainly comprised of four parts; Part one

was about demographic characteristics of respondents,Part two was about travel characteristics. Part three

was about tourists’ opinion of environmental pollution

in Hunza expressed on a Likert Scale, 5-negligible,

4-low, 3-moderate, 2-high, and 1-very high. Part four

was about tourist’s behavior in Hunza expressed on a

Likert Scale, 5- Strongly agree, 4- agree, 3- neither

agree nor disagree, 2- disagree, and 1- strongly disa-

gree. Two open ended questions were also included inthe questionnaire.

1.4 Results

Out of 300 respondents of this research, 37.3 percent

respondents visiting Hunza were Asians. 52 percent

were between the ages of 25-34, 59.3 percent were

male; where as 42 percent had bachelors as their leve

of education and 51 percent of respondents were re-

lated to different professions (Table 1).The travel char-acteristics of the sample indicated that 49.3 percent o



Purpose of Visit Percentage

Pleasure 49.3

Adventure 41.7

Education 9

Type of accommodation used

Lodges/ Guest house 52.3

Non Star hotel 24.7

Budget hotel 22

Camping 1

Length of stay

1-3 days 7

4-6 days 14.3

A Week 33

More than a Week 45.7

Years of mountain tourism experience

Less than 1 year 171-2 Years 43.7

3-4 Years 22

More than 4 Years 14.2

Not applicable 3

Type of Tourist

Mountaineers 39.7

Trekkers 16

Table 2: Statistics of tourists in terms of travel characteristics (n=300)

Other 8

Occupation

Professionals 51

Sports Person 10.3

Expedition Team Leaders 2

Others 36.7

respondents, who visited Hunza were for pleasure pur-

poses. 52.3 percent stayed in “lodges/guest houses”.

45.7 percent of the tourists stayed for “more than a

week”, 43.7 percent tourists had mountain tourism ex-

perience for “1 to 2 years”, 39.3 were “mountaineers”.

39.7 percent of them traveled in a group of “1-2 per-

sons”. 39.7 percent of tourists “did not hire any guide or

porter”. Where as 41.7 percent of tourists visited Hunza

for “viewing natural scenes” and 47.3 percent tourists

came for” recreational tourism” (Table 2).



General Tourists 36

Ecotourists or Natural tourists 8

Travel Party Size

1-2 Persons 39.7

3-4 Persons 19.7

5-6 Persons 26.7

More then 6 14

Status of local support employed

No guide or porter 39.7

Both guide and porter 14.7

porter only 9

guide only 36.7

Activities

Viewing Natural Scences 41.7

Natural Walks 14.3

Access to unique landscape features 4

Bird watching / Wildlife 5

Photography 9.7

Rock climbing 4

Physical activities 15

Picnicking 6.3

Tourism type

Leisure 27.3

Cultural 12.7

Recreational 47.3

Ecotourism 12.7

The tourist’s opinion of pollution in Hunza about “noise

disturbance” got the highest mean score (4.36) fol-

lowed by “crowding” (4.35); showed negligible level of

pollution in terms of noise disturbance and crowding.

Mean scores of “left-over mountaineering gear (tents,

bedding, ropes, shoes, clothing)” (3.54), “damage to

forest area (cutting, destruction of vegetation, effects

on wildlife)” (3.51), “human waste and trails of ani-

mal litter” (3.42); showed low level of pollution. Where

as mean scores of “sanitation (scattered toilet papers

along and uncovered toilet pits) at camp sites/lodges,

peaks, and trekking routes)” (3.28), “containers (bot-

tles, food packing, polyethylene bags/sheets)” (3.19)

respectively; showed moderate level of pollution in the

opinion of tourists (Table 3).

The behavior of tourists in terms of “I followed the

codes of conduct for environmental preservation” got

the highest mean score of (4.33), followed by “The en-

vironment of Hunza provides a good place for enjoy-

ing wilderness” (4.32), “I felt a sense of being close

to nature while on a tour in Hunza” (4.32), “I adhered



Statements of Tourists Behavior Mean Scores

I followed the codes of conduct of enviromental preservation 4.33

I felt a sense of being close to nature while on a tour in Hunza 4.32

The environment of Hunza provides a good place for enjoying wilderness 4.32

I adhered to these codes 4.23

I did respect the information given to me about the mountain ecosystem and biodiversity con-

servation ( threatened species, share local resources )4.11

I followed the information about local laws , customs and appropriate behavior (protocals for

photography, private local sites , customs laws and souvenir restrictions )3.88

I did care of health and safety issues those were relevant to me in this tour(danger areas, min-

imun health and tness requirement , equipment and vehicle standards , batteries for lighting

and equipment)

3.83

Table 4: Behavior of tourists in Hunza

to these codes” (4.26), this showed tourists strongly

agreed that their behavior is positive. Mean scores of “I did respect the information given to me about the

mountain ecosystem and biodiversity conservation

(threatened species, share local resources)” (4.23), “I

followed the information about local laws, customs, and

appropriate behavior (protocols for photography, pri-

vate local sites, custom laws and souvenir restrictions)”

(4.11), “I did care of the range of health and safety is-

sues that may be relevant to me in this tours (danger

areas, minimum health and tness requirement, equip-

Environmental Pollution Mean Scores

Noise disturbance 4.36

Crowding 4.35

Left-over mountaineering gear ( tents , bedding , ropes , shoes ,

clothing)3.54

Damage to forest area ( cutting , destruction of vegetation, effects

on wild-life)3.51

Human waste and trails of animal litter 3.42

Sanitation ( Scattered toilet papers and unvovered toilets pits ) at

camp sites / lodges , peaks and trekking routes )3.28

Containers ( bottles , food packing , Polyethylene bags / Sheets ) 3.19

Table 3: Tourists’ opinion of environmental pollution in Hunza

Note: Likert Scale: 5-negligible, 4-low, 3-moderate, 2-high, 1-very high

ment and vehicle standards, batteries for lighting and

equipment)” (3.88), “Tourism activities should not beallowed if it has negative impacts upon the natural en-

vironment” (3.83), “If i thought tourism activities could

harm the environment would stop getting involved in

tourism activities” (3.76); showed tourists agreed that

their behavior is positive about these statements, where

as the mean scores of “Tourism activities have spoil

Hunza’s environment” (2.98); showed tourist neither

agreed nor disagreed about this statement (Table 4).



Variable % Environmental Pollution Tourists behavior

N=300 P value P value

Tourist’s type

Mountaineer 39.70

0.000** 0.000**Trekker 16

General tourist 36

Eco tourist 8.30

Travel party size

1-2 Persons 39.70

0.000** 0.000**

3-4 Persons 19.70

5- 6 Persons 26.70

> 6 Persons 14

Length of stay

1-3 Days 7

0.000* 0.000**4-6 Days 14.30

A week 33

More then a week 45.70

1.5 Hypothesis TestingOne way ANOVA (Analysis of Variance) was applied to

test the difference in tourists’ opinion of environmen-

tal pollution, tourists’ behavior in Hunza with regard to

** P<0.01

Note: Agreement Scale: 5- Strongly agree, 4- agree, 3- neither agree nor disagree, 2- disagree, 1- strongly disagree

* Negative attribute is not reverse scored.

Tourism activities should not be allowed if it has negative impacts upon the natural environment 3.76

If I thought tourism activities could harm the environment I would stop getting involved in tour-

ism activies*2.98

tourist type, travel party size and length of stay.

All hypotheses are rejected due to the signicance val-

ues 0.00. These values were lower than the standard

signicance value 0.01 (Table 5).

Table 5: Difference in tourists’ opinion of environmental pollution and tourists’ behavior in terms of tourist’s type, travel party

size and length of stay

1.6 Conclusion and Recommendations

The results described that eco-tourists observed more pollution during their visit to Hunza. While tourists who

traveled in a group of more than 6 persons and spent more than a week in Hunza, observed more pollution.

Research results indicated that eco-tourists positively followed codes of conduct about environmental preserva-



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Rehmat Karim , Author

Graduate School of Business,Assumption University, Bangkok

[email protected]

Dr. Adarsh Batra , Co Author

Graduate School of Business, Assumption University,Bangkok

[email protected]

Typical Woodwork from Hunza Valley

Hunzo-E-Hayan

Shafqat Karim

0343-5498002

Artist


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/karakoram-knowledge-highways-kkh-issue-4 59/82Modern Media and Democracy: A case study of election coverage in GBLA (6), Hunza

MODERN MEDIA AND DEMOCRACY: A CASE STUDY OF ELECTION

COVERAGE IN GBLA (6), HUNZA

b y : No o r Mu h a mma d

The role of media in the democratization process of societies is a hotly debated issue across the

globe. After Noam Chomsky came out with his analysis pertaining to how the mass media is being

used in the USA and other countries practicing democratic forms of government, to engineer, or

manufacture, consent, the role of alternative media, independently disseminating information and

opinions to segments of the society, has increasingly become an area of interest and exploration

for researchers.

While the information sharing role of the alternative media was never ignored, its effectiveness in

changing voters’ perceptions was a critical area of research. The presidential election race in USA

provided the researchers with opportunities to test their theories. It is being said that President

Obama rst won elections on the social media, before winning hearts of the voters, convincingthem to vote for “change”. For this reason some publications termed Obama the rst “wired presi-

dent”. Business Week, in its election edition, declared the ‘social media’ as co – winners in the

democratic process.

This paper attempts to analyze the role played by social media, an increasingly important com-

ponent of the “alternative media”, in election process of Hunza valley. It will discuss the type of

information disseminated by the modern alternative media present in Hunza valley, not focusing

on quality of content.

1. Introduction

1.1 Alternative Media

According to globally accepted standards, all mediums and media products not operated or produced by the

mainstream media, controlled by state or corporations (large news groups) can be classied as alternative

media. Under such a broad denition, major state owned, or corporate controlled media channels (including

print, electronic and internet media), constitute the mainstream media. All media that falls outside the ambit

of the state or corporate media, thus, can be classied as alternative media. Alternative media works parallel

to the mainstream media, but is operated by independent individuals or groups of individuals.

This category may include community newspapers, other print publications, news channels or cable TV chan-

nels, community radio stations, independently operating websites and blogs, as well as citizen newspapers.

Also, broadly speaking, the term alternative media is used for cinema, literature, documentaries, theater and

dramas that communicate vital social messages and information.

Moreover, also included in the list of alternative media are online social networks, instant messaging services,

email, short message services of mobile phones and phone calls.

A b s t a r c t



a. Global Trends in alternate media technology

Media critics, including (Kellner 2004; Herman and Chomsky 1988; Herman and McChesney 1997; Alger

1998; McChesney 1999; Keane 1991, have argued that corporate and state controlled mainstream, mass,

media has turned into a major anti – democratic force, working against the will and aspirations of common

people, in order to reap optimum economic opportunities.

In this scenario the alternative media is being projected as the voice of common people, also popularly cat-egorized under terms, like citizen journalism, or citizen media.

b. Global experiences with alternative media

The Western world’s experiences with alternative media have brought about revolutionary changes in their

societies. The American Presidential campaign 2008, saw the most extensive usage of internet for electioneer-

ing. Similar has been the case in India’s recent election where parties and candidates have widely used the in-

ternet to reach out to voters, while on the other hand citizens have openly expressed their likings and dislikes

for candidates, parties and their ideologies, without any fear of persecution, from the safety of their homes.

Also, in Iran the instant messaging network, Twitter, played a very vital role in popularizing the anti – Ahmadi

Najad political drive launched by his opponents. Millions of Irani voters stayed connected through the instant

messaging service, planning and communicating vital information, in a semi – clandestine way, bringing out

hundreds of thousands of people onto the streets.

Thus, in one sense, the modern media has provided more open social space to ordinary citizens, increasing

their expressiveness and giving them the urge and desire to share their opinions freely.

Learning from experiences of Western and Eastern democracies with modern media, it can safely be projected

that in conditions of access to internet, Hunza valley has the literacy rate and innovative, experimenting social

psyche available that can be increase the role of alternative media, especially online social media.

1.2 Hunza Valley

Hunza Valley is a pristine terrain in the Gilgit – Baltistan region, located between Pakistan, China and Afghani-

stan. According to the 1998 census Hunza’s population comprises of more sixty thousand people. Independ-

ent sources argue that the population has been underreported for political purposes. They claim that the real

population has increased to more than one hundred thousand people.

Geographically Hunza is divided into three sub – regions called Shinaki, Kunjut (Hunzu) and Gojal. Four lan-

guages are spoken and understood in Hunza namely, Burushaski, Wakhi, Shina and Doomaki. Majority of the

population speaks and understands Burushaski, seconded by Wakhi. English and Urdu are also spoken and

understood across the valley.

Literacy rate of Hunza is the highest in Pakistan, standing at hundred percent among people below twenty

years of age and around seventy percent among all ages. A sizeable majority of the region’s populace lives

outside Hunza, in other cities of Pakistan, as well as other parts of Asia, Europe and the Americas.



Hunza used to operate as an independent state before falling to the British colonists in the late nineteenth

century. The British rulers allowed a semi – autonomous style of governance for Hunza, under a hand- picked

local Mir, belonging to the ruling family. After the British left India, Hunza’s rulers announced accession to Pa-

kistan and were rewarded with honorary titles, perks and privileges by the governments in return. The semi

– autonomous status continued till 1974, when responding to popular demands prime minister of Pakistan

Zulqar Ali Bhutto abolished the state of Hunza, bringing the region under complete Pakistani control.

Since 1974 people have been exercising the right to elect their political leaders. Three people, including

Ghanzafar Ali Khan (son of the last Mir of Hunza), Nazir Sabir and Wazir Baig have been elected to represent

Hunza in political institutions of the region.

1.3 Election-2009 in Hunza

The recent election in LA – 6, Hunza, had some unique features. Most prominent among these was emergence

of the third and fourth power circles in the otherwise traditionally pro and anti – Mir political contest scenario

observed in Hunza during the past many elections. The two new power hubs are MQM and the Hunza Action

Committee, adding to the list of PPP and Ghazanfar Ali Khan (PML N/Q).

Another more interesting feature of the recent elections in Hunza valley was the prominent role played by

modern social media throughout the electioneering process. The modern media practitioners, ordinary citi-

zens, shared news, presented views, conducted online opinion polls, created advocacy groups and dissemi-

nated information to a level never ever observed in any part of Gilgit – Baltistan, so far. The consumers of

news information became online, small scale, publishers.

Hunza was never so highly connected to rest of the world, as it is today. The youth of Hunza valley have made

full use of the opportunities and facilities provided by this higher degree of connectivity, in service of democ-

racy.

Four powerful modern media tools, including blogs, local cable television channels, Short Message Services

(SMS), and the most popular online social network, Facebook, have been used by candidates, or their support-

ers, to generate and sustain support. One blog continuously posted information on Twitter, the third genera-

tion tool of instant communication.

Availability of internet facility in the central part of Hunza valley, accounting for sixty percent of the total vot-

Fig 1: Public rallies of the three major contestents in elections 2009



ers, is an important aspect of the electioneering process.

1.3.1 An overview of the election process in Hunza Valley

Candidates/parties – The political situation was highly skewed in the past on pro and anti – Mir votes in the

past. The sixth election cycle in Hunza valley has seen emergence of new power pools, in the form of a very

strong, issue – centric, All Hunza Action Committee, introduction of MQM and Gilgit – Baltistan Democratic

Alliance in the region, bifurcation of PML (N) and PML (Q), and a higher number of independent candidates.

In the current elections nine candidates contested in the election, including Arif Hussain (Independent), Aziz

Ahmed (Independent), Ijlal Hussain (GBDA), Kamil Jan (MQM), Noor Mohammad (Independent), Rai Rehmat

Ullah Baig PML (Q), Shehbaz Khan (Independent), Shehryar Khan (PMLN) and Wazir Baig (PPP).

Constituency – Election in Hunza were held under the old setup in which it functioned as a constituency

within Gilgit district (LA 6). The total population of Hunza according to 1998 census comprises of over sixty

thousand voters, including fty one percent women.

This paper attempts to explore and analyze the way modern media worked in Hunza valley, while also drawingcomparisons with trends observed in other parts of the world.

2. Alternate Media in Hunza

2.1 Blogs

2.1.1 Pamir Times (www.pamirtimes.net )

Pamir Times is the pioneering news and views blog of Gilgit – Baltistan, initiated by Noor Muhammad and

Zulqar Ali Khan of the Gojal Net team, two years ago.

In a short span of two years the team of Pamir Times has increased from two people to 13 active citizen re-

porters belonging to Gilgit, Hunza – Nagar, Ghizar and Diamir Districts of Gilgit – Baltistan. The team is also



supported by two volunteer photographers and two web developers.

It has emerged as a vibrant online social space where people from all corners of Gilgit – Baltistan contribute

news, photographs, views and discuss different issues of interest.

2.1.2 Hunza Times ( www.hunzatimes.com )

Hunza Times is the second oldest news blog of Hunza Valley, after Pamir Times. It was launched by Sher Afzal,

a professional graphic designer. Hunza Times has also been able to bring together a team of people from all

three parts of Hunza.

2.1.3 Sada – e- Kohsar( www.kohesar.blogspot.com )

Sada – e – Kohsar is a bilingual news blog managed by Ikram Najmi, along with other team members. It has

been publishing short news items about different events pertaining to Hunza Valley.

2.1.4 Gilgit – Baltistan Times ( www.gbtimes.wordpress.com )

The Gilgit – Baltistan Times also disseminated news and views regarding elections in Hunza valley. It posted

interviews of Noor Muhammad and Nazir Sabir, in the election context. Information about the managers of this

site is not mentioned on the blog.

2.1.5 Gilgit Tribune ( www.gilgittribune.com )

Gilgit Tribune is a newly launched news and views blog catering news and view related to Gilgit – Baltistan.

The Gilgit Tribune also covered electioneering in Hunza valley.

2.2 Local cable channel

Sujo Hunzo is a local Cable TV channel initiated and managed by Divakoo Productions, a media group formedby Karakoram Area Development Organization-KADO. In the central parts of Hunza this channel played a very

important role, raising awareness among the voters by interviewing candidates and holding a discussion be-

tween different candidates some days before Hunza went to polls.

The voters had, thus, better understanding of the priorities of different candidates and were able to commu-

nicate their ideas, manifestos and life stories to potential voters, in an alternate manner.

In Shinaki and Gojal regions of Hunza, however, such a facility does not exist.



2.3 Short Message Services (SMS)

Short messaging services introduce by the mobile phone companies also played a very important role in infor-

mation sharing, throughout the process of election, as well as after the results started coming out.

Messages in Hunza were sent, mainly, in four languages, Urdu, English, Burushaski and Wakhi. Urdu mes-

sages were either written in Arabic or Roman script, while most of the rest were written in Roman script.

Before the election different kinds of information regarding most of the candidates were disseminated by dif-

ferent sources, regarding the candidates. Some mobile messages were outright eulogy of some candidates

while there were also those that tried to highlight the negative points of rival candidates. Some even contained

general appeals to the voters to be wise in casting their votes.

After the polling was completed huge numbers of SMS were sent from Hunza’s different polling stations and

party campaign ofces throughout Pakistan, as well as abroad.

The effectiveness of this method of information sharing needs to be further explored to understand their role

in the decision making process followed by a voter.

Nevertheless, it is important to acknowledge that with a mobile in hand mountains don’t present any chal-

lenges for information sharing. The Hunza society has transformed more due to mobile phones than internet,

the latter being conned to selected places.

The election related SMS sent out can be classied into the different categories, based on their apparent,

intended, objectives;

Hate Messages – These messages highlighted, alleged, negative traits of different candidates or parties,

asking the SMS recipients to act “cautiously”, while casting votes.

Candidate Advocacy Messages – Opposite of the rst kind, these messages highlighted “positive” traits of

parties or candidates, linking the ‘positivity’ with future performance.

Reconciliatory Messages – These messages asked the voters to not get personal and to use rational capaci-

ties while taking the voting decision.

Satirical Messages – These messages were composed of satirical commentaries on actions, promises and,

even, past of the parties and their supported candidates.

Simple Information Messages – Some messages simply conveyed facts about different polling stations, or

different candidates, or the aspirations of voters.

Rumor Messages – Supporters of some candidates tried to inuence voters by disseminating false news re-

lated to polling results. This was specially observed two days ahead of the polling day, when the polling agents

and polling staff cast their votes.

Contrasting claims by supporters of different candidates came into circulation, in the form of SMS, about



number of votes obtained. The idea seemed to be presenting the exercise as a rehearsal of what was going

to happen after two days.

2.4 Social Networks

Popular online social networks were also used by supporters of different candidates to communicate mes-

sages related to their candidates. Following is a brief overview of the trends in usage of social networks,

including Facebook and Orkut.

People are either not aware of other options available online or are not interested in using online media tools,

like Twitter, Youtube, Tagged, among others.

Facebook - Facebook is the fastest growing online social network that denes itself as a utility that “helps

you connect and share with the people in your life”. It can be accessed on the internet through its URL, i.e.

www.facebook.com

Fan pages of two candidates: In our survey of Facebook, the most popular virtual social space of the world, we

found that youth of Hunza also utilized this very new medium in a very effective manner, by creating fanpagesfor candidates of their choice, uploading their photographs, as well as uploading video speeches.

Two candidates including Kamil Jan and Rai Rehmatullah Baig had fanpages on Facebook. Similarly, Facebook

users also posted status updates online, generating interesting discussions about different personalities as

well as issues facing the region.

Orkut - While this social network site has lost its charms over the past few years but a large number of

Hunza’s valley people could be seen discussing electoral politics on different communities (groups) on www.

orkut.com

Twitter - Twitter is the most recent instant messaging service with an unprecedented growth rate, across

the globe. It is a simple, real time, messaging service through which users can share various types of in-

formation, including information about personal and professional activities, links to websites, or any other

information of their choice. However, the characters that can be posted each time is limited.

Pamir Times was the only blog in Hunza valley that has created a twitter account. The twitter account auto-

matically publishes links to the latest posts made on Pamir Times Blog. An increasing number of people are

following Pamir Times on its twitter account.www.twitter.com/pamirtimes

Networked Blog - Networked blog is another recent application that is used to automatically post blog up-

dates to Facebook. It, thus, creates a nexus between Facebook and the blog, allowing Facebook users easier

access to posts made on the blog. Hunza Times and Pamir Times are two blogs that routinely post their

updates to Facebook.

3. Content of the blogs

The nature of content disseminated on the blogs varied from one blog to another. Following is an overview of



Modern Media and Democracy: A case

Su

S.No Name of Blog Language News reports Candidate Proles Photograp

1 GB Times English 42 1 0

2 Gilgit Tribune English 30 0 2

3 Hunza Times English 37 0 0

4 Pamir Times English and Urdu 127 9 2

5 Sada-e-Kohsar Urdu and English 63 0 0

Total 299 10 4

the type of content generated and disseminated by the blogs of Hunza.

News Report

All blogs published news on regular basis. Sada –e - Kohesar and Pamir Times published the most number

of news reports regarding election related activities of candidates belonging to different parties. Pamir Times

published 127 news reports, including news digests called “Election Roundup”, comprising of different brief

news items. Sada –e – Kohsar published 63 news posts. The total number of news items, in Urdu and English,

posted by all these blogs was 598. This also includes news reports that contained photographs, along with

text. Some of these news reports were redundant, having been shared on multiple blogs, simultaneously.

Candidate Proles

Proles of ten candidates were compiled and posted on the blogs. Nine of the ten proles were compiled by

Pamir Times, while one of the proles was posted by Gilgit – Baltistan Times. Rest of the blogs did not publish

candidate proles.

Photographs - On four instances, two posts each by Gilgit Tribune and Pamir Times, only photographs, with

limited or no text were posted by the blogs, related to electioneering process.

Videos - Videos were one of the least used tools during the electioneering process. Only three videos, one

each by Gilgit – Baltistan Times, Hunza Times and Pamir Times, were posted by the blogs.

Web Polls - Eighteen web polls were conducted on various themes, including traits that the voters wanted

to see in their leader, direct voting for candidates and issues on which the voters would decide their voting

decision. Out of the eighteen web polls four were conducted by Gilgit – Baltistan Times, two were conducted

by Hunza Times and ten were conducted by Pamir Times.

The highest number of people to vote on any poll was above 423, conducted a week before the polling day,



ection coverage in GBLA (6), Hunza

Videos Web Polls Discussions Graphics/Banners/Buttons Interview Opinions/Editorial

1 4 1 0 2 10

0 0 0 0 0 2

1 2 1 0 0 3

1 10 7 3 2 12

0 2 0 3 0 3

3 18 9 6 4 30

on Pamir Times.

Discussions

Election related discussions between different readers of the blogs aroused on various instances, including

debates on the news reports posted.

4 3 %

P a m i r T i m

e s E n g l i s h

a n d U r d

u

21%

Sada-e-Kohsar Urdu

English

1 4 %

G B T i m

e s E n g l i s

h

1 0 % G i l g i t T r i b u n e E n g l i s h

1 2 %

H u n z a T

i m e s E n

g l i s h

News Coverage election 2009For the purpose of this study only those discussions which

were posted by the blog moderators to generate debates

have been taken into account. Seven such discussions

took place on Pamir Times, while two discussions took

place on Gilgit – Baltistan Times and one on Hunza Times.

Candidate Interviews

In the pre – election scenario two blogs interviewed can-

didates, or potential candidates, to know their plans and

manifestos. Two such interviews were published on Gilg-

it – Baltistan Times, while two were published on Pamir

Times. In the post – election scenario only one interview,

of the winning candidate, Wazir Baig, has been published

on Pamir Times. Also, Sada – e- Kohsar has posted a video speech of Noor Muhammad in the post – election

scenario.

Graphic Posts

Some blogs also used graphic banners and buttons to communicate election related messages. Hunza Times

and Pamir Times posted three graphic banners each, communicating different messages related to the elec-

tion.

Opinions/Editorials



A total of thirty opinion and editorial posts were made on the ve blogs studied. Ten of the opinion or edito-

rial posts were made by Gilgit Baltistan Times, twelve by Pamir Times, two by Gilgit Tribune, and three each

by Hunza Times and Sada-e-Kohsar. These opinion pieces presented analysis of the situation or attempted to

convince their readers to vote for a certain agenda.

4. Modern media’s role in democratization of Hunza Valley

Generally speaking the role of modern media, including blogs and mobile phones, as well as the local TV cable

channel, offer many promises for the times to come.

Blogs and social networks are inexpensive alternatives to print media and TV channels. Further, these modern

media tools have enabled ordinary citizens to create content online and publish the same in any format they

like. The culture of silence, to quote Paul Frere, is fast decaying because people have powerful modern media

outlets to raise their voice. In other words it can be said that modern media has not only given birth to a virtual

social space where people can express their feelings without the fear of persecution, but it has also emerged

as a powerful amplication tool for weak voices around the world.

Otherwise isolated communities of Gilgit – Baltistan, in general, and Hunza valley, in particular, are takingfull benet of the opportunities offered by the modern media. These mediums have increased freedom of the

people in terms of expression, as well as, in terms of access to information.

Access to information and freedom of expression being the cornerstones of a democratic society will slowly

and gradually change attitude of the people of Hunza towards governance and would lead to broader social

change, by inuencing voting decisions, in the long run.

There is a need to increase the sphere of internet technology to all parts of the Hunza valley, so that the proc-

ess of enhanced access to information and increased freedom of creative expression is sped up and boosted,

for greater democratization of the society.

5. Study Findings

Some ndings of the study are :

• Mainstream print media may not have been able to offer such timely updates, as done by the modern

media, keeping in view the geographic constraints, as well as availability of facilities and the logistics in-

volved.

• SMS and mobile phone calls were the major source of information or disinformation in Hunza valley during

the election process.

• Mobile phone networks and internet blogs work in a symbiotic relationship, as far as timely reporting of

news is concerned. This means that while blogs are mostly fed by news shared by citizen reporters through

mobile phones, many readers also use mobile phone internet to access news, in valleys were DSL/ Land-

line internet is not yet available.

• A level of integration between different communication channels can be observed, following the global

trend. In this model blogs, social networks and instant messaging services are integrated to reach more

people on different platforms.

• People are adoptive and not resistant to the use of modern media tools in Hunza valley.



• People accept importance of the positive and/or negative role that modern media can play in shaping

public opinion.

• Availability of internet, or the lack of it, will have profound impact on future governance mechanisms in

Hunza valley.

• Youth have the potential and willingness to generate content for public consumption.

• There is a general lack of skills.

• None of the blogs have a written, publicly available, editorial policy.

• Citizen reporters are not trained, skilled, or equipped for objectively reporting stories.

5. Websites visited

Content studied at the following websites may have directly or indirectly inuenced the ideas discussed in this

study. Nevertheless, source has been mentioned wherever direct citations have been made.

http://www.businessweek.com

http://pewinternet.org/default.aspx

http://www.pewinternet.org/Press-Releases/2009/The-Internet-and-Civic-Engagement.aspx

http://cctv.org/welcome

http://people-press.org/report/479/internet-overtakes-newspapers-as-new-source

The writer is a business graduate of Shaheed Zulkar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science & Technology –

Karachi. He is also the Founding Chief Editor of Pamir News Blog and Pamir Times Magazine.

Typical Woodwork from Hunza Valley

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b y : M. Na f e e s a n d Z a h i d Ul l a h

SOCIAL CONFLICT AND DEFORESTATION: A CASE STUDY OF TARA-

GAT MOUNTAIN, MALAKAND

Social Conict and Deforestation : A Case Study of Tara-Gat Mountain , Malakand

The Lower Swat region (also called Swat Ranizai) was examined for instances of social conict and

any causal relationship with deforestation. To complete the study, a detailed literary and interview

survey was carried out along with the utilization of Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) techniques

(including transit walks and semi-structure interviews). The region has meagre forest resources.

Mountains are considered communal property and can be acquired as personal property by con-

verting it into agricultural areas. This region was reforested in 2000-2002 with the help of the

national forest department who banned deforestation for ve years after consulting locals. After

the termination of the ban, a household located adjacent to the Tara-Gat Mountain demarcated the

newly forested area as his personal property. This created a conict with the rest of the communal

owners. Consequently the other owners began cutting down trees in the demarcated area. Heavy

deforestation continued until the mountain was barren again. It was concluded that, to avoid future

loss, a more in-depth analysis of the situation’s social context was mandatory. Furthermore, rec-

ommendations to mend the problem included addressing all stakeholders’ interests by providing

corresponding legislative coverage.

1. Introduction

Forests play a vital role in environmental development.

A country needs at least 25% of the total land to be

forested (Anwar 2002). Unfortunately, wooded areas

account for a mere 4.8% of Pakistan’s land (Shahbaz etal., 2007). Literature reveals that society plays a vital

role in the conservation of resources and the creation

of forested areas on degraded slopes (Johnson and Nel-

son, 2004). On many occasions, social conicts hinder

the process of forest development and accelerate the

process of deforestation. The social issues related to

tenure may thus negatively effect the environment at

local level (Lisa and Perera, 2006).

Social conicts are inherent characteristics of almost

every society. The solutions, however, also exist within

the society though they often require detailed explora-

tion and robust resolve to come about (Daniel, 2002).

Delaying conict resolutions only adversely affects the

social relations while further threatening natural re-

source (even to the point of irreversibility (Easterly,

2001). On many occasions such conict leads to politi-

cal confrontation that require additional, outside inter-

vention. This intervention may be in the form of na-

tional legislation, government support, and/or aid from

non-governmental organizations (Yurdi et al., 2006).

To combat deforestation, the national forest depart-

ment funds continuous reforestation campaigns. They

have adopted a participatory approach making the pro-

gram more efcient and effective. The Malakand Socia

Forestry Project (MSFP) and the Forestry Sector Projec

(FSP) are good examples of agencies who have imple-

mented this approach (Abid Q.S., 2002). In such “par-

ticipatory” projects, community-based organizations(CBOs) or village development committees (VDCs) help

initiate plantation campaigns. .

In some areas, such as the Tara-Gat forest, this method

was not successful (Geiser and Rist., 2009). Although

the plantations were completed, they ultimately failed

What incited widespread cutting has never been com-

pletely analyzed. Swat Valley is rich in social values,

A b s t r a c t



and there exist many codes of social conduct like ashar

(collective community work), nagha (seasonal mutual-

ly-agreed bans) and kakhay (crop watchman selected

and paid 25kg of crops per household twice a year at

the time of harvest) that could be used as instruments

to overcome social conicts and to assure environmen-

tal rehabilitation (Nafees et al., 2009).

In this study, an attempt is made to identify causes

behind deforestation on Tara-Gat Mountain. Its over-

arching objective is to document these causal factors

for future guidance and also help identify possible, local

solutions (Fig.1).

2. Study Area

Mountains cover 75% of the Swat Valley. In general

the mountains are communal property in the Swat

and Malakand districts. Each village possesses a land-

ed property usually demarcated by natural mountain

boundaries (Nafees, 2008). The study area (Tara-Gat)

is a mountain (Fig. 2) located within the territorial lim-

its of the village Allahdand Dheri in Malakand district

(a part of the Swat valley). The total area of the vil-

lage (2138 hectares) is divided as follows: 53.29% ar

able land (32.97% rain fed and 20.32 irrigated land)

34.27% mountainous territory, and 12.43% residentia

property (Fig-2). The lands of 12 families (three tribes)

out of a total 106 landowner families belonging to 6sub-tribes are attached to the mountain and have the

right to convert it into agricultural or residential land

(Nafees et al. 2009). The mountain in its present, com-

munal form belongs to the Allahadan sub-tribe which

comprises 35% of Allahdand Dheri’s population. Fo-

cus group discussions during the PRA revealed that

the seven Dheri sub-tribes (40% population) and the

landless tenant community (25% population ) can also

claim rights to the hillside for grazing, cutting grass,

hunting, resin gathering, etc. In this instance, the en-

tire village population claims the hillside region as com-

munity property. In the six village wards, about 35%

of the population are landowning families and only 12

Fig

1

:Map

ofdistric

tMalakand


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/karakoram-knowledge-highways-kkh-issue-4 73/82Social Conict and Deforestation : A Case Study of Tara-Gat Mountain , Malakand

families of these have the right to convert the hillsides

into personal agriculture or residential properties. So

far about 20% of the Tara-Gat Mountain and the sur-

rounding area have already been converted into farm-

ing land (Fig. 3). The remaining area is made up of

hard rocks and cannot be cultivated. Consequently, the

right-holding families are trying to convert the rocksinto residential areas.

3. Methodology

To examine the historical background of the land-tenure

system and different deforestation events, a detailed

literary survey was carried out. This survey was sup-

plemented by semi-structure interviews with forest de-

partment ofcials and village elders. The area was sur-

veyed from 2005-08 and measured development trendsin forest-related activities. To examine forest cutting,

PRA techniques (focus group discussions, social map-

ping) were used (Adrienne M & J. Sherington, 1997).

The observed group consists of residents inhabiting the

foot hill of the mountain. Two transect walks were taken

in the area prior to mountain forestation and two after

the major episode of clear-cutting (Walpole and Shel-

don, 1999). The mountain was photographed before

and after as well. Focus group discussions were used to

understand the previous use(s) of the mountain (Omo-

dei et al 2004 and Bayemi et al 2005). Focus group

members were selected with the help of local school

teachers and mostly consist on elder qualied persons.

For secondary source material, data from the Pakistan

Statistic Department was utilized.

4. The Historical Background of Deforestation

in the Study area

Before the creation of Pakistan in 1947, every per-

son had the right to use the mountains for non-com-

mercial pruning, gathering fuel wood, grazing, grass

cutting and hunting. Cutting down tress was allowed

only after attaining permission from the khans (heads

of land-owning, extended families). After 1947, the

Malakand remained within the Federally Administered

Tribal Area (FATA) until 1969 (Sultan-i-Rome, 2005)

In this era, the jirga (local council of elders) acted as

the decision-making body. In 1969, both the adjoin-

ing, northern annexed areas of Swat and Dir were

merged into Pakistan, and the tribal status of all the

areas (including Malakand) was changed to Provincial-

ly Administer Tribal Area (PATA) with partial extensionof the colonial type of institutional framework existing

in the rest of the country (Inam-ur-Rahim and Viaro,

2002). With this extension, the mountains in Swat and

Dir were declared government property, and the forest

was deemeda protected forest in 1972 (Sultan-i-Rome

2005). Consequently people of the Malakand feared

that their mountain would also be declared state prop-

erty. Demolishing the tribal rules and the jirga sys-

tem resulted in the Kkhans’ loss of power and resects

(Nafees, 2008). The tenants residing near the hillside

became, after internal village discussions, the primary



users of the communal, hillside forest. During the insti-

tutional vacuum that followed, the tenants began indis-

criminate cutting while the khans were left as powerless

observers. Such deforestation continued during the

three subsequent years (1975-77). This was followed

by free grazing. The effects of such illicit cutting were

profound: the forest covered a mere 5% of the studyarea after deforestation compared to 30% before 1975.

4.1 Previous livelihood opportunities associ-

ated with Tara-Gat

Before 1971, Tara-Gat Mountain’s main economic draw

was the time-consuming collection of phulai or palosa

(Acacia Modesta) resin for medicinal use. Another im-

portant activity was collection of damaged trees and

twigs for feed and fuel. A third income activitywas the

cutting of grasses, which were used for hay in mud

houses as well as ller in fruit, vegetable, and egg

packing.

The provision of grazing areas for village livestock was

a fourth benet of the mountain. In this a herder was

appointed by villagers to take the entire village’s cattle

to graze. He was paid twice a year with 5kg grain/head

of cattle. This process continued until 1980. Afterward

the nearby mountains became absolutely barren due

to deforestation; due to the removal of soil cover the

village herder was obliged to journey to remote areas

It became increasingly difcult for him to manage such

grazing. As a result, this system gradually vanished.

4.2 The Present process of land conversion

and associated problems

Landowners can acquire and make adjacent territory

their own private property. To do so, he must simply

cultivate it. During 1978-82 (after clearing the moun-

tains), the adjacent landowners started to acquire the

land for agriculture and residencies (Fig-3). Currently

25% of the available rain-fed area comprises of the

converted mountains slopes. The continued tilling on

these lands has negative impacts in the form of in-

creased erosion and siltation in the irrigation system

further down the valley.

5. Reforestation movement in Tara-Gat

After large scale deforestation during 1975-1977, the

mountain remained barren for nearly a decade (Na-

fees, 2008). In 1987 the forest department started the

Malakand social forestry program that continued unti

1997 (Abid , 2002). Tara-Gat was also included in the

Fig 3 : Front view of Mountain of Nal Vallage situated near Tara-Gat Mountain showing acquired parts.



schedule, and the project staff consulted locals about a

reforestation project in 1993. Malakand Social Forestry

Project (MSFP) was not honoured for three reasons. The

rst reason for failure was the involvement of foreign

consultant and the violent past and cultural differences.

Secondly, the ve years ban of grazing rights of tenants

and land owners in the mountain for. A third reason was

the formation of community based organization (CBO)

or Village development committee (VDC) to contribute

as voluntary. Unfortunately, not many people were up

for the job. The village elders were interested in jobs

opportunities for their youth and not volunteer assign-

ments. In 2001 Forest Department initiated the Forest-

ry Sector Project (FSP) funded by Asian Development

Bank. This was a ve years project and continued until

2006. The community was tried to approach and inu-

ence through the elected member for plantation. A vol-

unteer committee was formed that consisted of masha-

ran (village elders). Local watchmen were appointed

and were paid from the project fund. After consulting

the masharan, deforestation was banned in a limited

part of the forest (about ¾ km length) for ve years.

The forest department, in cooperation with the masha-

ran, supervised plantation and were responsible plan-

tation oversight (Fig-4). Violations were punished by

Malakand Leaves (local police) for ve years; however

that could not be continued due to limited manpower.

6. The conict

Between 2001-2006 reforestation occurred on Tara-Gat

Mountain. The main species planted was Eucalyptus

due to its rapid growth. . Although the mountainside

was considered communal property, the forest depart-

ment invested on it and allowed the local population

to graze livestock there but disallowed tree harvesting

after 2006.

This process of conservation was disputed when a vil-

lager living adjacent to the mountain claimed the cen-

tral part of the mountain as his personal property. He

also tried to bring the plantation in his personal use.

This led to social conict as all communal share holders

stood against him and began cutting trees in the area.

However, no complaint arose deforestation itself. The

reason behind this might be that the other stockhold-

ers also saw the situation as an opportunity for private

benet. As a result, the original encroacher retreated

back to his original boundaries but the plantation was

largely treeless. The mountain was completely cleared



by February 11, 2009, and the forest department’s ve-

year battle against logging was lost.

Currently the Tara-Gat Mountain resembles the old,

barren Tara-Gat Mountain of 1978 (Fig. 5). It only took

a small, social conict to greatly reduce a lush environ-

ment to a desolate territory.

The deforestation complaint was reported to the by a

person who annexed the mountainous area with his

land but was refused as he was no more project employ.

The second option was to complain to the police station.

However, such a complaint was made but refused with

the excuse that the land was communal property and

one must bring village elders to accept the complaint

When the tree cutters came to know that police were

not taking an interest in the problem, they were further

encouraged to accelerat cutting. The landless Allahdand

side (25%) initiated the reckless logging and was en

couraged by non-adjacent landowners. When the adja-

cent landowners (10%) realized the extent of destruc-

tion, they also began cutting to gain what they viewed

as their deserved share.

7. Conclusion

When the Swat and Dir districts merged with Pakistan, the Tara-Gat Mountain was cleared as a result of

poor forest policy. Prior to the tree planting project, the role of social conicts and community were not

adequately examined, and this resulted in environmental tragedy. Despite the setback, this should not be

the last attempt of the forest department to reforest the area. However, future planting projects should

consider the following recommendations:

The areas which can be converted into croplands already have been. The forest department must provide

adequare awareness and proper guidelines to assert the right of the local people to that land.

Any further land acquisitions will lead to terrestrial degradation through soil erosion and habitat loss.

Therefore, a strategy must be put in place to maintain the mountain’s communal status and encourage

forest growth. Incentives should be provided to the adjacent landowner while advantages (in terms of

livelihood opportunities) to non-adjacent landowners and landless locals should be pointed out. The for-

F i g 5 : F r o n t v i e w o f T a r a - G a t M o u n t a i n

a f t e r c l e a r c u t t i n g ( 2 0 0 9 ) .



est department (along with the elected district government) must discuss the modalities with community

elders.

•Another possible option would be to lease the mountainside to a group of local people for growing trees

and grass. The forest department would have to provide technical support but would benet from wood

and wood product taxations as the case in Pakistan’s southern areas.

•The forest department and the community make it obligatory for the police to accept and register any

complaints.

• The forest department should encourage the elected members to raise awareness about the issue of

mountainside deforestation and to promote the use of the local social code of conduct (such as the ar-

rangement of ashar and kakhay and the implementation of nagha).

References

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ment Bank (ADB), publication. www.adb.org/Documents/Events/2002/RETA5900/report.pdf

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p-47.

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101

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tal Sciences, University of Peshawar, NWFP, Pakistan. PP: 134-137.

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the Village of Allahdand Dheri in Northern Pakistan. Mountain Research and Development, 29(1):1-8.

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search North–South]. Available at http://www.geo.unizh.ch/human/research/pdf_etc/Rome_Swat.pdf;

14. Shahbaz B. T Ali and A. Qaiyum S. 2007. A critical Analysis of Forest Policy of Pakistan: Implications for sustainable

livelihoods. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change 12 (4):441-453.

15. Walpole M.J. and I.R. Sheldon. 1999. Sampling butteries in tropical rainforest: an evaluation of a transect walk

method. /Biological Conservation 87(1): 85-91.

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mental science & policy, 9(6):538-546.

17. Omodei Z.L., C. Contini, N. Jiddawi , J. Ochiewo , J. Shunula and S. Cannicci. , 2004. Participatory appraisal for po-

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cess to Natural Resources in South Asia and Latin America. NCCR North-South Swiss National Centre of Competence

in Research North-South University of Bern Switzerland. pp-1-8

Dr. M. Nafees is a faculty member of University of

Peshawar

Zahid Ullah is afliated with Alama Iqbal Open University,

Islamabad

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b y : Az i z Al i

VILLAGE WHEAT & FODDER BANKS WAKHAN : AN INNOVATIVE IDEA

TO REDUCE POVERTY AND ENHANCE FOOD SECURITY

Village Wheat & Fodder Banks Wakhan : An Innovative Idea to reduce Poverty and enhance Food Security

An estimated 12,350 people reside in 1,300 rural households in Wakhan, one of the remotest districts of Bada-

khshan. The pastoralist Wakhi depends on subsistence agriculture mainly through livestock rearing. The rug-

ged mountain terrains and harsh climatic conditions provide for a short agricultural season and leave limited

options to farmers to optimally utilize the natural resources encompassing rangelands for their sustenance.

These conditions compounded by poor infrastructure and market access and lack of agricultural extension

services result in food shortages and shortage of animal feeds. This is particularly severe during the late win-

ter and early spring months, when local household have to bridge the time a supply gap until the spring crops

are producing. Consequently the people as well as livestock become vulnerable to a number exploitative fac-

tors as well as diseases due to malnutrition, which are more prominent in animals as hundreds of livestock die

in each winter and early spring mainly because of fodder scarcity. The prevailing desperate situation attracts

many opportunist venders/merchants who often exploit the poor farmers by buying their livestock at very

cheap rates than the actual market prices, which further aggravates their miseries and pushing them deep

into the quagmire of abject poverty.

To address this dilemma AKF Badakhshan through the nancial support from the GTZ initially designed and

established Village Wheat Bank in collaboration with Wakhan Community Development Committees (CDCs).



The community was mobilized and motivated by AKF Community Development (CD) and Natural Resource

Management (NRM) team and the Banks were established and operationalized in 2004. Initial investment was

made by AKF for establishment of central warehouses and purchasing of 21 tons of wheat grains. The com-

munity constructed the warehouse themselves.

The idea behind the wheat bank was that households that run out of food in late winter and or early spring

can borrow wheat from the nearest Wheat Bank to meet their immediate food needs rather to buy it from

other sources at higher price. At the end of the harvesting season they return the wheat with additional 20%

in quantity of the borrowed wheat. If there was not good harvest the households can arrange the quantity of

wheat borrowed from the Village Wheat Bank with the additional 20% wheat from other sources like selling

animals at higher autumn price. In this way the Bank accumulates additional wheat and increases its stock

year after year. The Bank can trade the wheat to the needy people at appropriate rate and thus build up mon-

etary capital which can be utilized for lending to a number of village-based businesses.

The Wheat Bank idea was well received by the community and it became very successful, as the recovery of

borrowed wheat remained almost 100% and the additional 20% wheat as service charge is smoothly accu-

mulated in the wheat Banks. Over a period of 4 years the Wheat Banks have accumulated 300 metric tons of

wheat and providing service to poor community people on sustained basis. So far 40 Wheat Banks have been

established in Wakhan area and they are playing crucial role in reducing the vulnerability of the poor farmers.


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/karakoram-knowledge-highways-kkh-issue-4 81/82Village Wheat & Fodder Bank Wakhan

The Village Wheat Banks to a large extent have managed to address the food security issue of the poor Wakhi

people.

Based on the sucessful experince of the Wheat Bank program, the community came up with an idea to estab-

lish Fodder Bank on the similar principles of the wheat Bank. Again AKF Badakhshan supported the idea and

helped in establishment of Fodder Banks in Wakhan. Some materials support in construction of Fodder Bank

(warehouse) and initial fodder load i.e. 1000 bags of wheat straw and 10 bags of concentrates were provided

by AKF Badakhshan. So far 20 Fodder Banks have been established and being run by the community success-

fully. Currently average 50-55 farmer families are getting benets from each Fodder Bank in Wakhan.

For the management purpose the community has constituted wheat and fodder banks committees which have

been given basic trainings in documentation and record keeping and they are responsible for supply and recol-

lection of the wheat and fodder from the farmers. Both the Banks are well managed and running successfully

by the community for the community in Wakhan district.

Through the generous support of GTZ, AKF Badakhshan has been able the address Food Security Issues in

the very remote and isolated district of Wakhan up to some extent and AKF Badakhshan is in upfront to ex-pand this successful model of poverty reduction and food security in whole Wakhan area and in other similar

resource poor pockets in the program area in future.

The author is Regional NRM Coordinator in AKF Badakhshan. He can be reached at [email protected]