Attabad,
Disaster, Rescue, International Aid, Rehabilitation, Chinese Aid, World Food,
FOCUS, USAID, IDP’s, corruption,
Government, FWO, Army, etc. etc. etc. these keywords have been echoing
in the high mountain valley since 2010.
 |
| Karakorum Highway |
Who
ever wanted to gain from miseries, gained well enough; whoever suffered, lost
more than enough; and whoever wanted to serve, served with true hearts and
minds.
The
disaster occurred, the lake came into being, people turned IDP’s, snow leopards
became hyenas, and hyenas became wolfs. No offense!
Never
mind! The inhabitants of Gojal Valley who used to be self-reliant and cherished
their traditional agricultural practices over decades have now become parasites
and affectionate to International Aids. Sometimes the distribution of such
aidless-aid leads to awful ending. No
issue at all, if there is punching in the face; in return, one gets a bag of
flour or rice.
Inhabitants
of the valley must be grateful to the victims; according to them the disaster
occurred because of massive Facebook campaign. The deity noticed then shoved
the mountain down on Attabad, which blocked the Indus creek. Bestowing their kindness, now we get tons of
flour, rice, salt and sugar. With these diviner loafs we can enjoy “KumKum”,
“Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi”, “Ishq-e-Mamnoon”, “Fariha”, and many upcoming
imprudent and outlandish drama serials.
What
next?? No one ever asks such question, not to Mehendi Sho neither to Wengxi
Beeg nor to Aid providers, but to “himself.”
Will the people enjoy these serials or switch to some thriller movies
that at least have an intermission?
The
landlocked geography of Gojal Valley offers rare opportunities to the locals to
earn their livelihood; the only cash crop, potato, has now become a liability
and the seasonal birds have been avoiding visiting and exploring the pristine
nature and rich traditions of the mountain people. Poor image of the holy land
and the blocked Karakorum Highway (KKH) are considered to be the main reasons.
But, one can’t ignore the lethargic Ministry of Tourism, which recovers from
coma during specific festivals, only to get the proposed budget.
Rather
crying on graves and shaking comatose, it’s time to come up with some viable
solution, which will at least give hope the downhearted youth of Gojal and
Hunza.
The
Chinese government must come up with some sustainable solutions, rather than
providing aid, which further damages habits of the locals and social-harmony as
well. We have already been witnessing
many undesirable events lately as a result of the Chinese aid.
Hunza
Valley has tremendous potential for tourism related activities; therefore, it’s
high time for some practical decision taking by taking the locals of the area
onboard.
Opening
the Pak-China border for the people of Hunza and Chinese tourists will pace up
the economic activities in the area. It will be a life blood to hotel and
transportation industries of the area, many hotel owners will be able to
provide quality service to the visitors.
The
Wakhi’s of Gojal Valley have deep roots in Sinkiang province of China; trade,
marriages, and cultural exchange were common in old days. But then Prime
Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto separated the Pamiri people, half of the part was
given to the Chinese and other half remained with Pakistan. Still there are
contacts – rare, but alive among mountain people.
Providing
dual-citizenship to the people of Gojal will further enhance economic,
education, cultural, and tourism related activities between the Pamiri people
of Chinese and Pakistani side. Such
initiative will further strengthen socio-economic ties between China and
Pakistan. It will also help the locals
to get back to their fields and work to produce cash crops and sell in the
Chinese markets, which are nearer safer and reliable.
Keeping
sustainable, eco-tourism phenomena in mind will reduce the risk factor, especially in an environmentally most fragile region of World.
Such
initiative will be a test case for other nations like, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan,
Turkmenistan, India and Afghanistan to come together for regional cooperation,
which is increasingly important in high pace economic era.
One can read the published post on MountainTV
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