Gilgit-Baltistan is home to K2, the Karakoram Highway, and ancient cultures that predate modern nation-states. It is also a region whose people exist in a constitutional limbo that denies them the most basic rights of citizenship.
The Legal Status Problem
Gilgit-Baltistan is administered by Pakistan but is not constitutionally part of Pakistan. The people of GB pay taxes, serve in the military, and live under Pakistani law — but they cannot vote in national elections and have no formal say in the federal decisions that govern their lives.
Why the Status Was Never Resolved
Pakistan has deliberately kept GB’s status ambiguous to avoid complicating the Kashmir dispute. Formally incorporating GB into Pakistan could be seen as accepting the Line of Control as a permanent border. So the people of GB are caught in a political holding pattern, their rights sacrificed to preserve a diplomatic position.
The people of Gilgit-Baltistan deserve full constitutional rights. Their region should not be a diplomatic pawn. Kashmeeriyat stands with the people of GB in their demand for recognition, representation, and rights.