The well-known religious scholar from Shigar, Shiekh Sehar. But for him, religion is 'Yige' or the Balti-Tibetan script, as you will find him saying, "chhos yige in le, Balti skad med na chang sa med" (we are worthless without our language and script). His only dream now is to see the original Balti script flourish in Baltistan. His followers are countless and he preaches them about Balti language.

Dear Editor,

I am thankful to you for showing interest in the struggle of the Baltis and also for a positive response to my email. In last sixty years, Pakistan has treated the indigenous community of Baltistan, the way China is treating Tibetans in Tibet. Only the withdrawal of Pakistani troops from Baltistan, unification of Ladakh and Baltistan, and normalization of conditions in the Jammu & Kashmir State (J&K) can restore freedom and democracy for the community of Baltistan. We should certainly not let Baltistan become another Tibet and for this, illegal occupation of Baltistan must end.

Currently, I am associated with Baltistan National Movement, as member of its ‘Think Tank’. Baltistan National Movement is an indigenous movement and has wide social backing. The objectives of the party are to struggle for the unification of Ladakh and Baltistan; to struggle for restoration of State Subject Rule (detailed on following pages); to struggle for opening of routes between Ladakh and Baltistan; and to promote religious harmony, tolerance among different communities and to work for establishing a free democratic society.

By: Sengge Hussanan Date: Sat, 18 Mar 2006

Contemporary Baltistan

Executive Summary
Baltistan, one of the six regions of the State of J&K, is under Pakistani occupation for the last six decades. The population of Baltistan is a heterogeneous mixture of Mongoloid Tibetan and Indian ethnicity. Centuries old Tibetan, Islamic and Indian influences have shaped the Balti culture into its modern form, which is also shared by the people of Ladakh. Balti religion is seen as a blend of Tibetan, Sufi, Indian and Shaman rituals, which is unique in a conservative Islamic environment like that of Pakistan. Baltis are proud of their ancient past and of possessing a script of their own, which is similar to Ladakhi script. Five decades passed and the Baltis, including two generations born after the partition of Baltistan and Ladakh, still identify strongly with the people of Ladakh.

Prior to the tragic partition of the Indian Subcontinent, Baltistan constituted the western part of the Ladakh province of the State of Jammu & Kashmir. After the forced separation of Ladakh and Baltistan, Pakistan illegally occupied Baltistan. Since then, Pakistan has treated the indigenous community, the way China is treating Tibetans in Tibet. Pakistani regimes have denied socio-economic and political rights to the people of Baltistan. The United Nation’s Charter on Human Rights guarantees access to clean environment, drinking water, primary education, health services, roads and other means of communication; freedom of expression and movement; freedom to practice and promote religion, language and culture; the right to lead peaceful lives, the right to vote and access justice, and access to adequate job opportunities. These rights are denied to the people of Baltistan by the failure of the government to invest in these vital sectors.

The Talibanization of Pakistan and lack of tolerance has devastated the cultural heritage of the Baltis. Baltis reject religious extremism and wish to be part of a pluralistic society. The people of Baltistan are peace loving and desire to be part of a free and democratic country. Majority of people in Baltistan desire unification with Ladakh, and enjoy socio-economic and political benefits, like Ladakhis. This is not possible while Baltistan is occupied by Pakistan. Only liberation from Pakistan and merger with Ladakh will help create a free, pluralistic and democratic Baltistan.

Baltistan: The Geography
The State of J&K comprises of six regions: Jammu, Kashmir, Ladakh, Baltistan, Gilgit and Azad Kashmir. Of these six, Pakistan controls three, namely Azad Kashmir, Baltistan and Gilgit, while China occupies Shaksgam valley of Baltistan, as well a vast tract of Ladakh region called Aksai Chin. The population of Baltistan, approximately 400,000 , inhabits in an area of 30,000 square kilometers . The boundaries of modern day Baltistan are defined by Gilgit in the west, Ladakh in the east, Kashmir in the south, and to the north, across the crest of the Karakoram mountain range, Xinjiang, China. The region is at the junction of Central Asia, China, and India, giving it a strategic location; equally attractive to traders, conquerors and tourists.

Baltistan: A Tourist Hub or The Water Tank of the World ?
Like Ladakh, Baltistan is a mountainous region. Three majestic mountain ranges of the world, the Himalayas, Karakoram and Ladakh form most of Baltistan’s topography. Fifty peaks surpassing 20,000 feet - including K-2, the second tallest mountain in the world - are located in Baltistan, gaining her world fame as ‘Paradise of Mountaineers’. Two major rivers originating from the Tibetan plateau, the world famous Indus and Shyok sweep through Baltistan after its course in Ladakh and Tibet. Ninety mile-long glaciers, the longest in the world outside the polar region, surround Baltistan to the north and west, separating her from China and Gilgit. Located at the edge of the Tibetan plateau, the unique ecosystem supports the subsistence livelihood of the Balti people and native wildlife. Further, Baltistan provides significant water through its glaciers and rivers which feed the vast irrigation system of Pakistan.

Ethnic Profile: Where Tibetans meet Indians
The population of Baltistan (and Ladakh) is a heterogeneous mixture of Mongoloid Tibetan and Indian ethnicity. Baltis are the only ethnic group in Pakistan with Tibetan roots which make them distinct in this country. Tibetans migrated to Ladakh and Baltistan thousands of years ago and built a society in conjunction with the arriving Indian ethnic groups like Dards and Mons. Today, the mixture of these groups is the predominant population of Ladakh and Baltistan.

Balti Culture: Regeneration of Ladakhi Society
Centuries old Tibetan, Islamic and Indian influences have shaped the Balti culture into its modern form. The people of Ladakh and Baltistan share a common language, religion and customs. Balti dialect is the lingua franca of Baltistan, and grouped with Ladakhi, constitute the archaic West Tibetan language. Today, approximately 95 per cent of the population considers Balti its mother tongue. A devout Shia-Sufi community; Baltis are proud of their ancient past and of possessing a script of their own, which is similar to Ladakhi script. Five decades passed and the Baltis, including two generations born after the partition of Baltistan and Ladakh, still identify strongly with the people of Ladakh. The rich folklore and literary heritage of the Baltis; their poetry, proverbs, myths, epics, sagas, folk dances, wedding rituals, songs, festivals like Losar and Mephang, sports like polo and daphang (archery), architecture and cottage industry are evidence of a shared Ladakhi identity and heritage.

Balti Religion: Mysticism built on Shaman, Bon and Buddhist Foundations
The Baltis became Muslims in the 16th Century A.D. Essentially followers of Bon-chhos and Shamanism, Baltis converted to Buddhism as the religion spread from India to Ladakh and Baltistan. The Buddhism that prevails in Tibet today reached there with the timeless efforts of Ladakhi and Balti preachers. Today, Balti religion is seen as a blend of Tibetan, Sufi, Indian and Shaman rituals, which is unique in a conservative Islamic environment like that of Pakistan. History of Islam in Baltistan begins with arrival of Sufi and Shia Saints from Kashmir and Central Asia. Sufism promotes moderation, co-existence of communities of diverse religious background, respect and preservation of ancient culture and love for humanity. Over the time, Sufis have incorporated local traditions into meditation. The Sufis of Baltistan follow Nurbaxshi order of Sufism which is only found in Ladakh and Baltistan. Today, Shias and Sufis make up more than 93% of the local population. Sunnis make up approximately seven percent of the population. A few Buddhist households also exist in Kharmang valley. The Islamization process in Pakistan has also affected Baltistan. Extremist religious groups pour money into the urban areas and persuade youngsters to join them. Government institutions encourage similar efforts of radicalization. However, the moderate Baltis, who form majority of the population of Baltistan, are losing their fight against State run programs of Talibanization.

Ladakh Wazarat: A Unified Ladakh and Baltistan
The ethnic blending and cultural development of Baltistan and Ladakh deepened during the Dogra Dynasty (1842-1948), as the rulers consolidated both regions into one province called the Ladakh Wazarat (Persian denomination for province). Under the administrative umbrella of the State of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K), Baltistan constituted the western part of the Wazarat, and remained so for 106 years. Within unified J&K, Ladakh Wazarat was the largest province, exceeding the total area of Kashmir province by six times. The province was divided into Leh, Kargil and Skardo districts. Skardo, the capital of Baltistan, became the winter capital of the province while Leh, the capital of central Ladakh, became the summer capital. The major valleys of the province were Skardo, Shigar, Rongyul, Khapulo, Central Ladakh (Stod), Purik, Haramosh, Zangskar, Sham, Rong, Nubra, Lahul, Spiti and Chang-thang. The citizens of the province received political representation in the Council of Maharaja. Among the four members nominated from Ladakh Wazarat by Maharaja Hari Singh, two were Buddhists from Leh district, while Raja Fateh Ali Khan of Skardo and Kacho Ahmed Ali Khan from Kargil district were both Muslim representatives. The Dogra Regime, though composed of mainly Hindu Rajputs, introduced State Subject Rule (SSR) to protect the socio-political and economic interests of the native Muslim and Buddhist populations by allowing only local ownership of land. The provincial set up further enabled strengthening trade and socio-economic links along with cultural development. Roads and bridges were constructed and a postal system was set up, thereby accelerating communication between the various valleys of the province and bringing people closer than ever. Situated at the crossroads of Asia, the province provided crucial land links for the Indian Subcontinent, China, Central Asia and the Soviet Union.

The Indian Partition: Suicidal for Baltistan
The partition of the Indian Subcontinent in 1947, followed by numerous wars between India and Pakistan over J&K, segregated ethnic communities. The events which precipitated an unprecedented degree of violence and genocide in the entire region also affected the people of Baltistan and Ladakh. The forceful partition resulted in the formation of a ‘Berlin Wall’ within the Ladakh Wazarat, and the province ceased to function after Pakistan illegally occupied Baltistan in 1948. Since then, Baltistan is ruled directly by the federal government of Pakistan.

Pakistan, however, acknowledges in her agreements with India and the United Nations Organization (UNO) that Baltistan is a part of Ladakh Wazarat. The UNO Resolutions on J&K clearly demand a complete and immediate withdrawal of Pakistani armed and civilian forces from Baltistan and other parts of occupied areas of J&K, followed by the transfer of regional administration to the local residents. After annexing Baltistan and Gilgit in 1948, Pakistan requested UNO authorities to extend the withdrawal period from three weeks to ninety days. Fifty-eight years passed and Pakistan still fails to fulfill this requirement.

Illegal Occupation of Gilgit and Baltistan by Pakistan
After separating from J&K in 1948, the Gilgit Scouts established the Republic of Gilgit on October 4, 1947. Twenty days later, Pakistan occupied Gilgit and Baltistan and converted it into its tribal agency. As the rebellion grew stronger, the Pakistani administration arrested hundreds of Gilgitis who demanded the restoration of the Republic and sent them to Haripur jail. Many of them died in the jail during the 25 year long sentence. The liberation hero, Colonel Hassan Khan of the Gilgit Scouts, was arrested for confronting the Pakistani invasion. He also died in jail. Those who survived were released in 1972 by the then Prime Minister Bhutto. While resisting Pakistani occupation, members of the Gilgit Scouts confronted the Pak army on several occasions. Authorities abolished the Gilgit Scouts in 1967 after failing to muzzle dissent among the ranks.

After invasion, North West Frontier Province (NWFP) officials intended to annex Gilgit. Realizing this, leaders of Gilgit invited the Muslim Conference party of J&K, including Chaudary Ghulam Abbass, to Gilgit on October 24, 1947 and expressed solidarity with J&K. History shows that Pakistan refused to return the administration of Baltistan and Gilgit to J&K and established direct federal rule instead. A local magazine, Kargil, reports, “It is the very same people who dispossessed the people of Baltistan and Gilgit of their freedom in 1947 who today advocate the right of self-determination for the people of J&K. The helpless Baltis still await the withdrawal of Pakistan’s militants and occupying forces.”

The geographical limitations offered Pakistani authorities an excuse to incorporate Baltistan into the Northern Areas, along with Gilgit. A Pathan from NWFP was appointed Political Agent to rule Baltistan and Gilgit with an iron fist. The Political Agent administered the regions under the repressive Frontier Crimes Regulations (FCR). Notorious FCR, which promotes subjugation, required residents to report to local intelligence personnel on a regular basis. Under the FCR, many people were sentenced to jail for alleged crimes committed by their relatives. Children as young as two years old were also convicted.

Constitutional Impasse: Occupation Continues
Although Pakistan considers Baltistan as part of the disputed State of J&K, the region is denied similar political, judicial and administrative rights granted to other parts of the State like Azad Kashmir. The forceful separation of the Ladakh Wazarat has directly impacted Baltistan, since Baltis and Ladakhis are now deprived of an administrative province controlled locally. A provincial status granted by the Hindu Rulers of J&K, has been denied for the last fifty-eight years by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to Muslim Baltistan. Through Islamization, Pakistan has damaged indigenous socio-political institutions evolved over thousands of years, which has left a political vacuum and weakened the community. Administrators in key offices of police, civil service and judiciary are imported from Pakistan. These policies aggravate misery as the non-local bureaucrats (Pathans holding arbitrary powers) with their high-handed tactics and manipulations continue to hijack Baltistan. Similarly, the judiciary in the Northern Areas lacks autonomy. Access to the Provincial High Courts, appellant courts or the Federal Supreme Court of Pakistan is denied to the locals. The judicial system in the Northern Areas is not linked to the Federal Supreme Court which means that Baltis are only subject to the military tribunals. The court decisions are influenced by the Kashmir Affairs Office in Islamabad. Local activists and lawyers continue to demand an autonomous judiciary and many have been arrested and tortured for no crimes committed. In the last three years, more than eighteen (18) lawyers from Gilgit and Baltistan have been abducted and tortured by the police for demanding political rights and an independent judiciary for the local community. In 2004, eleven members of the Young Lawyers Association were jailed in Gilgit for making similar demands.

Similar voices of discontent are raised by various political groups in Baltistan and Gilgit. These groups complain that the regional political councils lack the authority to legislate. The Chief Executive of the Northern Areas, a non-local federal figure, finalizes decisions on all political legislation. Part of disputed J&K, Baltistan is denied a vote in national elections. While citizens of Pakistan experience elections, Baltis are mere spectators in the entire electoral process. To this date, the locals remain without representation in the national or provincial assemblies; the privilege granted to citizens elsewhere in the self-proclaimed ‘Citadel of Islam.’ Today, residents of Ladakh and Indian J&K enjoy far better political and socio-economic benefits compared to Baltis. Pakistan’s Foreign Office refuses to grant basic political rights to the people of Baltistan considering it a weakening of Pakistan’s claim to Kashmir in international forums. The entire area is hijacked with the promise of political rights for the region in the wake of the resolution of the Kashmir dispute. Lack of political resources and a firm control by the central government is a deterrent to the growth of a mass political movement potent enough to pursue self-rule.

Termination of State Subject Rule: Demographic Transformation
Along with denial of socio-political rights to Baltis, Pakistani government also terminated State Subject Rule (SSR). The SSR, which was designed and enforced by the Dogra Regime to protect the socio-economic rights of the citizens of J&K, was abolished in the 1960s in Baltistan. The termination of the rule, still enforced in other parts of J&K, helped the Pakistani Establishment to permanently change the regional demography and settle Talibanized Wahhabis into the region. The settlers aggressively advance the cause of the Pakistani authoritarian rulers and in return receive special socio-economic incentives. Authorities allocate large tracts of government land to settlers free of cost. They receive bank loans to establish industry, hotels and commercial areas. Wealthy settlers coerce poor locals to sell ancestral land. With the passage of time, well-off settlers have increased political influence in the region. This shift hurts the region as the unskilled and illiterate masses of Baltistan once again experience virtual slavery. The resulting preferential hiring of non-locals for jobs further threatens the local economy. The move will affect the historical balance of ethnic and religious groups co-existing peacefully in the region. The true color of local culture and religious characteristics will fade away with the passage of time, causing an identity crisis among the locals and tearing at the social fabric of Baltistan.

Skardo Dam: Submerge the Baltis
Among other uncertainties, the construction of the Skardo-Katsura Dam is a significant cause of anxiety for Baltis. Pakistan intends to dam Baltistan for agricultural and electricity generation purposes. The environmental and cultural impacts of this project are immense. The project, constructed to benefit the residents of the Punjab province, will transform Baltistan into a lake and submerge wildlife habitats, forcing endangered animals like Markhor, Marco polo sheep and snow leopard to migrate and live in inhospitable conditions.

The project will fulfill the government’s designs to change regional demography, as Baltistan’s politico-commercial center, Skardo, and Shigar, the grain basket of Baltistan, will be submerged completely. The project will submerge more than two thirds of the habitable parts of Baltistan, thereby leading to the complete loss of a language and cultural base for Baltis. As a consequence, Baltistan will lose its identity and subsequently, its population, as the two hundred thousand-strong Sufi-Shia population of Skardo Valley becomes uprooted. The dam will submerge famous archeological sites, historical architecture, large tracts of cultivated areas and the majority of the developed communication infrastructure. Assessing the aftermath of this project, Pakistan will have killed many sparrows with one stone. Pakistan will succeed in depopulating an entire region where the majority of the people desire unification with Ladakh.

The federal and Sindh governments also intend to liquefy glaciers in the Baltistan and Gilgit regions, as water capacity in existing dams has decreased and Pakistani farmers face water shortages. Implementation on this idea will cause an ecological genocide and a tactic to depopulate both regions. The Kargil magazine reports, “In 1988, General Ziaul Haque sent tribal hordes to exterminate the Shias of Baltistan and Gilgit. That scheme failed. Eleven years later, General Musharaf initiated the adventurous Kargil War, in which large numbers of NLI soldiers from Baltistan and Gilgit were used as cannon fodder. And now Pakistan is determined to construct the Skardo Dam and liquefy glaciers that will convert Baltistan into a lake. The government has no right to construct dams in Baltistan or Gilgit as these regions are not part of Pakistan. To this date, the indigenous communities live like slaves in their own land without constitutional rights, without control over their own natural resources, and their religious faith and ethnic identity has become their greatest security risk.”

Human Rights Violations: A Colonial Legacy
The Pakistani regime damages the peaceful social atmosphere, local cultural and linguistic base and economic resources, thereby weakening the foundations of society. After 58 years of Pakistani rule, a social paralysis is prevalent in Baltistan, which looks more and more like an occupation with the passage of time. The people of Baltistan are peace loving, tolerant, friendly and warm-hearted. Pakistan takes full advantage of the character of Baltis and suppresses natives to maintain a military State. An environment has been created where fear rules, and joblessness and illiteracy compel society to suffer subjugation under the oppressive control of an imperialist regime.

Economic Deprivation: A Tool to Maintain Occupation
An ancient civilization and abundant with natural resources; Baltistan is now one of the most poverty stricken areas of Pakistan. The federal government denies royalties of glaciers, river water, mountain peaks and other resources to Baltistan. The region is abundant in minerals, innumerable varieties of ferrous and non-ferrous elements, gems and precious and semi-precious stones. However, revenues generated through exploitation of natural resources and tourism mostly drains away to the federal coffers of Pakistan, and provides negligible benefits to the locals. Alarmingly low literacy , absence of industries and paved roads, lack of energy sources and job opportunities, and an exponential population growth have forced thousands to leave the region in the quest for livelihood. Steadily increasing poverty, as well as inadequate investment by the government in infrastructure development, has resulted in the increased presence of international and non-profit organizations in the last three decades. Today, NGO funding in the socio-economic sector exceeds government spending.

The theory of ‘development of under-development’ is evident as dependency on the government of Pakistan is deeper than ever, and the once hardworking and skillful Baltis are reduced to beggars and dependent on federal rationing. The per capita income is less than one third of the national standard. On average, each person is earning 42 American cents per day and the majority of earnings come from temporary or seasonal work. Income earned during the summers is used to secure provisions of fuel to counter the winter cold (thirty percent of the average income per person is spent on purchase of wood and kerosene oil every year), leaving little disposable income.

In order to sustain the ever-shrinking household economy, parents are compelled to send their children to graze cattle and collect wood rather than to school, thus depriving children the right of education. In the last 58 years, no technical, scientific or medical institutions have been built in Baltistan. Government school buildings and health centers are non-existent in several valleys. In many villages, students sit outdoors for classes during the harsh winter months. The local education department follows policies introduced by the federal government which suppress literacy standards in Baltistan. The passing ratio of government secondary school students is alarmingly low, while those actually passing intermediate and bachelor level exams can be counted on one hand in any given year.

Government health centers fare no better than the educational institutions. In many villages, peons and sweepers of health centers perform the duties of doctors and pharmacists in the absence of skilled professionals. The majority of dispensaries and hospitals lack adequate medical supplies and surgical equipment. Patients are forced to travel hundreds of miles to Gilgit and Islamabad to get treatment for common ailments.

The economy has been unstable since the 1948 border closing with Ladakh. During the months when border skirmishes between India and Pakistan escalate, economic activities grind to a halt. Further, the restriction on tourism in the border valleys, where more than half of the population of Baltistan lives, has drastically impacted the local economy.

Closure of Border and Historical Trade Routes
Until the closure of the Indo-Pak border, trade was a vital form of livelihood and second only to farming. Historical trade routes, used by Baltis for several thousand years, open only towards India. Closure of these trade routes has restricted the free movement of Baltis and devastated the local economy. On the other hand, there is only one road that links Baltistan with Pakistan through Gilgit. The road was built in the 1980s and until then, the only form of transportation to Pakistan was by air. Whenever seasonal avalanches and landslides obstruct this vital road, goods and supplies from Pakistan are prevented from arriving in Baltistan for many weeks. During road blockages, commodities become so expensive that government starts rationing and many often go hungry. Further, the road is not passable during Shia-Wahhabi riots. Extremist Wahhabis, who target Shias, block traffic and slaughter Baltis traveling to Pakistan.

Gultari and Shingo-Shigar valleys of Baltistan have been worst hit by the border closure between Ladakh and Baltistan. Before partition of Ladakh Wazarat, these valleys were part of the district Kargil. Geographical confines limit the access of 11,000 residents of these valleys to Skardo or Gilgit during seven months of winter. A road leading to Kargil town is the only year-around access to markets, health and education facilities as well as job opportunities for the people of Gultari and Shingo-Shigar. Fifty-eight years have passed and they are still waiting for Pakistan to allow them free travel across the border. During the summer season, when mountain passes open, it takes 13 hours to reach Skardo and 17 hours to Gilgit. This is the coldest habitable region of Baltistan where life is at its worst in the winters. During winters, as snow restricts movement, ailing patients are left in the hand of God to die. In a nut shell, the residents are left with only two options: either abandon their homeland and become refugees in Skardo town, or be allowed to join Kargil district on the other side of the Line of Control (LOC), thereby accessing year round social and economic benefits.

The border closure has also separated thousands of families of Ladakh and Baltistan and Pakistan continues to deny the right to the family members to travel across the border. Thousands of divided families await reunion by the opening of the Skardo-Kargil road. Sixty thousand people from the border valleys face displacement and forced re-locations and are currently living under inhospitable conditions. Although Indian government has put forth a proposal to open the Kargil-Skardo route; Pakistan refuses to comply, contrary to the fact that Kashmiris are now allowed to cross into Pakistan from five different parts of the State.

Degradation of Culture and Language: Annihilation of Ladakhi Identity
Along with economic deprivation, socio-cultural insecurities and identity theft also pose a great threat to the survival of the people of Baltistan. People of Baltistan and Ladakh, with ethnic and cultural similarities, are separated which is an anathema for this peace-loving nation. Unfortunately for the locals, the lack of interaction with ethnic brethren across the border has obstructed the development of Balti cultural identity and language. The Baltis believe that local language and culture is suppressed by the government to weaken the ties of Baltistan and Ladakh. Pakistan suppresses the development of indigenous script, ‘Yigay’. To date, Balti language (sister dialect of Ladakhi) is not taught in the local schools, even at the primary level. The Chairman of the Federal Language Board of Pakistan termed the Balti language and its script ‘remnants of the pre-Islamic legacy and derogatory.’

Similarly, handloom specialists, traditional capmakers, shoemakers and woodcraft specialist are abandoning their profession as indigenous cottage industry fails to receive government patronage. Dancers, singers, and musicians also await a similar destiny while struggling to find alternative sources of income. Balti traditional sports like archery and polo have lost patronage in many valleys. Majority of the Baltis believe that only unification with Ladakh can restore the cultural patronage and development of local language. They also desire to preserve ancient culture and language which is essential to promote local identity.

Religious Persecution: Replicating Chinese Strategies
Parallel to cultural oppression, the Pakistani regime does not allow the Baltis to practice their faith without interference, develop faith-based educational courses for local institutions, or develop connections with people of the same faith and practices across the LOC. There is clear intention on part of the Pakistani Establishment to attack Shia Islamic beliefs and practices through the school curriculum. Contrary to Shia traditions, Islamic topics based on extremist Wahhabi beliefs are taught in schools. Parents complain that teachers instruct Shia students to perform prayers replicating the Wahhabi manner. Such forced indoctrination of children at a young age discourages enlightened and modern strains of Islam and encourages religious extremism.

Communities in Baltistan sleep uneasy knowing that Pakistani secret service agencies are intent on converting religious minorities like the Nurbaxshis to the Wahhabi militant faith. Wahhabi religious organizations supported by Inter Services Intelligence (ISI, the notorious Pakistani secret service agency) persuade poor parents to send their male children to Talibanized schools and Jehadi centers. In 2002, two Nurbaxshi boys fled Afghan Jehadi camps and came back to Baltistan. These boys, along with several others, were first taken to a Wahhabi school in Punjab, where they were converted and received military training. While in Afghanistan, the Taliban caught the boys performing Nurbaxshi religious rituals in secret and labeled them Shias. The militants locked up the boys, determined to shoot them. During the night, they fled and spent weeks lost in the Hindukush Mountains before arriving in Baltistan, where they exhibited the mental and physical torture inflicted on them.

Under these circumstances, the Baltis believe that religious persecution and systemic erosion of religious freedom under Pakistani occupation is parallel to Chinese persecution of Tibetans. Those who are well aware of the socio-economic and political conditions in Tibet must realize that human rights violations in Baltistan are alarmingly severe. Before Baltistan becomes Tibet, international community must pressure Pakistani armed and civilian forces to withdraw, while returning local administration to the Baltis under the supervision of UNO.

Baltistan: An ISI Administered Colony
The permanent presence of Pak army, intelligence agency personnel and paramilitary in Baltistan increases social instability and anxiety for locals. The soldiers’ immunity from criminal prosecution is a cause of fear for locals who do not feel safe within their own homeland. The lack of freedom to lead private lives has forced many families to leave the region, causing a brain drain, demographic change and replacing locals with non-locals in the workforce.

Locals feel like living in a jail. Job profiles and personal portfolios are collected for all governmental and non-governmental workers by the secret service agencies. Locals live in fear as the inquisitive eyes of the secret service spy on them. ISI regularly intercept postal and electronic mail. Phone lines are tapped. Secret services pressure local media to induct their agents as journalists. These so-called ‘reporters’ hide extra-judicial activities of the ISI, Pakistani army and police. Intelligence agents disguised as barbers, cobblers, sweepers and shopkeepers spy on local residents. The secret service interrogates natives who associate with foreigners and tourists and videotape such encounters. Agents intrude upon political and religious gatherings and tape conversations. Religious sermons of Shia and Sufi-Nurbaxshi Imams are taped and reported to ISI headquarters on a regular basis. Interviews at the induction of cadets for the Pakistan army are built around questions pertaining to religious beliefs and ethnic prejudices.

Secret service agents employed in offices instigate ethnic and religious conflicts between Shina, Balti, Shia, Sunni and Nurbaxshis. The Pak army use Shia-Wahhabi riots as an excuse to transfer key departments of health, education and infrastructure development to army brigadiers, further expanding military authority. Further, army officers influence the induction, transfer and termination process of government employees, thereby bringing the entire workforce under complete military extortion. Armed forces and secret service agencies control the land, natural resources and means of livelihood of Baltistan. They occupy government buildings constructed for civil use. In many cases, militant Jehadis use the houses to run their operations.

The police and ISI personnel treat locals like slaves and expect them to tolerate brutality as their destiny. It is a common routine for authorities to detain people without charge until substantial protest is registered. Locals, including women, children and elderly are assaulted in open view of other villagers to induce fear and shame. Those without any social or political influence remain behind bars for indefinite periods of time. The authorities collect bribes on a regular basis from villagers. Villagers bring fuel-wood, yak butter, dried fruits, and meat to the police, who act as divine authority in this remote valley. Those who fail to pay are subject to insult, assault and detention.

Shia Genocide: Purify Baltistan of Infidels
Pakistan not only employs the militants to disturb peace in India; they also act on behalf of the authorities to butcher local Shias and Sufis. The three arms of the State; police, army and ISI, collude to persecute religious minorities of Pakistan. The Dawn newspaper reports that between April and June 2005, 170 Shias perished in bomb attacks. Top Shia religious leaders, lawyers, technocrats and government officials are under constant threat from religious extremist groups like Sapaha Sahaba, Lashkar Janghvi and Jaish Muhammad. Pakistan perceives Baltistan and Gilgit – the Shia majority regions of J&K - as security risks. The regime accuses local Shias of not supporting Pakistani adventures in Indian Jammu & Kashmir. Despite an aggressive settlement program by Pakistan, Shias and Sufis still account for more than 75% of population of Baltistan and Gilgit. This fact may be the very reason that residents live as second class citizens on their own soil - without civil rights, national identity or economic security.

It was in this general atmosphere that the 1988 massacre of Shias occurred. It is widely believed that, militant groups received the endorsement of the Pakistani Army under the command of General Ziaul Haque, the Martial Law Administrator and President of Pakistan (Ziaul Haque is often called ‘Butcher of Gilgit-Baltistan’). In May of 1988, militants attacked Gilgit and killed thousands of people. Seven villages were burned to the ground, women raped and children slaughtered in the three week episode. The incident continued without interference under the eye of the Pakistani army and police. Shouting famous Wahhabi religious slogan such as ‘Ek Shia Maro, Jannat main Ghar Banao (Kill a Shia and secure a quick ticket to Paradise)’, tribal militants from NWFP attacked heavily populated Shia villages and slaughtered everything they found alive including the livestock. The militants were well informed about location and access routes to Shia villages. The genocide was committed through sophisticated bureaucratic organization and involved military and technological planning to exterminate people in the largest Shia region in Pakistani occupation.

In Gilgit, schools and medical centers were burned and shops were looted. Fruit trees, timber forests and wheat and maize crops were set on fire. Militants destroyed 25 Shia Mosques and Imambargahs and burned copies of the Quran and other religious books. After burning down Gilgit, militants moved trucks and heavy weapons towards Baltistan. However, Balti armed fighters burned down bridges connecting Baltistan with Pakistan to protect the region. The bravery of the Baltis forced the militants to retreat, leaving thousands of bodies behind. The organized manner of the genocide suggests that assailants had well-established communication links with local Wahhabi groups and the ISI.

The genocide against a religious minority was an attempt by authorities to change the regional demography and reduce the Shia population while promoting the settlement of Wahhabis from Punjab and NWFP. The UNO Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide defines genocide as, ‘acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.’ This definition clearly applies to the atrocities committed against the people of Baltistan and Gilgit. The Islamic Republic of Pakistan adamantly denies that genocide is being committed, as they denied the genocide of three million Bangladeshi Muslims during the period of 1950-1971 when Bengalis were struggling for independence.

Government officials and army deny involvement in this incident. It is hard to believe that twelve thousand tribal militants traveled approximately four hundred miles past several military checkpoints on Karakoram Highway (KKH) for several days without notice. The militants brought hundreds of trucks full of heavy machinery with them. They were equipped with sophisticated navigational system. They used loudspeakers to invite others to join the ‘Jehad’ against infidel Shias. On the way, hundreds of Wahhabis from Mansehra, Kohistan, Swat, Besham and Chilas districts joined them. When the militia arrived in Gilgit, eyewitnesses report the militants exceeded twenty thousand in number. The genocide continued for three weeks while government officials watched. How shamelessly this regime justifies its innocence is sickening for the people of Baltistan and Gilgit.

Survivors accuse the government of failing to punish a single assailant. No cases were registered against the tribal militants who devastated the region. For several days, government law enforcement refused to admit the attack took place. For them, the incident was ‘a minor religious skirmish’. For several months, affected families resided in temporary tents without proper health and sanitation facilities. Even though the government witnessed the massacres, it was slow to respond to the human crisis in the aftermath. Victims who complained and staged demonstrations were harassed and jailed. Some of the victims, who lost their homes, livestock, crops, vehicles and other possessions, still await financial compensation.

The Shia genocide took another twist when top Shia leader of Gilgit region, Agha Ziauddin Rizvi, was murdered on January 7, 2005 by Pakistani Wahhabi militants. Rizvi was a proponent of self-rule for Baltistan and Gilgit. The assassination triggered a wave of violence and curfew was imposed in both Gilgit and Baltistan. Since then religious riots have taken at least 100 lives, while hundreds more were wounded. The incident is reminiscent of the riots of 1993, when twenty local Shias were slaughtered.

Late Kalon Mehdi of Kharchung Skardo, who has the honor of being the only Balti Law graduate from Aligarh University, India, once said, “Unification with Ladakh and Kashmir brought culture and civilization to Baltistan. Nowadays, we receive drugs, Kalashnikov and Wahhabism as a gift for opting for Pakistan.” The monthly Herald reports in April 2005 that after the Shia-Wahhabi riots, “sell your cow and buy a Kalashnikov” became the slogan of young Wahhabi groups of Gilgit who ask for donations to buy weapons to exterminate Shias. The local administration completely ignores these incidents. The only beneficiaries are the Wahhabi weapon smugglers. It is a mystery how these merchants of death manage to have free access to the region, despite the tight security cordon in place along the highway with hundred police and army checkpoints.

Karakoram Highway: A Road to Death
The militants also attack and murder Shias of Baltistan and Gilgit, who travel by road to Pakistan. Passengers boarding public transportation with identity cards issued from Baltistan are especially targeted. On July 3, 2004, Wahhabi militants attacked the bus on KKH and murdered three Shias while critically injuring seven others. In February 2005, extremist Wahhabis shot at a bus traveling from Islamabad to Baltistan and injured three Shia passengers. On April 23, 2005, terrorists intercepted another public bus carrying passengers from Skardo to Islamabad. They made the passengers show identity cards, then separated two Shia Baltis and killed them. The incident led to more than ten thousand mourners defying the curfew and demonstrating on the roads of Skardo.

In a similar incident on July 18, 2005, five passengers were shot dead and fifteen injured near Chilas as militants opened gunfire on a bus traveling from Gilgit to Islamabad. The death toll of the KKH massacres reached fifteen in the last seven months. The local transportation network has halted as dozens of public vehicles are attacked on KKH. The Dawn newspaper reports that the administration sacked 72 bus drivers of Northern Areas Transport Corporation (NATCO) on February 9, 2005, for refusing to drive public buses through Wahhabi majority areas. The drivers, the majority of whom are Shias, feared attacks on vehicles by Wahhabis.

Attacks on public transport on KKH have created hardships for students, patients and people traveling to find employment, as weather-dependent and costly air travel is already prohibitive. Locals accuse Pathan immigrants of harboring militants and orchestrating religious attacks. Locals believe that the Wahhabi settlers work as informants of ISI and collaborate with extremist elements in NWFP to carry out attacks. They establish communication networks with assailants who are then informed about bus departure schedules and the number of Shia passengers onboard.

Baltis believe that in order to counter Talibanization of the society, unification of Ladakh and Baltistan is necessary. As long as Baltistan remains under the occupation of Pakistan, social degradation will continue and local values of peace, tolerance and unity among different communities will be compromised. Like any human, the Baltis deserve safe travel on roads. In the wake of KKH becoming a deadly passage, alternative routes like those leading to Ladakh and Srinagar should be opened so that local economy is not affected.

Rape Tactics: Replicating Strategies applied in Bangladesh
Another form of human rights violations, committed by the police, ISI and the army against the people of Baltistan, is sexual assault on women and male teenagers. Since local customs consider women the 'honor' of communities, attacks on women become a means to induce fear by the oppressors. The army uses this tactic to terrorize, demean and 'defeat' entire communities, as well as to punish, intimidate and humiliate those who defy authority. During the 1971 War, the Pakistani army raped 200,000 Muslim Bangladeshi women. The Pakistani army used assault on Bengali women as a war strategy. They now employ the same tactic against the people of war torn Baltistan. Unfortunately, majority of the physical molestation cases remain hidden since victims and their relatives feel intimidated and hide the facts. The police refuse to register the few cases reported by relatives and villagers. This hides evidence and protects the culprits who are rarely prosecuted or punished. Few cases are detailed below reflecting severity of the situation.

On July 15, 2005, a woman was gang-raped by three army personnel in Athmaqam (Pakistan Occupied Kashmir - POK). Matiullah, a relative of the victim told the BBC that army officials pressured the relatives to withdraw charges against the culprits. “When our protectors start plundering our honor, then who are we supposed to turn to?” exclaimed Matiullah. National newspapers, radio and television of Pakistan also concealed the crimes of army and censored reports. On an earlier date, another soldier attempted to rape a woman of village Bun Chattar (POK), however, the victim escaped unmolested. Mohammad Sher, a journalist from Baltistan explains, “The notion that the army and secret service agencies – ‘the Sacred Cow of Pakistan’- control the souls and bodies of the people of Baltistan and other parts of POK make Pakistani soldiers sexual predators. Police, who are not accountable to the local people, refuse to register cases of brutality by army or secret service. Without fear of accountability for their actions, they roam free in villages attacking women.”

Most army garrisons in Baltistan are situated amidst local residential areas and villages, allowing foreign elements to interfere with local life. Soldiers disrespect local socio-cultural and religious customs. They intrude into muhallas (residential quarters) where women observe strict ‘Hijab’. In 2001, the Frontier Constabulary (FC) intruded upon a residential area in Skardo. Residents asked the FC to leave the area to show respect to women in Hijab. FC refused and a clash ensued leading to six sustained injuries. Police arrested innocent villagers without charges and only released them the next day when religious leaders protested. In February 2005, FC stationed in Thsongdus entered a refugee camp and molested women. As the public gathered in protest, FC fired shots into the air and retreated. Public demonstrations led by religious leaders finally persuaded officials to remove FC camps from the area. However, the police refused to register a case against the FC for attacking refugees of Kargil War (KW).

In Tarkati, villagers killed three Punjabi soldiers who raped a local woman. In another incident, Amin, a resident of Kharmang killed an army officer who raped his daughter. Police refused to register or investigate the rape case and instead jailed Amin on charges of murder. Amin was tortured to death in jail. Today, police officers responsible for Amin’s death roam free along with those who raped his daughter. Similarly, a widow of a KW martyr was sexually assaulted and physically tortured by a secret service agent. Villagers caught the assailant red-handed; however, police pressured the villagers to not press charges against the culprit. In another incident, two soldiers stabbed a local girl from Gangche district in an attempt to rape her as she grazed cattle. The soldiers, using a dagger to cut her cloths, slashed open her abdomen. In another account, a resident of Skardo killed an army officer when the officer intruded into his house to rape his daughter.

The newspaper, Wadi, reports that villagers of Gupis valley of Gilgit demonstrated against secret agents for the kidnapping of a local girl. Three villagers were shot dead by the FC during the demonstration. Police took no action against the FC for the murders. On a different occasion, secret agents kidnapped two girls from Gulmati village of Gilgit. Villagers demonstrated and filed cases against the culprits. However, the local court released the kidnappers and declared them innocent. Another case was filed in Gilgit police station when agency personnel abducted and molested two orphaned sisters of a local Shia soldier in January 1999. Government law enforcement agencies sided with the culprits and denied justice to the victims. In 2001, two women, one Nigerian and one New Zealander were arrested for drug trafficking. The Gilgit police repeatedly raped both women for several months and impregnated the Nigerian. The victims were denied access to judicial courts while the culprits roamed free. In another incident, sixteen-year-old Muhammad Amin was arrested from Gilgit for suspicions of theft and drug trafficking. Police officials sodomized the boy for several weeks. The suspect was later found innocent. This incident shows that while the real drug dealers - Pathan and Punjabi settlers - roam free as State guests, innocent people like Muhammad Amin are victimized by State-sponsored sex predators.

Kargil War: A Crime Committed against Baltistan
Kargil War is another crime committed by Pakistan against the people of Baltistan and Gilgit. In May 1999, Pakistan waged a war on India and used Baltistan as the launching pad. General Pervaiz Musharaf, current president of the country, orchestrated the war. Baltis consider KW as an attempted genocide against an ethnic minority. Baltis view the policies of the General as malevolent and accuse him of pushing thousands of people into a senseless war and using three thousand NLI soldiers (Northern Light Infantry predominantly composed of Shia soldiers) as cannon fodder. KW, which was fought in the name of Kashmir, primarily impacted Baltis and Ladakhis on both sides of the border. The war damaged local economy and caused unwilling displacement to thousands of people, which is a crime against an ethnic group. Several local groups including political activists consider KW an ISI-Wahhabi conspiracy to destabilize Baltistan. The proponents of the KW faced opposition from both national and international communities. Allies denounced Pakistan for disrupting peace in the region. The international media condemned Pakistan for promoting militancy and terrorism. These circumstances compelled Pakistan to withdraw in haste, causing thousands of casualties of local Shia soldiers.

ISI falsely claimed that the Muslims of Ladakh would support the Pakistani offensive. However, Indian Muslim civilians refused to support Pakistan. The Muslims of Leh and Kargil view the KW an illegitimate act by the Pakistani army in Indian J&K.

The heroes of the KW - the NLI soldiers - illustrate the story of Baltis who are denied human rights in their lifetime and then denied the rights of the dead to a proper burial. Relatives and villagers assumed the responsibility to bury the corpses which were delivered at midnight to hide from the media. The Pakistani authorities intimidated the family members of the martyrs to avoid media reporters. As Pakistan refused to accept NLI soldiers’ corpses from India, the people of Ladakh and the Indian authorities assumed the responsibility to bury them. Mothers and widows sobbed when they learned that Pakistan refused to accept the bodies of their sons and husbands from India.

Sheikh Ali of Kharmang expressed his incredulity in the following manner, “We would like peace to prevail. However, neither maintaining peace nor initiating war is in the control of Baltis. We don’t feel safe at home or outside while performing our chores. We feel helplessness when our own government inflict war on us and destroy our society. When the Pakistani army bombed Shia Imambargahs in Kargil district, people of Baltistan felt shock and betrayal. With no other door to knock on, we are hopeless and helpless, facing Pakistan’s determination to weaken Baltis. In the past 58 years, we have lived in poverty and an emergency situation. The government should spend more money on education and health services. More roads should be constructed. Clean drinking water should be provided in all villages. We would like to see all villages electrified. Instead, billions of rupees are spent on war and destruction. The dreams turned into nightmares for those who desired to be part of an Islamic Republic of Pakistan to enjoy the socio-economic privileges promised to all Muslims six decades ago.”

On the border, the war led to the destruction of homes, livestock and farmland. During KW, villagers were trapped in the war zone when the government refused to evacuate civilians. Women, children and the elderly were stranded as shelling continued day and night. Many families could not afford to hire vehicles to transport trapped relatives. To the horror of locals, the government and army confiscated vehicles for their own purposes. Villagers were forced to provide free labor and transport material to the border.

The refugee camps in Baltistan were a display of chaos and hopelessness. Thirty thousand refugees did not receive adequate clothing, medicine and food through the harsh winter. Children became sick in epidemics of diarrhea and cholera while people waited in vain for relief. Those who took shelter in Skardo town lived in inhospitable conditions. Many turned to begging for alms for survival. As of today, several hundred refugee families have not returned to their homes. They lost work, property and livestock. As winter approaches each year, impoverished refugees worry about the cold weather.

The permanent presence of armed forces in Baltistan destroys local environmental traditions which became further exacerbated during KW. The military build-up leads to intensive exploitation of vegetation and wildlife. Careless disposal of military toxins and used weapons impacts land and air. The Byarsa (Deosai) region is one of the most sensitive ecological areas in the world where the Pakistani armed forces and heavy machinery greatly threatens the fragile environment. Endangered wild animals like ibex, markhor, Himalayan bears, snow leopard and marmots are hunted indiscriminately by the armed forces. This rapid depletion creates a resource vacuum for locals that will be felt for many years to come. Without fear of punishment, army helicopters and vehicles transport trophy heads of endangered animals to the drawing rooms of officers. Snow Leopard skin and musk trade occurs without obstruction. Illegal destruction of forest by armed forces for fuel and commercial reasons leads to massive deforestation and habitat loss. Timber smuggling is carried out under the protection of army officers. The ongoing violence towards local communities and poisoning of the earth and our bodies deserves our attention more so than the Kashmir cause.

Compounding the losses of lives and socio-economic and ecological damage, KW and permanent military build-up in Baltistan has caused immeasurable destruction. The human rights violations committed by the State are beyond the imagination of the general public. The majority of Baltistan and Gilgit are conscientious objectors but fear of threats, persecution, death and marginalization in society compel them to remain silent. Under these circumstances, the locals demand immediate withdrawal of Pakistani troops from the soil of Baltistan.

Political Parties Demand Unification with Ladakh
Socio-economic degradation in Baltistan has forced many political leaders to weigh several other political options for Baltistan. Most Baltis favor unification of Ladakh and Baltistan as the only solution to preserve the local identity and promotion of interests of local people. The Baltis desire a free and democratic environment like the one enjoyed by the people of Ladakh. Merger with Ladakh ensures cultural preservation, economic development and political freedom. One of the parties demanding unification of Ladakh and Baltistan is Baltistan Students Federation. BSF demands the complete withdrawal of Pakistani troops from Baltistan. Another group resisting Pakistani occupation is Ladakh Baltistan People’s Party led by Chairman Mehboob Raza. Raza demands the reunion of Ladakh and Baltistan.
Baltistan National Movement, a local party, also demands unification of Ladakh and Baltistan and opening of the Kargil Skardo road. On January 17, 2006, the Chairperson of Baltistan National Movement states that Baltistan should be officially declared one of the six regions of the J&K State and be given equal representation to discuss the political future. He emphasized that both the governments of Pakistan and India as well the Kashmiri leadership should recognize the representative character of Baltistan as a separate region within the J&K, based on its distinct ethnic and geographic characteristics.

Kashmir Conferences: Where is Baltistan??
While Pakistan recognizes that Baltistan is a disputed region of the State of J&K, the region is denied any right to represent herself in an official capacity at conferences and meetings convened to discuss the Kashmir dispute. Baltistan boasts a distinct ethno-linguistic and cultural identity of its own which separates it from Pakistan. While many view the Hurriyat Conference of the Kashmir Valley as ‘the legitimate successor to the entire J&K State’, it is a source of resentment among Baltis who want true representation. The western democratic institutions and governments should invite legitimate representative of Baltistan and listen to the plea of the local community. Interaction among the leadership of Ladakh and Baltistan should also be promoted. Fact finding missions should be allowed to enter Baltistan and detail the miseries. Pakistani government should declare Baltistan as one of the regions of J&K, which deserves similar status granted to the APHC. As the denial of political rights continues, Pakistani authorities cultivate a socio-political paralysis in Baltistan, which prolongs the rule of oppressors without resistance. Human rights violations continue to plague Baltis, while they sacrifice themselves for Pakistan. The regime expects the poor Baltis to tolerate atrocities while the rulers exercise a complete entitlement over their subjects, who are considered as owned property.

The people of Baltistan need urgent help from western democracies like USA to preserve indigenous culture and to promote democracy. Baltistan and its people are peace loving and desire to be a part of a free and democratic society and enjoy the same benefits enjoyed by our sisters and brothers in Ladakh. The Baltis reject religious extremism and wish to be a part of a pluralistic society. This is not possible while Baltistan is illegally occupied by Pakistan. Only liberation from Pakistan and merger with Ladakh will help create a free, pluralistic and democratic Baltistan. We would request all free and democratic nations to support Baltistan’s struggle to merge with Ladakh.

For further research on Baltistan, please read the following:

Afridi, B. G. (1988), Baltistan in History, Peshawar: Emjay Book International

Dryland, E. (2000), Identity and change – Baltistan: A new perspective, Sydney Australia January 2000

Franke, A. H. (reprint 1986), Baltistan and Ladakh – A History, Islamabad: Lok Virsa Publishing House. First Published as ‘History of Western Tibet (1907), London

Grierson, G. A. (1909), Linguistic Survey of India – Tibeto-Burman Family, 3(I), Delhi: Low Price Publications

Hashmatullah, M. Khan (1968), Tareekh Jammu (History of Jammu), Lahore

Hasnain, M. (2002), Key Issues in Contemporary Balti Language and Script, Eight Himalayan Languages Symposium, University of Bern - Institute for Linguistics, September 2002

Lobsang, G. Hussain (1995), The Balti Grammar, Berne: Berne University Switzerland

Read, A.F.C. (1934), Balti Grammar, London: Royal Asiatic Society

Rizvi, J. (1996), Ladakh – Crossroads of High Asia, New Delhi: Oxford University Press

Sikandar, Kacho (1987), Qadeem Ladakh (Ancient Ladakh), Delhi

Vigne, G. T. (1844), Travels In Kashmir, Ladak and Iskardo (Vol. 2), New Delhi: Sagar, 1981, 1st. Indian edn. Originally published London: H. Colburn, 2nd edn. 1844

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