Another Showdown In PoK: JAAC Calls for Long March To Muzaffarabad on July 15 As Talks Fail
In a push to mobilize support for the July 15 march, the JAAC has issued a call to action across all PoJK districts. Activists argue that after decades of government neglect, they have been left with no choice but to block major highways and bring the city to a standstill.
- World News
- 3 min read
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New Delhi: Large-scale protests have broken out across Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), signalling a surge of significant civil unrest directed against the regional administration.
A significant turning point occurred recently when women and children joined the demonstrations in record numbers, marching through the streets with placards to demand basic rights and urgent economic relief from the regime.
The growing unrest was sparked by the collapse of high-level negotiations between protest leaders and government officials.
In response to this development, the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC)- the primary coalition leading the anti-government protests- has announced plans for a ‘long march’ towards the capital, Muzaffarabad, scheduled for Wednesday, July 15.
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Women leads protest
In a push to mobilise support for the July 15 march, the JAAC has issued a call to action across all PoJK districts. Activists argue that after decades of government neglect, they have been left with no choice but to block major highways and bring the city to a standstill.
In protests earlier, viral social media footage also shows highly organised rallies being led by women and children. While strict local media censorship prevents independent verification of these reports, regional authorities have acknowledged that the level of organisation is unprecedented.
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Why the protests?
The ongoing unrest is driven by deep-seated economic crises, rising unemployment, and a perceived lack of political accountability. At the core of the movement is a comprehensive 38-point charter of demands compiled by the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), which includes the following key points-
- Economic Relief: The JAAC demands significantly reduced electricity tariffs, calculated based on the local production costs of hydro-projects like the Mangla Dam, and subsidized wheat flour prices aligned with those in Gilgit-Baltistan
- Abolition of Elite Privileges: The committee insists on ending the expensive perks and luxuries afforded to ministers, lawmakers, and bureaucrats.
- Political Reforms: A central demand is the termination of the 12 reserved seats in the AJK Assembly for Kashmiri migrants settled in Pakistan.
- Immediate Humanitarian and Legal Demands: The group is also calling for the release of all detained activists, an end to the state crackdown, the restoration of communication services, and the assurance of uninterrupted supplies of food and essential medicines.
Security tightened
With the July 15 deadline for the ‘long March’ rapidly approaching, Muzaffarabad has effectively been placed under siege.
Local administrative officials have made it clear that while they are prepared to maintain order, any attempt to breach the security cordon will be met with force. As a result of this uncompromising stance, the region remains trapped in an increasingly volatile political and security deadlock.