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Azad Kashmir ~ Occupied
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Azad Jammu and Kashmir ,
abbreviated as AJK and commonly known as Azad Kashmir, is a self-governing
administrative division of Pakistan. The territory lies west of the
Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir, and was previously part of
the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, which ceased to exist as a
result of the first Kashmir war fought between India and Pakistan in 1947.
Azad Kashmir is part of the greater Kashmir region, which is the subject of
a long-running conflict between India and Pakistan. The territory shares a
border with Gilgit–Baltistan, together with which it is referred to by the
United Nations and other international organisations as
"Pakistan-administered Kashmir".[note 1] The territory also borders
Pakistan's Punjab province to the south and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to
the west. To the east, Azad Kashmir is separated from the
Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir by the Line of Control, the
de facto border between India and Pakistan. Azad Kashmir has a total area of
13,297 square kilometres (5,134 sq mi), with an estimated population of
around 4.6 million people.
The territory has a parliamentary form of government modeled after the
Westminster system, with its capital located at Muzaffarabad. The President
of Azad Kashmir is the constitutional head of the state, while the prime
minister, supported by a Council of Ministers, is the chief executive. The
unicameral Azad Jammu & Kashmir Legislative Assembly elects both the prime
minister and president. The state has its own Supreme Court and a High
Court, while the Government of Pakistan's Ministry of Kashmir Affairs serves
as a link between it and Azad Kashmir's government. Neither Azad Kashmir nor
Gilgit-Baltistan elect members to Pakistan's National Assembly.
The 2005 earthquake killed 100,000 people and left another three million
people displaced, with widespread devastation. Since then, with help from
the Government of Pakistan and foreign donors, reconstruction of
infrastructure is underway. Azad Kashmir's economy largely depends on
agriculture, services, tourism, and remittances sent by members of the
British Mirpuri community. Nearly 87% of the households own farms in Azad
Kashmir,[10] while the region has a literacy rate of approximately 72% and
has the highest school enrollment in Pakistan. |
