evidence: Gilgit, Pakistan – Escalating protests in villages perched on the "Roof of the World" – a mountainous territory disputed between Pakistan and India – have exposed deep animosity towards Islamabad. [...] Since independence from Britain in 1947, Pakistan and India have fought several wars over the status of Gilgit-Baltistan – part of the Pakistan-administered Kashmir – and the rest of disputed Kashmir to its east. [...] Unlike the rest of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, which has its own constitution, democratically-elected legislature, and independent judiciary, Gilgit-Baltistan was long governed by a federally-appointed civil servant who could impose collective punishment on local tribes.