Kashmiri people shouldn’t be allowed to be used as pawns for parochial political gains
ISLAMABAD: Kashmir is seething again with violence. A wave of bloodshed has been unleashed following the killing of a young Kashmiri rebel, Burhan Wani, resulting in the deaths of at least 30 people with many others injured. The worst punitive measures are employed to muzzle the voice of resentful Kashmiris by the Indian armed forces. The civil unrest that has been simmering in the valley of Kashmir since 1989 and has claimed the lives of thousands of innocent Kashmiris, is a question mark on India’s credentials as the “biggest democracy of the world”.
India constantly points accusatory fingers towards Pakistan whenever a resistance movement rears its head. It blames Pakistan for harbouring and sponsoring terrorism in India while turning a blind eye to its own coercive policies in the valley. The repressive and high-handed tactics of the Indian army, under the Special Armed Forces Act, have alienated thousands of Kashmiris. The Muslim-majority area is living under the perpetual shadow of the gun with the worst human rights violations. The high rate of unemployment among Kashmiri youth, poor governmental attention towards infrastructure and development projects, and forced demographic change by settlements of Hindu pundits have intensified the people’s antagonism towards Indian occupation. India’s ostrich-like approach towards these burning factors is forcing the youth to flock towards resistance movements. The Indian government’s intransigence to engage in dialogue with Hurriyat leaders has complicated matters further. While the Indian government showed willingness to negotiate with rebels and Maoists if they renounce arms, it shows obduracy in dealing with Kashmiri resistance movement leaders.
These injustices are a big stigma on India’s democracy. In the long haul, the solution of the Kashmir issue is vital for peace to return permanently in the region. It is now a longstanding problem that has endangered regional peace and security, and it needs an honest diplomatic resolve from India, Pakistan and the international community to find its solution. Diplomacy has a strange power to resolve centuries-old conflicts and disputes. Why can’t it be successfully applied in the case of Kashmir? India and Pakistan need to understand that the Kashmiri people shouldn’t be allowed to be used as pawns for parochial political gains. The wishes of the Kashmiri people should be of utmost importance over narrow political moves.
Fakeha Faiz
Published in The Express Tribune, July 17th, 2016.
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