The long struggle for Kashmir’s freedom

The visit of the Indian home minister to Islamabad to attend the Saarc ministerial meeting in connection with the forthcoming summit in November provides an opportunity to unfreeze the current gridlock between the two countries. This would depend on the minister requesting a meeting with his counterpart Chaudhry Nisar Ali and the prime minister. We are told that so far no such request has been made. The resumption of dialogue assumes greater importance in view of the prevailing situation in Indian Kashmir. The present stalemate has led the two countries nowhere apart from mutual recrimination and further heightening of tensions. Its worst fallout has been on the Kashmiris as eventually they are the ones suffering from Indian atrocities.



Apart from some muted statements from human rights organisations and a few editorials in influential newspapers, the world has remained indifferent to the sufferings of the Kashmiris at the hands of Indians. No Muslim country has raised its concern at the individual level and the OIC in its joint communique at its recent summit in Istanbul made a routine statement of support and expressed concern at the use of force and gross violations of human rights. The US, having close strategic ties with India, is unwilling to go beyond advising both countries to resolve their problems bilaterally. Russia values its strategic and historical ties with India and has backed its position on Kashmir. European countries consider it expedient to remain silent. Unsurprisingly, China, too, remains guarded in its support for Pakistan on the Kashmir issue and had advised earlier that it place it on the back burner.

It is thus apparent that it is the struggle and sacrifices of the Kashmiris for their rights that will ultimately make the difference. India’s disregard for the people’s wishes is untenable in the long term. Moreover, if Indian democracy has any credibility, then it is expected that voices will be raised from within India against state-sponsored suppression and gross human rights violations in Kashmir. As of now, there are only low-key expressions of concern within India. The resistance in the Valley has reached a level where it will not be possible for India to hide behind scapegoating Pakistan or countering it by diverting attention towards Hafiz Saeed or Hizbul Mujahideen chief Sayeed Salahuddin. They are the symptoms not the genesis of India’s misplaced policies. Nonetheless, in order for the world to perceive the true nature of the current movement, it may be advisable for Pakistan’s security establishment to rein in these elements. It should also ensure that the international community sees, through greater transparency, that Pakistan is only supporting the Kashmiri struggle politically and morally, and that the current uprising is a genuine peaceful resistance against Indian suppression of the rights of Kashmiris and India’s draconian policies. By adopting this approach, there are greater chances of soliciting international support.

The Americans and Europeans are allergic of seeing militant groups, which are alleged to be associated with the horrific Mumbai terrorist attack, parading on our streets. Pakistan cannot afford to use these militant organisations to pressure India any more. As experience has shown, these groups have proved to be equally harmful for Pakistan’s internal stability. Both countries have a tendency to be influenced in their policy towards each other by the security conditions prevailing in Kashmir. It would be a folly to allow these militant groups to influence policy rather than the state leading from the front. Hopefully, Pakistan’s security establishment will rein them in; otherwise the international community will get an excuse not to play its role in persuading India to pursue an equitable role in resolving the Kashmir dispute.

The Indian media is suppressing the news coming in from Kashmir and the government is hiding from accountability by applying draconian black laws. Free and excessive use of pellets that are internationally banned have blinded and maimed dozens of young protestors. These violations are a challenge for human rights organisations and the right thinking people of India. It is expected that the OIC, the UN and Pakistan will raise their voices against torture and other inhuman practices.



The stark truth is that as long as India remains in a state of denial about the conditions in Kashmir, there can be no progress in India-Pakistan relations or in the resolution of the conflict. Similarly, as long as Pakistan uses non-state actors as a pressure tactic, it will face an antagonistic India and little support from the international community.

The people of Kashmir are facing immense hardships but are courageously standing up to the Indian clampdown. There is a growing shortage of essential food supplies and medicines. The most encouraging fact is the community spirit that has manifested itself during this crisis and there is a lot of cooperation and sharing to mitigate the hardships. Apparently, certain centres for help have been established and people are using mosques for collecting food and other necessities of life that are in short supply.

The peaceful resolution of the Kashmir issue as a side benefit would significantly contribute towards Pakistan’s counterterrorism strategy. The country would be able to devote more resources to countering terrorist organisations. More significantly, Pakistan-India relations cannot move in the right direction unless there is positive movement on the resolution of Kashmir. At the same time, improvement in bilateral relations will have a salutary impact in finding a solution for Kashmir. This will also reduce the importance of militant groups within Pakistan that have been used to leverage the Kashmir cause. It would then be relatively easier for Pakistan to tackle these non-state actors with a positive outcome on our relations with India, Afghanistan, the US and the international community. Hostile relations with India directly impact our relations with the international community.

Finding a solution that satisfies all three parties — India, Pakistan and the people of Jammu and Kashmir — will not be easy. It will have to be a compromise that would meet the expectations of each party less than halfway. Moving towards a compromise would require India, the status quo power, to rethink its policy, which for the time being seems remote.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 3^rd, 2016.

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