No freedom in Kashmir
IT is about time that New Delhi stopped treating the crisis in Kashmir as
a
law and order issue and began to address the many genuine grievances that
Kashmiris have against Indian rule in the Valley. A two-day curfew, the
arrest of key Kashmiri leaders and the deployment of thousands of soldiers
and other security personnel may have put paid to plans of holding a
massive
freedom rally in Srinagar on Monday, but this triumph is bound to prove
short-lived for the administration. So long as state repression continues
and India keeps up its present troop levels in the territory, it is
unlikely
that the protests, which have been continuing since June, will die down.
The
protests were originally linked to the disputed allotment of several
hectares of land for accommodating Hindu pilgrims. But these massive
demonstrations have now come to reflect the general resentment that the
Valley's largely Muslim population harbours towards the Indian
authorities.
Equally disturbing are the communal overtones that these protests have
acquired.
India must recognise that it is a popular uprising and not a
Pakistan-backed
insurgency that it is dealing with in Kashmir. It can no longer point the
finger of blame at Islamabad. The situation today is completely different
from the events of yesteryear, when the popular Kashmiri revolt of 1989
was
virtually hijacked by extremists who sought to give the struggle a
religious
hue. India, instead of ca****ng in on a period of relative peace in Kashmir
following Islamabad's about-turn on certain security polices post-9/11,
has
done little to assuage the political and economic woes of the Kashmiris or
repeal the draconian laws that govern their lives. Nor has there been
feasible progress on finding a solution - along with Pakistani and
Kashmiri
leaders - to a festering territorial dispute.
Whether New Delhi likes it or not, the Kashmir question is becoming
internationalised more than ever before. With Pakistan safely on the
sidelines, the pressure is mounting on the Indian authorities to deal with
issues that are leading to anger and may be a factor in India's home-grown
militancy. However, coming down with a heavy hand on the freedom of
assembly
and speech in Kashmir can hardly be effective. It will breed greater
resentment besides making India's democratic credentials suspect in the
eyes
of the world community. A well-defined political solution, acceptable to
the
Kashmiris, is the need of the hour if further alienation of the Valley's
inhabitants is to be prevented.
Source: www.dawn.com
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