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| Winning back hearts and minds in Kashmir | | | Ashok K Mehta
While India must take the fight to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and highlight Pakistani atrocities in areas under Islamabad's control, New Delhi and Srinagar also need to work on a political solution in the valley
Consider the following: On Pakistan's independence day terrorists hoist flags, address rallies urging Kashmiris to follow Hurriyat's calendar of protests; Pakistan's High Commissioner Abdul Basit dedicates this year's independence day to the freedom of Kashmir, firmly believing that the sacrifices made by the people of Jammu & Kashmir will not go in vain; counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations suspended for 40 days for fear of clashes and collateral damage; locals glorifying terrorists as freedom fighters during funerals; at least 25 police stations burnt down and weapons looted; young stone-pelters and protestors, mostly leaderless (and include women) are asking for azadi; Burhan Wani's father has become a celebrity of sorts;. Srinagar is in lockdown for a straight 40 days with 65 civilians killed and more than 6000 wounded - majority are wounded, security personnel; pellet guns blinded nearly 100 persons; on India's independence day, despite the lockdown, terrorists attacked the CRPF in the heart of Srinagar killing a Commandant and wounding ten troopers. Alienation and anger are palpable. Seventy years on, this is your Kashmir valley.
Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti made a memorable speech in the Bakshi Stadium urging Kashmiris to covet the azadi they already have. Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his 95-minute long speech failed to reach out to the Kashmiris. Instead, he raised from the ramparts of the Red Fort, the disquiet and human rights violations in Balochistan, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan.
No Prime Minister has sought a moral equaliser of Kashmir in Pakistan. Modi's unwillingness to apply the healing touch from the Red Fort is part of the strategy of not acting under pressure. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has, on the advice of agencies, decided to wait it out till fatigue sets in and a lid can be put on the protests, no matter what the cost. A tactical breather is being sought by shifting the focus from the uprising in Kashmir to the human rights violations in Balochistan, PoK and Gilgit Baltistan.
While providing political, diplomatic and moral support to the oppressed in these regions is not going to be easy due to lack of contiguity, no infrastructure and doubtful political will, still it is an exercise worth attempting.
What is more vital is raising the cost for Islamabad for its cross border terrorism. Voices are being raised in Pakistan by retired diplomats including former Foreign Secretary Najmuddin Shaikh who are advocating that Pakistan prevent the use of its soil for hostile activities against its neighbours. Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India and Iran are periodically accusing Pakistan for exporting terrorism.
Despite being 'frenemy' country, Pakistan has its sympathisers in the US intellectual community most notably nuclear experts George Perkovich and Toby Dalton who had recommended incentives for Pakistan to go slow on its nuclear weapons programme. Now the two have come up with a book whose title is self-explanatory: Not War Not Peace: Motivating Pakistan to Prevent Cross-Border Terrorism.
For India to blame Pakistan for all the ills in Kashmir will be patently wrong, though it is time for New Delhi to declare cross border/LoC infiltration as acts of war and take the fight to PoK, which in any case is India's own territory, as an act of legitimate self defence.
The parliamentary resolution on J&K on August 3 was anodyne and must be linked to the one unanimously passed on February 22, 1994. Dr Karan Singh is right: While J&K is an integral part of India, as nearly half of the original J&K is in adverse and illegal possession of Pakistan, J&K is not an internal matter. Besides proactively reclaiming and obtaining vacation of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir including Gilgit and Baltistan, the Government in Srinagar should reserve appropriate number of seats in the State Assembly for PoK and Gilgit Baltistan areas. The Centre should also similarly reserve seats in the upper and lower houses of Parliament.
One hopes that the 'Rajnath tactics' of postponing to another day the healing touch and unveiling the long-awaited political package works, and does not become one that comes too late and is too little. Besides losing human lives averaging more than one a day and Rs 120 crore daily in revenue, it is the forfeiture of trust, moral authority and governance that is more troubling. This is not a law and order problem but one of insurgency and terrorism acquiring religious overtones, threatening to transform Kashmiriyat into Islamiyat. But most of all, it is a political problem as well as of development. The responses to the political, economic and human rights issues are available in many reports prepared by interlocutors in the past. Addressing the internal dimension - entailing an intra-Kashmir dialogue followed by a Centre-State interaction to re-affirm the contours of self rule - is both urgent and complex. A fulltime Union Minister in charge of Jammu & Kashmir is necessary, as was the case in the past when George Fernandes was appointed Minister for Kashmir Affairs.
The parameters of the external peace process need to be reinstated also. Given the new low in India-Pakistan relations, resuming the dialogue process is the big challenge. Most Pakistanis including Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif agree that the four-point formula evolved during backchannel talks a decade ago under the watch of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Pervez Musharraf can be made acceptable if the Pakistan military is on board. No one has come up with any other model than the Musharraf formula that can be the basis of resuming talks on J&K. If nothing else, at least an interim solution can be hammered out based on the Northern Ireland model.
De-escalation of the ongoing protest campaign - the priority for now - which is essentially faceless and devoid of leaders is a sticky starting point. No one knows where to start. This should not be delayed any further as it will damage the counter-insurgency grid painstakingly established in the valley as Army is mostly confined to the barracks.
Terrorists are taking advantage of this by fanning the protests and opening infiltration routes. Chief Minister Mufti should utilise her intellectuals for her outreach to youths and parents. The CRPF and police require specialised training and kits for crowd control with minimum or no use of pellet guns till an alternative deterrent is found. This is the last chance to win back the confidence and trust of Kashmiris in the valley and recover the lost plot. There is a limit to how often security forces can pull the political chestnuts out of the fire. |
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