Khalid Saleem
THE Modi administration’s mid-night strike in Indian-held Kashmir should be legitimate cause for concern for the International Community. As if the frequent and unprovoked violations of the Line of Control were not enough, the re-elected dispensation in India has opted for upping the ante. Time is at hand for saner elements the world over to take a balanced view and opt for a positive approach to prevent the situation from getting out of control.
The fact that Kashmiri resistance was well into the fourth generation should logically have been enough to provide wholesome food for thought for all, in particular India’s policy-makers; their over-worked propaganda machine notwithstanding. The message of the new generation of Kashmiris should be loud and clear. People of the valley appear in no mood to allow outsiders to play ducks and drakes with what is, after all, their fundamental right to decide their own future – a right that was solemnly pledged to them by the International Community as well as the governments of India and Pakistan.
The matter that should be cause for concern for right-thinking people the world over is that every time the Kashmiri youth rise up to assert their fundamental right of self-determination several do-gooders crop up in an effort to claim a share in the pie. It is about time that these entities realized that their ham-handed ‘efforts’ have had the effect of diluting the Kashmir cause rather than bolstering it.
A cursory glance over the shoulder would highlight the fact that the s meandering course of the ‘quest’ for a settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir issue has exhibited several ups and downs – more downs than ups. To quote just one example, the pre-democracy dispensation in this land (remember?) had been ‘threatening’ time and again to spring a surprise on an unsuspecting public. The reader may recall that the oracle of the time – personified in the person of the then Foreign Minister – had promised to produce a rabbit out of the bilateral hat at short notice. But, regrettably it never came to pass. And an expectant populace justifiably felt badly let down!
Then, there was the occasion when the then Commando/General/Boss-man drove one and all green with envy when he opted to announce to the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Spanish Parliament during his umpteenth tour abroad that, “the world may see the resolution of the Kashmir dispute earlier than expected”. It left one wondering as to why the President/General did not consider the audience back home fitting to spring this ‘surprise’. However, it was hardly for us – lesser mortals – to reason why. If the big man felt at his most loquacious among the Iberians so be it. What hurt the common man was the fact that not one of these dramatic claims was backed up by facts.
The man in the street has been at a loss as to what to make of it all. For a period, there was a modicum of optimism that matters might be sorted out. But, despite the crowing of a section of the media that Pakistan and India will be “back on the peace track”, from all indications the so-called peace process in effect started to look more and more like a circular track leading to nowhere in particular. Lest the Jammu & Kashmir issue get beclouded in the mist of the inane verbiage, one would crave the indulgence of the reader to recap a few facts of life relating to this (undoubtedly international) dispute.
It needs must be stressed that the Jammu and Kashmir dispute is not all about ‘territory’. It is concerned, rather, with the denial of the fundamental rights, including the right of self-determination, to several million people of that state. As history is witness, this right was solemnly pledged to them not only by the governments of India and Pakistan but also by the international community, through the United Nations. The right of self-determination under International Law is a secular concept.
India’s attempt to give religious connotation to the Kashmiri freedom struggle was, and is, meant essentially to divert international attention and to discredit what is pure and simple an indigenous movement of the Kashmiri people to demand their inalienable right as solemnly pledged to them by the international community. Be that as it may, the ‘issue’ remains snugly ensconced on the backburner, except when stoked off and on by the people – and the genuine leaders – of Jammu and Kashmir (may their tribe increase!).
The Modi administration’s ham-handed strike can be seen as a regrettable attempt to change the demographic make-up of the disputed area. The international community has the duty to nip it in the bud; otherwise the contents of the Pandora’s Box thus unleashed could have grave consequences for the International Humanitarian Regime.
Of late, certain people who ought to know better have not been making the right noises in so far as the Jammu & Kashmir issue is concerned. This is a tad unfortunate, to say the least. Granted that the resolve of the people of this land to back the struggle of the people of Jammu and Kashmir should not be seen to slacken, but then histrionics is no way to express it. Generations of Kashmiri people have made, and are making, tremendous sacrifices in the course of their struggle and it just would not do to let them down.
The International Community, on its part, is duty-bound to own – and resolve to honour – its own solemn commitment to the people of the state. It would not be just – nor indeed fair – to sacrifice the inalienable rights of a people at the altar of economic expediency. For far too long have the flashpoints strewn around the globe been ignored by the United Nations! It is high time that ethics rather than expediency took over as the controlling force in international affairs. Or is that hoping for too much?
— The writer is a former ambassador and former assistant secretary general of OIC.
