Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai
The disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir stands apart as the most cantankerous of conflicts, with the catastrophic possibility of nuclear devastation. After all India and Pakistan have fought three wars and nearly began a fourth with the ever-present threat of nuclear exchange. Hence, the world powers need to reaffirm their commitment to the inalienable Kashmiri right of self-determination and help in resolving this long stand conflict to the satisfaction of all parties concerned.
Over 100,000 Kashmiris have lost their lives in the past 30 years. 8,000 to 10,000 people have disappeared. 2,700 mass graves have been discovered in the town of Kupwara alone. It is well documented that hundreds of thousands of Indian armed forces have made Kashmir the largest occupation on earth. The conditions in Kashmir have become so ugly with rapes, beatings, shootings and other crimes inflicted by the occupation forces that the people of Kashmir are condemned as a lot in the eyes of the world to be ignored and forgotten because, aside from any intentional bias in the press, no one wants to think about it. Kashmir has almost become a forgotten land and a forgotten people.
Amb. Yusuf Buch, former advisor, United Nations Secretary General, has described the agony of the people of Kashmir in these words, “Have we heard a word, even a whisper, about gardens being turned into graveyards, about young women being raped and their mothers being forced to witness the atrocity, about young men being crippled and maimed for life, about the great numbers of fake disappearances which are continuing to this day in occupied Kashmir? It will glibly be said that it points only to the failure of the media. But have not the media been influenced and deterred from an aggressive, truth-revealing course by official policies sedulously maintained?”
These facts have become well known in Kashmir. The grassroots leadership and the global Kashmiri diaspora leadership have acted frequently, as individual men and women, to these problems with calls to action, and the people have responded, as well they would, and have taken to the streets by the thousands, and on occasion by hundreds of thousands. The press has reported such events dutifully, with minimal fanfare. Indeed, the world also knows that a European parliamentary delegation, after visiting Kashmir, announced, “Kashmir was the most beautiful prison on earth.” An internationally known humanitarian lawyer, Dr. Karen Parker reported that ”The presence of 700,000 [actual number exceeds one million] Indian military and paramilitary forces has made Kashmir the largest army concentration anywhere in the world.”
Yet, despite these facts, these atrocities, and all the evidence, after 73 years of oppression by a foreign occupation, we stand like smoking overheated cars in a traffic jam on a Washington Beltway (freeway) miles from an exit ramp with nowhere to go, running out of gas, waiting for some miracle to happen.
It’s imperative at this stage in our history for the global Kashmir diaspora to recognize that real change is needed and cannot happen without a change in the way that we do business. Foremost, what is needed is a united front among Kashmiri diaspora that will inspire the people as well. A united leadership will demonstrate to them that we are Kashmiris first and foremost, and not simply members of some little political offshoot or an organization that has no real mandate. Only a united Kashmiri diaspora can unite the people on the ground. Only a united people can bring about the change that will help us achieve our ultimate objective – the right of self-determination.
I agree with Dr. Syed Nazir Gilani, President, JKCHR when he said, “It is much more important that Kashmiri diaspora does not use their activities to advertise their personal or group interests in the Webinar or at any other time. If we start using anyone of these webinars in that manner, it will snowball into an abuse and there would be no end to it. A mischief by an individual or a group to seek an advertisement of any kind does not remain in the best interests of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. If there is a need for an appreciation, it should be general and in equity. Therefore, Kashmiris need to hold their personal interests under control. We should keep in mind that the merits of our case and the various elements of our character remain under a microscope of the system.”
The people of Kashmir, despite all the odds, have never lost hope in the right of self-determination.
—Kashmir Media Services
