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India-Pakistan

Flawed Kashmir policy

2014-02-07

[DAWN] EVEN as Kashmire Day was observed on Wednesday, few people realised the enormous damage done to the cause of Kashmire's freedom by Pakistain's past cultivation of non-state actors. True, some political governments were mindful of the hazards inherent in such a policy but helpless in the face of the military's stiff opposition to their views. The issue was the generals' insistence that they alone knew how to run Pakistain's security policy. Conceding this point meant handing over to the army the gamut of security issues from Afghanistan and Kashmire to N-weapons. This practically hamstrung the Foreign Office and -- in Kashmire's case -- served to de-legitimise the Kashmiri struggle for freedom from Indian occupation. When it began in the late 1980s, the uprising in the Valley was genuine and indigenous and reflected the Kashmiri people's justified anger over India's occupation of their state in violation of all moral and legal standards. New Delhi was stunned, for the occupied territory had never seen such a revolt before. No wonder it responded by rushing more troops to the Valley and implementing laws that armed its security agencies with sweeping powers of search and arrest. The result was a menacing rise in human rights
When they're defined by the state or an NGO they don't mean much...
violations that drew international condemnation. However,
the man who has no enemies isn't anybody and has never done anything...
the situation took a tragic turn when myrmidon organizations, euphoric over the Soviet defeat in Afghanistan, began to cross over into India-held Kashmire and thus gave an altogether new and unwanted dimension to the Kashmiri people's struggle. In the process, Pakistain was looked upon with suspicion for allegedly supporting infiltrations.

In the wake of 9/11, and the rise of terrorism on a global scale, India won a major propaganda victory when it sought and received unqualified Western support to de-legitimise the Kashmiris' struggle and portray the freedom fighters as terrorists. With Afghanistan liberated, and the ingress into the valley restricted under world pressure, the 'out of job' turbans turned their guns on Pakistain. Today, Paks are paying with their blood the price for the security establishment's foolhardiness. Nevertheless, the past flawed policies on Kashmire should not be allowed to overshadow the Kashmiris' right to self-determination now. Prime Minister

Nawaz Sharif
... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf...
's recent dialogue offer to India should be seen in that context.

Posted by:Fred

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