[Reader-list] "A Hindu army officer and an Indian patriot..."

Sat Apr 24 16:59:33 IST 2010

No one in India , not even the Prime Minister of India , has an
authority to make a decision on Kashmir which may be contrary to the
resolution passed in Indian parliament.

This should be kept in mind , leaving apart what politicians do for
public consumption.

Pawan

On Sat, Apr 24, 2010 at 10:42 AM, anupam chakravartty
<c.anupam at gmail.com> wrote:
> http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Kashmir-pact-was-just-a-signature-away/articleshow/5850851.cms
>
> Excerpts:
>
> "He (Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri, who was Pervez Musharraf’s foreign minister
> from 2002 to 2007) said the two sides had agreed to full demilitarisation of
> both Jammu & Kashmir as well as Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, which Islamabad
> refers to as Azad Kashmir. In addition, a package of loose autonomy that
> stopped short of the ‘azadi’ and self-governance aspirations, had been
> agreed on and was to be introduced on both sides of the disputed frontier.
> "We agreed on a point between complete independence and autonomy," he said.
>
>
>
>
> On Fri, Apr 23, 2010 at 9:40 PM, Lalit Ambardar
> <lalitambardar at hotmail.com>wrote:
>
>>
>> A poorly attempted juxtaposition of random thoughts with a mischievous
>> intent to justify the equally malicious title.
>>
>> It is no revelation that foreign jihadists are fighting along with the
>> local proponents of Azadi- bara – e-Islam (freedom through Islam) in
>> Kashmir.
>>
>> ………‘If violence has declined at present, this is not because India is
>>  doing the right thing. The militants turned their attention to Kashmir
>>  in 1989, when the Russians withdrew from Afghanistan. Today, the
>>  militants have more urgent priorities, again in Afghanistan and the
>>  Pakistan border. Because the Indian state failed to grant autonomy to
>>  Kashmir,……
>>  …..now the pressure has lessened on Kashmir by the removal of militants
>>  to other parts of Asia……..
>>
>> Ayaz Amir also admitted though for different reason (to justify strong
>> action by Pakistani army against the pan Islamists in Af-Pak region) in his
>> article ‘A Make-or- break Moment’ Khalij Times/Oct 23, 2009-
>>
>> …….. The stakes being so high, there is no choice but to win, and win
>> decisively. Of course it is not going to be easy. South Waziristan’s
>> fighters, including the foreign elements, are amongst the most
>> battle-hardened on the planet. They have been fighting for decades—in
>> Afghanistan, disputed Kashmir, now FATA…..
>> ……….3-5,000 Hezbollah fighters defeated the Israeli army in Lebanon in
>> 2006. At the height of the Kashmir uprising (starting from 1989) there could
>> not have been more than 5-10,000 guerrilla fighters in the Valley. But they
>> tied down close to half a million Indian troops, the bulk of which remain in
>> Kashmir……
>> (full article at Click here to read the article )
>>
>>
>> Regards all
>> LA
>>
>> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>
>> > Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2010 11:52:55 +0530
>> > From: waliarifi3 at gmail.com
>> > To: reader-list at sarai.net
>> > Subject: [Reader-list] "A Hindu army officer and an Indian patriot..."
>> >
>> > http://www.newint.org/features/special/2010/04/01/kashmir-conflict/
>> >
>> > A soldier’s story
>> >
>> > In the crossfire of daily violence between militants and state forces,
>> > the picturesque northern Indian state of Kashmir has known no peace
>> > for decades. In this revealing first-person account, Gopal Mitra, a
>> > former Indian army Major, offers hard-won insights into how the
>> > violence could be ended. He spoke to Jeremy Seabrook.
>> >
>> > ----------------
>> >
>> > Major Gopal Mitra had realized that India’s militarization of Kashmir
>> > was no long-term solution before he was blown up in Kupwara in 2000.
>> > An informer had guided his unit to a booby-trapped militant hide-out.
>> > During the ensuing gun-battle, 17 kilos of RDX explosive went up.
>> > Airlifted to hospital in Srinagar, Gopal needed 150 stitches to his
>> > face and body. He lost his eyes and had to undergo facial
>> > reconstruction.
>> >
>> > In and out of hospital for two years, he had time to reflect, both on
>> > his injuries and what he was doing in Kashmir. Now in his late
>> > thirties, he is without rancour or bitterness. He works for an
>> > international disability charity, and says the loss of his eyes has
>> > been compensated by the insights gained.
>> >
>> > ‘As a soldier, you have to believe that terrorism is bad for your
>> > country. But when you see it close up, you realize there is a reason
>> > for resistance – usually a result of some earlier failing by the
>> > State. When violence starts – in the North East or in Kashmir – it
>> > begins as a way of redressing grievances. But over time, the just
>> > objective is overtaken, and conflict soon generates its own reasons
>> > for continuing. When public opinion is met by oppression, there is
>> > bound to be violence. In Kashmir, when the State installs puppet
>> > governments with no mandate to act on behalf of the people, how can
>> > they accept it?
>> >
>> > ‘Kashmir is seen as a bilateral issue between India and Pakistan, a
>> > cause for international concern. This doesn’t address the issue of how
>> > conflict is sustained on the ground. The whole society is drawn into
>> > prolonging war. The search for justice is overwhelmed by other
>> > priorities, including the self-interest of those who gain some
>> > advantage from it. There are four parties to the conflict – militants,
>> > civil administration, army and local population. All operate and live
>> > in the area. The best houses in any village, although far beyond their
>> > legitimate means, are always occupied by Government officials. Social
>> > structures, accountability, civil administration have all broken down.
>> > Transparency International says that after Bihar, Kashmir is the most
>> > corrupt state in India. It receives huge funds from central
>> > government.
>> >
>> > ‘The whole economy is distorted because basic social norms have
>> > collapsed. Most stolen cars in India are traded in Kashmir.
>> >
>> > ‘Many militants believe passionately in their cause and take up arms.
>> > This also creates commercial pressures: arms-suppliers who have an
>> > interest in continuing conflict. After the snowmelt in April-May till
>> > November, militants cross the passes. They get high rates and bonuses
>> > for killing members of the security forces. The security forces have
>> > all the militants’ radio-intercepts: it is known they inflate the
>> > numbers killed when reporting to their bosses, because this increases
>> > their bonuses.
>> >
>> > ‘There is no adequate rehabilitation package for militants. There is
>> > no thought-out strategy to absorb them back into society.
>> >
>> > ‘It is in the nature of prolonged armed operations to alienate people,
>> > no matter how disciplined the army. You search houses, knock on doors
>> > in the middle of the night; people are under siege. Some find serving
>> > as informers to the army a viable way of making a living. This is how
>> > the neutrality of civilians is compromised, both by the army and the
>> > militants. It polarizes people. The army has an incentive to
>> > perpetuate the crisis, because this vindicates its reason for
>> > existence and ensures resources are allocated to the area.
>> >
>> > ‘I love my country, but that doesn’t mean I don’t think it can become
>> > a better place’
>> >
>> > ‘The initial objectives take second place to conflict for its own
>> > sake. The idea that an Indo-Pak solution is the only answer places it
>> > in a different sphere from the violence on the ground. Simple
>> > one-dimensional solutions don’t work. Societies, easy to divide, are
>> > harder to re-unite. In Kashmir, if I had a grievance against you, I’d
>> > have fought it out with you. But now I’ll get two militants to attack
>> > you. Personal vendettas feed into the wider conflict; private
>> > animosities get involved, the whole community is distorted.
>> >
>> > ‘When you see daily violence, you ask yourself: “Is this what we are
>> > fighting for?” Before I was injured, I knew armed operations would not
>> > lead to a solution. But the support system in the army is very robust.
>> > It helps you not to feel troubled, to concentrate on your duty. The
>> > camaraderie is strong, and the common danger a consolidating force.
>> >
>> > ‘North Kashmir was known as a ‘hot zone’. We were involved in search
>> > and destroy missions. Militants from Pakistan were servicing bases in
>> > the forest, stocks of ammunition and guns in camps hidden underground.
>> > We flushed out and captured arms and personnel. I was leading my
>> > company when I was injured. I remember only floating in and out of
>> > consciousness. The speed of evacuation saved my life.
>> >
>> > ‘Initially I felt anger and uncertainty. The doctor said: “Look,
>> > Gopal, I’ll have to take out your eye – if I don’t your brain may
>> > become infected.” My destiny, which I thought I had taken into my
>> > hands, took another turn. In hospital I met my wife. Her father had
>> > also been in the army, and he, too, had been blinded. She was doing a
>> > Social Work MA and it was through her I came to development work. We
>> > were married in 2003.
>> >
>> > ‘I never hated Kashmir, and afterwards had nothing against the
>> > militant who deprived me of sight. He was also doing his job. My wife
>> > and I took our honeymoon in Kashmir. We went as civilians on a
>> > houseboat. The people we met had no idea I was ex-army. We talked to
>> > them. They all hated violence. I wanted to remember the beauty of
>> > Kashmir. Personally, I do not care whether Kashmir is part of India or
>> > Pakistan. The referendum on Kashmir which never took place after
>> > Independence [in 1947] can only happen when people are in a position
>> > to make reasoned choices. Kashmir has been so tainted that such a
>> > choice is not possible. People need a period of normal life. A
>> > generation of children have been traumatized; growing in the shadow of
>> > violence, their childhood play is a mimicry of adult wars.
>> >
>> > ‘For any solution, the grievances that hardened into incentives to
>> > persist in conflict need to be unravelled. After the loss of 80,000
>> > lives, the Government says: “We have shed blood in Kashmir, and
>> > therefore nothing can change.” I say: “I lost my blood, but I don’t
>> > care that much.” Public opinion is manipulated by political parties. I
>> > can speak with a certain authority, because I actually fought, unlike
>> > intransigent armchair politicians. If I say India should take a less
>> > hard line, this is because I have seen the damage hard lines can do.
>> >
>> > ‘I love my country, but that doesn’t mean I don’t think it can become
>> > a better place. If they don’t do things right, thousands more will
>> > die. Kashmir remains one of the most militarized places on earth. It
>> > is often said that ethnicity creates violence; but I think violence
>> > creates ethnicity – people who have lived in amity for centuries are
>> > moved by injustice, and the divisiveness of that injustice focuses on
>> > ethnicity or religion.
>> >
>> > ‘If violence has declined at present, this is not because India is
>> > doing the right thing. The militants turned their attention to Kashmir
>> > in 1989, when the Russians withdrew from Afghanistan. Today, the
>> > militants have more urgent priorities, again in Afghanistan and the
>> > Pakistan border. Because the Indian state failed to grant autonomy to
>> > Kashmir, the social contract between people and State was breached. It
>> > is easy to explain why the conflict started, but that doesn’t account
>> > for the way it assumed a life of its own, and its prolongation over so
>> > many years.
>> >
>> > ‘There is no overnight solution. But there is a window of opportunity,
>> > now the pressure has lessened on Kashmir by the removal of militants
>> > to other parts of Asia. There is a chance for everyday life to be
>> > restored, where people will not have their door hammered in at two in
>> > the morning, or stopped at four roadblocks on the way to the market.
>> > Indian soldiers will not have instructions during elections to coerce
>> > 70 per cent of people to vote, just to ‘prove’ they support the
>> > democratic process.
>> >
>> > ‘It is painful to say this as a Hindu army officer and an Indian
>> > patriot, but truth is truth. I see an opportunity in Kashmir right
>> > now, especially since Pakistan is troubled by its own internal
>> > conflict. If we don’t seize it, India will be the loser.’
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