[Reader-list] KASHMIR SURVEY FINDS NO MAJORITY FOR INDEPENDENCE

Mon Nov 8 08:58:37 IST 2010

Dear Inder Tikoo ji,
Please read this article. It comes from a Kashmiri newspaper and it
shows how the aazadi mongers are beating up innocent NGOs who want an
end to this Geelani sponsored violence. They even burnt a white flag
which symbolizes peace. The reality is that truth us being muffled by
people like Geelani, Roy and Navlakha. If Geelani does not encourage
killings he will be targeted by the ISI and if Arundhati and Navlakha
don't encourage the Aazadi mongers then their very existence is at
stake.
regards,
-SR

http://www.dailyexcelsior.com/web1/10nov08/news.htm#2

People protest against strikes leads to clashes

Excelsior Correspondent

SRINAGAR, Nov 7: Fed up with frequent strikes and stone-pelting
incidents, over 100 activists belonging to several NGOs today staged a
peace rally against shutdowns in the Valley even as hardline Hurriyat
Conference led by Syed Ali Shah Geelani eased the protest calendar for
next 12 days, calling for only three days of strike.

In a related development, the hand cart vendors also defied the call
for observing strike on the visit of US President Barack Obama to
India as hundreds of roadside vendors decided to set up their stalls.

The activists of Jammu and Kashmir NGO Forum, a conglomerate of
several NGOs, assembled at TRC ground this morning and carried out a
TATA Sumo rally from TRC crossing to Ghanta Ghar at Lal Chowk. They
were carrying banners and placards which highlighted the ill effects
of the strikes on the economy of Kashmir valley over the past five
months.

Bashir Ahmad, who was leading the protests, said they were
demonstrating against loss of Rs 27000 crores, which has affected all
sections of the society as a result of four months continuous hartal.

While the economy of Kashmir has been shattered, it has also severely
jeopardised the future of young Kashmiris who are not able to get free
access to education, he said.

"Today the competition demands knowledge and everything else has
become subservient to education. How will our children compete with
their counterparts in rest of world when they are not able to go to
schools?" he asked.

However, the peace protestors had to flee from Lal Chowk as a group of
youth confronted them. "Who is committing injustice ... those who kill
people or those who call for protests against the killings?" asked an
angry youth.

An altercation ensued in which Bashir Ahmad, despite heavy presence of
police, was roughed up and injured by the mob.

One of the peace protestors had hoisted a white flag on top of Ghanta
Ghar, which was damaged during violent protests on Eidul Fitr day on
September 11. However, the flag was taken down by a youth and set
ablaze.

Police had to fire tear smoke shells and use batons to chase away the
mob in Lal Chowk, leading to stone-pelting in nearby Kokerbazaar,
Court Road and Maisuma localities.

Normalcy was restored within an hour as additional policemen were
rushed to the spot for maintaining law and order.

This was second protest held against the strikes in the Valley as
political activist Farooq Ganderbali had organised a similar protest
at Residency Road on September 1. He was also beaten up by a mob that
day.

Reacting to the protest rally, a senior Hurriyat leader said it was
orchestrated by ruling National Conference to defame the ongoing
"freedom struggle"

Acting general secretary of the Hurriyat led by Geelani warned the
National Conference workers to desist from such acts to sabotage the
"people's movement" and urged people to follow the protest calendars.

However, Geelani himself softened the stand later in the day by
allowing nine normal days from November 9 to 20 while issuing a 12-day
protest calendar.

This is for the first time that people of Valley will get such a long
reprieve from the strikes and protests. Geelani has called for strikes
and protests on Nov 11, 13 and 15.

The first act of defiance came from the roadside vendors, who set
their stalls at Sunday Market, as they did not pay heed to Geelani's
call for observing 'civil curfew' in connection with Obama visit.

Hundreds of stalls were erected early in the morning as the vendors
hoped to make up for some of the losses suffered over the past five
months.

Initially, there were only few customers at their stalls but as the
day progressed, the vendors did brisk sales.

On Sun, Nov 7, 2010 at 7:52 PM, Aditya Raj Kaul <kauladityaraj at gmail.com> wrote:
> Inder Tikoo sahab,
>
> 100% members don't want you on Sarai list. Do you need helping hand to leave
> now or would you volunteer? I won't give you even that 0.001%. No Communal
> rhetoric.
>
> love
>
> Aditya Raj Kaul (One among lacs of J&K Citizens who are proud to be Indian)
>
> On Sat, Nov 6, 2010 at 11:57 PM, Aditya Raj Baul <adityarajbaul at gmail.com>wrote:
>
>> did the survey find 'any' majority for Indian rule?
>>
>> On Fri, Nov 5, 2010 at 8:57 PM, Bipin Trivedi <aliens at dataone.in> wrote:
>> >
>> http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5i_ynr0-yXCshxv0x802hR9DLu
>> > 4fA
>> >
>> > (AFP) - May 27, 2010
>> >
>> > SRINAGAR, India - Less than half of residents in both the Indian and
>> > Pakistani zones of Kashmir favour independence as a solution to end
>> unrest
>> > in the disputed Himalayan region, a survey said Thursday.
>> >
>> > Conducted by British academic Robert Bradnock, the independent survey
>> found
>> > that 44 percent of people in Pakistani-administered Kashmir favour
>> > independence, and 43 percent in Indian-administered Kashmir.
>> >
>> > United Nations resolutions soon after the partition of the sub-continent
>> in
>> > 1947 called for a plebiscite to determine whether the region should
>> belong
>> > to India or Pakistan, both of which claim Kashmir in full.
>> >
>> > "These results support the already widespread view that the plebiscite
>> > options are likely to offer no solution to the dispute," said the survey,
>> > which was released by the London-based Chatham House think-tank.
>> >
>> > Titled "Kashmir: Paths to Peace", it was a rare attempt to assess the
>> > opinions of people on both sides of the Line of Control (LOC) -- the de
>> > facto border that splits the region between the two rival nations.
>> >
>> > "Any solution will depend on the Indian and Pakistani governments?
>> > commitment to achieving a permanent settlement," Bradnock said.
>> > The survey interviewed about 3,800 people to record their views on how
>> they
>> > saw the future of Kashmir -- a scenic region that has been a constant
>> source
>> > of tension between India and Pakistan.
>> >
>> > In the Muslim-majority Kashmir valley, which has been at the heart of a
>> > 20-year-old insurgency against Indian rule, between 74 percent and 95
>> > percent respondents favoured independent Kashmir.
>> >
>> > But in the Hindu-dominated Jammu region -- which is also part of Indian
>> > Kashmir -- support for independence dwindled to less than one percent.
>> > The survey found that the "overwhelming majority" of people wanted a
>> > solution to the dispute, even though there were no "simple fixes".
>> > More than 47,000 people have died in Indian Kashmir since the eruption of
>> > the insurgency in 1989.
>> >
>> > India and Pakistan have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir, but
>> a
>> > recent peace process has brought a reduction in violence.
>> >
>> > _________________________________________
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> _________________________________________
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