Engr. 297A
Prof. Bruce P. Lusignan
War and Peace: An Analysis Of The Kashmir Issue And A Possible Path To Peace
By: Iveshu R. Bhatia
Dated: Friday, December 3rd 2004
Table of Contents
Topic Pg. no.
An introduction to Kashmir and a history of the region…………….1
Why is Kashmir so important? …………………………………………3
Analysis of terrorism in Kashmir and the India-Pakistan dispute…7
Other factors supporting the rise of terrorism in Kashmir……….10
Impact of terrorism and the proxy war……………………………..12
Potential steps towards a peaceful solution………………………..15
Latest developments………………………………………………….18
Appendix I:List of Works Cited/Bibliography………………...... 20
Appendix II: Map of the region.……………………………………21
Appendix III: Copy of instrument of Accession of Kashmir to India…22
War and Peace: An Analysis Of The Kashmir Issue And A Possible Path To Peace
Today, the word Kashmir has become synonymous with death, destruction and religious genocide in South Asia. Although the roots of the Kashmir issue lie in a territorial dispute between India and Pakistan, it has evolved into a multi-faceted issue over the years. This paper discusses this dispute, its history, its effects and potential steps towards a peaceful resolution.
An introduction to Kashmir and a history of the region
Kashmir is a landlocked region in South Asia, sandwiched between India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and China. It is spread across an area of 86,000 square miles, an area bigger than 87 sovereign countries1. Kashmir is home to almost thirteen million people1. Though mostly Muslim, the state also has significant Hindu, Buddhist and Sikh populations. Cradled by the mighty Himalayas and fed by rivers like the Satluj and Indus, Kashmir, has often been described as a ‘Paradise on Earth’. However, terrorism and a border dispute between India and Pakistan have given this very paradise the name ‘Hell on Earth’. With a predominantly agrarian population, the per capita income of Kashmir is less than 100 U.S. Dollars2. Most of the population is forced to live under immense squalor and oppression. This has made Kashmir one of the most controversial and hotly
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debated topics in South Asia, a region home to almost a quarter of the world’s population.
In order to understand the current situation in Kashmir, it is necessary to understand the history of the region. The British sold Kashmir to Maharajah Ghulab Singh in 1846. Subsequently, Maharajah Ghulab Singh established himself as the independent princely ruler of Kashmir. This was done through the famous treaty of Amritsar4. After Ghulab Singh’s death, his kingdom passed on to his successors and was ultimately ruled by Maharajah Hari Singh until 1949. These rulers were known to be tyrannical and oppressive. In 1931, there was even a revolt and general unrest amongst the majority Muslim population.
In 1947, the South Asian portion of the British Empire was divided between India and Pakistan. Maharajah Hari Singh was advised to consider contiguous dominion, religious and ethnic issues when deciding which territory to accede to. Both India and Pakistan applied pressure to get Hari Singh to accede to them respectively. However, Maharajah Hari Singh remained neutral and did not accede to either dominion. As a result, Pakistan attempted to annex Kashmir and sent large number of ‘tribesmen’ and Pakistani army regulars to overthrow Hari Singh, and make Kashmir a part of Pakistan. At this point, the Maharajah made an offer to accede to the Indian union in exchange for protection by Indian forces. India agreed and sent its troops to Kashmir, sparking off the first war between the two countries. This invasion by Pakistan and the subsequent war in
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1948 lead to the creation of a highly unstable and dangerous rivalry in the Indian subcontinent.
In 1948, Indian forces successfully thwarted the incursion by Pakistan and were even ready to invade Mirpur and Muzaffarabad (now in Pakistan)5. However, Nehru, the Prime Minister of India, recalled his forces and took the issue to the UN Security Council. The UN Security Council passed a resolution saying that Pakistan must withdraw all Pakistani citizens and tribesmen from the area and that a plebiscite be held to decide the future of the state3. However, due to a lack of interest from the international community neither objective of the resolution was achieved.
Meanwhile, Kashmir has in effect been divided into Azad Kashmir controlled by Pakistan (also known as Pakistan occupied Kashmir in India) and Jammu & Kashmir (A part of the Indian Union, also known as India occupied Kashmir in Pakistan). The de facto border between these two regions was called the LoC (Line of Control). This division stands today and is unofficially accepted as the border between the two countries. However, both countries still lay claim to the entire Kashmir valley. This has lead to a dangerous dispute between the two neighboring nuclear powers, India and Pakistan, and has led to several wars and border skirmishes since 1948.
Why is Kashmir so important?
Kashmir is strategically important to India and Pakistan. Kashmir provides Pakistan with much needed waters to irrigate the fertile plains of Punjab. The Indus and
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its tributaries flowing in from Kashmir comprise the primary source of fresh water in Pakistan. As a result, control of the flow of water in these rivers through dams and canals has been a very important issue for decades.
Furthermore, the Silk Route, the primary land link between Pakistan and China passes through Kashmir. This is very significant because China has border disputes with India and is also a major diplomatic and military ally for Pakistan. The Silk route allows China to maintain an aggressive posture towards India, its biggest regional rival. An instance displaying the strategic importance of the Silk Route was when Pakistan reopened the road in 1965. Pakistan handed over complete control of Gilgit, a modern air force base on this route, to China4. This is very important as today Gilgit is the point from which China can penetrate deepest into Indian territory4. This significantly neutralizes the natural security created by the Himalayan range over north India. Interestingly, this move was made only when border tensions erupted between India and China in the 1960’s. The Silk Route also strengthens Pakistan’s relationship and trade with China.
There are many other areas in Kashmir that have major geo-political significance. One such area is the Siachen Glacier in the Karakoram Pass. It is the only barrier preventing Pakistani and Chinese forces from linking up in Kashmir4. If Pakistan and China were allowed to link up their militaries at Siachen, India’s national security over the entire northern frontier would be greatly undermined. Such a link up would create a very powerful military force, consisting of India’s two biggest rivals. This force would be
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capable of joint and potentially decisive military action against India.
Additionally, the strategic importance of Kashmir extends beyond South Asia and
onto the global stage. The annexation of Kashmir by Pakistan or the creation of an independent state would create a continuous block of potential Islamic fundamentalist regions extending all the way from Morocco to Malaysia. Amongst other things, this would have a detrimental impact on the global strategy in the ‘war on terror’. Kashmir, already somewhat of a harbor for terrorists worldwide could also become a fundamentalist state like Iran and support undesirable activities. According to recent declassified documents, the west also had strategic military interests in Kashmir 6. Some analysts believe that an independent Kashmir, neutral between India and Pakistan, would be dependant on the west due to its land locked nature. This would give the west an opportunity to establish a military presence in the valley, thus enabling it to extend its influence beyond the Middle East to Central Asia and the western border of China. However, another report dismissed the idea as establishing a military base in the valley would be far too expensive and impractical due to the unsuitable terrain.
The western nations have also often leveraged Kashmir in their foreign policies with both India and Pakistan. In the 1980’s Pakistan was a major cold war ally for the west and was instrumental in the fight against the Soviets in Afghanistan. India in contrast was largely non-aligned with a bias favoring the Soviet Union. As a result, the west rewarded Pakistan for its support by reversing its stand on the Kashmir issue to
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support Pakistan after a period of relative detachment from the dispute 6. It also became more tolerant of Pakistan’s tacit support to cross border violence. In the 1990’s as western relations with Pakistan became strained and the Soviet Union became obsolete, the west became more critical of Pakistan’s support to cross border terrorism. It applied both diplomatic and financial pressure on Pakistan to stop support for terrorist activities 6. However, more recently, the west has released some pressure on Pakistan to crack down on terrorist organizations in Kashmir. This seems to be in response to Pakistan’s support in the recent ‘war on terror’ and the realization that the Pakistani government may not have as much control over these terrorists organizations as it did a few years ago. Similarly, the western world has also often leveraged Kashmir in its foreign policy with regards to India in order to influence the actions of the Indian government. Therefore, the Kashmir valley has become important to Pakistan, India and world politics in general.
Besides its strategic and political importance, Pakistan and India both claim Kashmir because of cultural and social reasons. Kashmir has become ingrained in the minds of both Pakistanis and Indians as the single biggest issue facing the Indian subcontinent. Pakistan has suffered defeats in previous wars with India over Kashmir. Pakistan and India have developed a universal enmity and rivalry extending across all spheres of life. As a result, Kashmir has come to represent very high stakes for both countries in terms of national pride.
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Analysis of terrorism in Kashmir and the India-Pakistan dispute
All these reasons have caused numerous wars and untold death and destruction for both India and Pakistan. However, the biggest fallout of the above factors has been rampant terrorism and the related proxy war between Pakistan and India since 1988. Terrorism has ravaged the valley and its people. This terrorism is not aimed at directly gaining any strategic advantage or territory from India. Rather, it is aimed at terrorizing and exterminating innocent and moderate Kashmiris to convert Kashmir into a radical Islamist region 7. Such a region would automatically be at odds with a secular, passive and Hindu dominated country like India. The region would therefore, naturally secede from India and possibly join Pakistan. This proxy war which employs the technique of terrorism rather than direct military action has completely changed the face of the Kashmir problem. It has converted the territorial dispute into a multifaceted social, economic, political, military and religious problem that must be resolved before Kashmir can ever experience peace and security.
This war is far more sophisticated and organized than the genocide in Congo and conflict in the Gaza strip. During the late eighties and early nineties, the Pakistani government and army, through the I.S.I. (Inter Services Intelligence), helped set up an entire terrorist network in Kashmir. Reports suggest that the I.S.I. had setup a war council consisting of approximately seventy hardcore terrorists 4. The I.S.I. has worked in conjunction with this terrorist network to achieve two major objectives. The first
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objective is the removal of all non-Mulims from the Kashmir valley, and the severing of all connections to the central government 7. By doing so, it hopes to change the demographics of Kashmir to make it more natural for Kashmir to become a part of Pakistan. In essence, they want to convert Kashmir from being a part of secular India into an Islamic nation. The second objective is to neutralize a large part of the Indian military forces by keeping them occupied and making them less potent in the event of a confrontation with Pakistan.
Many techniques have been employed to achieve these two objectives. The most important of these techniques is the establishment of a network of religious schools in the valley. These religious schools reject secularism and the secular, scientific syllabus prescribed by the government. Instead, these schools implant religious bigotry, communal hatred and radical religious fundamentalism in thousands of impressionable young minds throughout the valley 4. A network of hundreds of such schools has been established by the terrorist organizations throughout the valley4. They have also destroyed many regular schools in the valley to force children to go to the religious schools or remain uneducated. They have also established a network of mosques throughout the valley 4. These mosques are instrumental in spreading religious fundamentalism. Together, these mosques and schools act as centers through which fundamentalism and violence have spread throughout Kashmir. These structures also act as important places for terrorist organizations to recruit people. These recruits, after being
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thoroughly indoctrinated and trained in terrorist training camps, add to the religious hatred brewing in the valley. Simultaneously, terrorists are also destroying Hindu temples and systematically exterminating Hindus to erase any link between Muslims and Hindus in the valley7. This has further increased the communal tension in the valley.
Behind the scenes, the I.S.I. and the Pakistani army are supervising, controlling and supporting these terrorist organizations. They have armed the terrorists with the latest weapons and provide cover fire to help them infiltrate the L.O.C. into India13. The I.S.I. coordinates between different terrorist organizations to effectively spread violence and create communal tension throughout the valley. The terrorists, with help from Pakistan, have created training camps in Kashmir, Pakistan and Afghanistan to indoctrinate and further train recruits. It was estimated that there were as many as 5,000 terrorists in various camps located in Pakistani Punjab and the North West Frontier Province9.
The local government and administration are also deeply involved in the proxy war in the valley. In the early 1980’s the local administration began to be penetrated by fundamentalists, some from terrorist organizations. Simultaneously, moderates in senior posts in the local government were systematically exterminated. As a result, organizations like the Jamaat were able to organize black outs and major protests to bring the entire state to a standstill. Religious fundamentalists in high government positions also used government resources to provide logistical and monetary support to terrorists.
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These fundamentalists discriminate against non Muslims in Kashmir, even denying them emergency medical aid or simple amenities like electricity and water.
It is interesting to note that on multiple occasions, security forces have uncovered evidence linking these terrorists with Pakistan and the Pakistani Army. In 1999, Security Forces recovered pay books and I.D. cards establishing the militants and ‘freedom fighters’ as regular soldiers in the Pakistani Army, specifically, the Northern Light Infantry. It has become clear that Pakistan, through organizations like the I.S.I. covertly supported terrorism in Kashmir. This fact is further supported by the Center for Contemporary Conflict in the U.S. which published an analysis of the Kargil conflict in 1999. The extent of Pakistan’s involvement in the current situation in Kashmir is also evident in the sudden fall of Kashmiri groups that support an independent Kashmir like the JKLF (Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front). The JKLF comprised largely of radical Kashmiris and unlike today’s terrorist groups in the valley had few foreigners. However, as it became clear that the group did not support secession of the state to Pakistan, the group was suddenly marginalized and replaced by groups which supported secession to Pakistan14. Clearly, the situation in Kashmir has become a Pakistan supported proxy war from an indigenous struggle for self-determination.
Other factors supporting the rise of terrorism in Kashmir
External factors, especially bad administration by the Indian government and gross violations of human rights by Indian security forces, have also created an environment
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conducive to terrorism in Kashmir. The biggest such factor has been the apathy of the central and state governments of the time with regard to Kashmir. The public infrastructure in Kashmir is almost non-existent and corruption and religious fundamentalism plague the public administrative machinery. During the beginning of the proxy war, the state and central governments did little to help the people of Kashmir. The ineffectiveness of the Janata Dal government, in power in 1989, only worsened the situation. The Indian central government displayed its weakness as it nearly collapsed when terrorists kidnapped the daughter of the Home Minister. In exchange for her safety, the government readily exchanged five captured militants. This near collapse of the Central Government, coupled with the government’s general apathy and ineptitude with regards to terrorism has only encouraged the terrorists in Kashmir. Such apathy and ineffectiveness have also created a sense of alienation and neglect for the Muslims in Kashmir. This sense of alienation only adds to the hatred against Hindus and India for the Muslims in the valley, thus, supporting communal tension in the area. Furthermore, this sense of alienation also encourages the terrorists to continue their activities.