T a b l e o f C o n t e n t s

Introduction

General Information

History

Issues and Perspectives

Voices of Resistance

The Struggle Ahead

4 --Map5 --Statistics6 --Key Participants

9 --Kashmir Insight & Timeline13 --The Current Situation14 --Why Kashmiris Revolted against India

19 --Differing Agendas in Asia20 --What Spawns the Creation of a Militant22 --Bitter Realities about Kashmir24 --Peace as Daily War25 --Too many People Gain from the Conflict26 --India turned Kashmir into the Bitter Place it is Now28 --Plight of the Kashmiri Woman

30 --Statement against Dual Occupation32 --Kashmir, the Imperiled Paradise33 --Kashmiris want to Ban the Gun34 --Who Killed my Father?

37 --A call to Kashmir Peace Plans39 --The Roll of NGOs in Reconstructing Kashmir40 --A Call for Just Peace43 --The Kashmiri Voice

2DAGA Press 2002

Appendix

I n t r o d u c t i o n

3 Kashmir Dossier

Disputed Territory; Paradise Lost

Kashmir was once known as a paradise on earth. Its name evokes images of alpine vistas and rushing rivers,gondolas floating on lotus-filled lakes, horse carts loaded with fresh apples and mountains covered with snow. Butin the past decade, the name Kashmir has come to evoke very different images: soldiers in camouflage gearpatrolling every road; guerrillas detonating landmines and throwing grenades, women in kerchiefs wailing overdead bodies, children orphaned by the crisis and having to fend for themselves in the streets.

Kashmir, claimed by both India and Pakistan, was split into two portions separated by a temporary cease-firelineone portion occupied by India and other by Pakistan. Pakistan further divided her held part of Kashmir in1949, one is called Azad Kashmir and the other Gilgit Baltistan. During the Indo-China war of 1962, China capturedsome of the part of Kashmir and in 1963 Pakistan gave an important part of northern Kashmir to China in anagreement called Pak-China frontier agreement.

The Kashmir dispute is not an easy mess to unravel. Ethnicity, religion, nationalism, state repression, systematichuman rights violations and terrorism are all-important ingredients of this conflict. In particular, the involvementof religion in this region exacerbates the conflict and makes resolution very difficult. Even the slightest incident ofconflict or violence could have the potential to spiral into full-scale war between Pakistan and India and, in recentmonths, the media and both governments have been thumping their chests over Kashmir.

There is a proverb in Asia that speaks very much to the situation in Kashmir: When two elephants fight, it is thegrass that get trampled. The ordinary people, including women and children, are exposed to extreme forms ofsuffering and hardship in this conflict.

What then could be a viable solution for the Kashmiri problem?

To maintain status quo? ------------------------------------- No, this will be unacceptable to all parties as perpetuat-ing an intolerable situation.

To be unified with India? ------------------------------------This would be acceptable with the Hindu minority and someMuslims but the overwhelming majority of Kashmiris wouldreject this option.

Union with Pakistan? ---------------------------------------- This would be acceptable with most Muslim Kashmiris butwould be rejected by the Hindu minority.

Be partitioned between India and Pakistan? ------------This will break-up the Kashmiri nation and is unaccept-able to the growing alternative view among MuslimKashmiris under Indian occupation who want independence.

Independence? -----------------------------------------------This is an option considered by neither India nor Pakistanbut there is increasing Kashmiri support for this alterna-tive view.

The essential pre-requisite to a peaceful solution is that the voice of the Kashmiri people must beheard and seriously taken into consideration. We hope that the diverse opinions and perspectives inthis Dossier will help you develop your own critical thinking on this difficult issue.

-- CHAN Beng Seng

Special thanks to Pangernungba, WSCF-AP intern with DAGA, whohelped collate the articles and Joel Fath, MCC Salter with DAGA,for the layout work on this dossier.

Kashmir TerritoryKashmir TerritoryKashmir TerritoryKashmir TerritoryKashmir Territory

Source: http://www.kashmir-hr.netAsian Human Rights Commission

Present Status of KashmirSince 1947, the State of Kashmir has been a dis-puted territory whose future is to be decidedthrough a plebiscite held under the auspices ofthe United Nations.

The official claim of the Indian authorities is thatKashmir is an integral part of India and that Pa-kistan has occupied her territory while Pakistanmaintains that Kashmir is a Muslim-majority stateand accordingly it should be part of Pakistan.

Indian and Pakistani Claims

The fact is that Kashmir is neither part of Indiaor does it belong to Pakistan. It is a disputedterritory, and the United Nations has promisedto provide Kashmiris an opportunity to decidetheir future.

Where is Kashmir?

Source: Extracts from Defense Journal, http://www.defencejournal.com/globe/feb-mar99/whereiskashmir.htm

LocationKashmir is located in the heart of south centralAsia amongst the most populace countries of theworld. It shares its borders with China, Afghani-stan, India and Pakistan.

Area84471 square miles, It is larger than 95 otherindependent countries in area. Nearly 63% of itsterritory is held under Indian control, 37% underPakistani control, which includes an area lessthan 5% known as Azad Kashmir.

Area under Indian control: (50513 sq. miles)a) Ladakh: 33740 sq. milesb) Kashmir province: 6893 sq. milesc) Jammu province: 9880 sq. miles

Area under Pakistan control: (33958 sq.miles)a) Gilgit & Baltistan: 29814 sq. milesb) Muzaffarabad & Poonch valley: 4144 sq.miles

Area under Chinese control:In the December 1962 war with India, China oc-cupied 1971 sq. miles from Indian held Kashmirat Aksai-chin and Demochok in Ladakh. In De-cember 1962, 1868 sq. miles were conditionallytaken over by China at Shaksgam in NorthernAreas of Kashmir under Pakistan control.

Population13 million including, 1.5 million refugees in Pa-kistan and 0.5 million living in other parts of theworld. The population of Kashmir in 1991 hasreached 11.6 million - 7.3 million (63%) Indiancontrolled Kashmir and 4.3 million (37%) Paki-stan controlled Kashmir. It is thus bigger in sizethan 109 sovereign countries of the world andlarger than 114 UN member states.

Religious Affiliation of Populace

Indian controlled Kashmir (7.3 million) Muslims 64% Non-Muslims 36%

Pakistan controlled Kashmir (4.3 million) Muslims 100%

LanguagesUrdu (official) Kashmiri (mostly), regional lan-guages like Dogri, Hindi, Dardi, Pahari, Englishis widely spoken

Capitals Srinagar, (summer capital) Indian con-

trolled part Jammu, (winter capital) Indian con-

trolled part Muzaffarabad, Azad Kashmir (Pakistan

controlled part)

4Kashmir Dossier

Key ParticipantsKey ParticipantsKey ParticipantsKey ParticipantsKey Participants

United Jihadi Council (UJC): The council is acoalition of 14 Pakistan-based groups fighting inKashmir. Hizubul Mujahideen (Hizb) leader SyedSalahuddin (the largest of the indigenous armedgroups) leads it. Besides Hizb, it includes Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and 12 other minor militant groupscommitted to the Deoband School of Islamicmilitancy. The members advocate Kashmirs in-tegration with Pakistan.

Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF): TheJKLF is a secular, pro-independence movementfounded in 1977 inthe United Kingdomby Amanullah Khan.The original frontsplintered into two,however, and both usethe same name,namely the Jammu andKashmir LiberationFront. Amanullah Khanheads one group.The other is headedby Yasin Malik, andwas founded inSeptember 1995 afterMalik split from Khanbecause of differencesover strategy.Both JKLFs share the goal of self-determinationfor the people of Kashmir, but the Malik factionhas renounced the use of violence to attain thisgoal. The Malik faction is a member of the AllParties Huriyat Conference. Both JKLFs have longdemanded a plebiscite in Kashmir.

Hizubul Mujahideen (Hizb): The Hizb wasfounded in 1990 and is currently the largestarmed group operating in Kashmir. The Hizb ad-vocates Kashmirs merger with Pakistan and alsocampaigns for the Islamization of Kashmir. It iswidely believed that elements of the Pakistanisecurity forces supported the creation of the Hizbbecause it is an Islamic force desiring to inte-grate Kashmir into Pakistan. This contrasts withthe secular character of the call of the JKLFsfor independence. The Hizbul Mujahideen is veryclose to the Jamaat-e-Islami political movementin Kashmir and Pakistan.

Harakat ul-Mujahidin (HUM): Formerly known asthe Harakat al-Ansar, the HUM is an Islamic mili-tant group based in Pakistan that operates pri-marily in Kashmir. It was founded in 1985 andbegan military operations in Kashmir in 1990. Itis based in Muzaffarabad, Rawalpindi, and sev-eral other towns in Pakistan and Afghanistan,but members conduct insurgent and terroristactivities primarily in Kashmir. Its supporters aremostly Pakistanis and Kashmiris and also includeAfghans and Arab veterans of the Afghan war.HUM lost some of its membership in defectionsto the Jaish-e-Mohammed.

5 DAGA Press 2002

number of urban Kashmiri youth. The groups aimis to unite Kashmir with Pakistan. It is politicallyaligned with the radical, pro-Taliban politicalparty, Jamiat-i Ulema-i Islam (JUI-F). It has sev-eral hundred armed supporters located in AzadKashmir, Pakistan, and in Indias