Resumption of dialogue on Kashmir imperative for lasting solution
Sadaket Ali Malik
November 20, 2009
Sadaket Malik
New Delhi´s secret search for peace has had sparked off intense political competition in the state. The offer of dialogue in Delhi proved vague. There is no change for the common man. The metal detectors can't detect the anger and alienation of the Kashmiri people. No amount of weapons can defeat people's discontent.
The ongoing energetic campaigns and meetings of several fractions has had proved futile, at the same time the talks between several leaders including mainstream and separatists needs immediate resumption. The day by day alterations in talk process can lead to the lasting solution of Kashmir problem if it reaches up a consensus between all triangularly.
However, in its eagerness to get the Hurriyat to participate in the talks the UPA is in danger of mismanaging the situation. The frequent visits by Chidambaram and intermediaries have not gone unnoticed in Kashmir, and what should have remained out of the spotlights has become a topic of intense discussion at street corners. The Hurriyat leaders are feeling the pressure, and are in turn demanding some quick decisions by the government shortly after the dialogue resumes. These centre round the release of political prisoners, and demilitarisation in areas where it is visible and has an impact.
Hovever, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Union home minister P Chidambaram have been visiting Jammu and Kashmir in a bid to start the talks. This time they are optimistic that at least the moderate All Parties Hurriyat Conference will be on the table, particularly as Mirwaiz Omar Farooq has been working hard to get the Kashmiri separatists together. The government´s agenda is not clear, although the Hurriyat is clear that it wants demilitarisation, release of prisoners, on the table as identifiable first steps with further discussion on issues like irrelevant borders and self-governance. Kashmiri hardliner Syed Ali Shah Geelani has rejected the Mirwaiz´s overtures for talks, making it clear that he will not sit on the table until the government recognises Kashmir as a dispute. That his position has considerable support within the Valley is clear from the fact that he has been drawing huge crowds, making Omar Farooq and other Kashmiri leaders wary of rushing into a dialogue without some commitments from New Delhi.
Jammu and Kashmir´s Hurriyat Conference is committed to solving the Kashmir issue through meaningful dialogue with New Delhi but also
Wants Pakistan on board,
Even as New Delhi has accelerated its covert engagement with the Mirwaiz Umar Farooq-led All Parties Hurriyat Conference, major political parties in Jammu and Kashmir have intensified efforts to give legitimacy to their own, competing visions of the State´s future.
Leaders of the National Conference have made the recommendations of a State Autonomy Commission Report, which was endorsed by the Assembly in 1998, the centerpiece of their political position.
However, it is the People´s Democratic Party which draws much of its support from voters sympathetic to the Hurriyat and Islamist groups like the Jamaat-e-Islami — that has the greatest concern about the course of the dialogue.
A New Delhi-Hurriyat deal could lead to some secessionist factions contesting elections, and thus dividing the social alliance which has driven the PDP´s dramatic rise as a critical actor in Jammu and Kashmir politics.
PDP leaders have responded by launching an energetic campaign to build mass support for their self-rule proposals. During rallies and meetings across the State, PDP leader and former Deputy Chief Minister Muzaffar Beig has been explaining threadbare the party´s complex Self-Rule Document released last year. The document calls for the State to be demilitarised, the Line of Control to be opened for free movement of peoples and goods, and the creation of cross-border elected bodies.
Any sign of peace talks may help reduce tension in the state, the focus of conflict between India and Pakistan for decades. The Hurriyat has urged New Delhi to pull out troops, release prisoners and end human rights violations before resuming peace talks.
Shiromani Akali Dal stressed restoration of pre-1953 position as it was quintessential for initiating a dialogue process with the pro-freedom parties, said that India was playing dual policy to curb the ongoing freedom struggle in Kashmir.
Besides confidence building measures along the lines of self-government, no political hegemony, no masters and no surrogate, there has to be an amicable relationship between India and Pakistan.
to address the deepening alienation of the Kashmiri people and the political uncertainty hanging over Kashmir, all the political outfits and separatist leaders should reach into a healthy consensus as there seemed indifferences of ideology among all.
Untill and unless the separatists and mainstream leaders did not think of the common document of Kashmir, and resume the talks, I think the the issue can be dragged and passed on to next generations to come.
Today, you have to take into consideration sentiments of Kashmiris and the dynamics sweeping across the world. We have to go beyond beaten tracks and hostilities. Today, the only way out for India and Pakistan is to work on actual issues. Peace and dispute can't coexist and nuclear weaponisation in the subcontinent has added an alarming dimension.
All the people at the helm should try to build a consensus because the issue cannot be dragged and passed on to next generations.
New Delhi´s secret search for peace has had sparked off intense political competition in the state. The offer of dialogue in Delhi proved vague. There is no change for the common man. The metal detectors can't detect the anger and alienation of the Kashmiri people. No amount of weapons can defeat people's discontent.
The ongoing energetic campaigns and meetings of several fractions has had proved futile, at the same time the talks between several leaders including mainstream and separatists needs immediate resumption. The day by day alterations in talk process can lead to the lasting solution of Kashmir problem if it reaches up a consensus between all triangularly.
However, in its eagerness to get the Hurriyat to participate in the talks the UPA is in danger of mismanaging the situation. The frequent visits by Chidambaram and intermediaries have not gone unnoticed in Kashmir, and what should have remained out of the spotlights has become a topic of intense discussion at street corners. The Hurriyat leaders are feeling the pressure, and are in turn demanding some quick decisions by the government shortly after the dialogue resumes. These centre round the release of political prisoners, and demilitarisation in areas where it is visible and has an impact.
Hovever, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Union home minister P Chidambaram have been visiting Jammu and Kashmir in a bid to start the talks. This time they are optimistic that at least the moderate All Parties Hurriyat Conference will be on the table, particularly as Mirwaiz Omar Farooq has been working hard to get the Kashmiri separatists together. The government´s agenda is not clear, although the Hurriyat is clear that it wants demilitarisation, release of prisoners, on the table as identifiable first steps with further discussion on issues like irrelevant borders and self-governance. Kashmiri hardliner Syed Ali Shah Geelani has rejected the Mirwaiz´s overtures for talks, making it clear that he will not sit on the table until the government recognises Kashmir as a dispute. That his position has considerable support within the Valley is clear from the fact that he has been drawing huge crowds, making Omar Farooq and other Kashmiri leaders wary of rushing into a dialogue without some commitments from New Delhi.
Jammu and Kashmir´s Hurriyat Conference is committed to solving the Kashmir issue through meaningful dialogue with New Delhi but also
Wants Pakistan on board,
Even as New Delhi has accelerated its covert engagement with the Mirwaiz Umar Farooq-led All Parties Hurriyat Conference, major political parties in Jammu and Kashmir have intensified efforts to give legitimacy to their own, competing visions of the State´s future.
Leaders of the National Conference have made the recommendations of a State Autonomy Commission Report, which was endorsed by the Assembly in 1998, the centerpiece of their political position.
However, it is the People´s Democratic Party which draws much of its support from voters sympathetic to the Hurriyat and Islamist groups like the Jamaat-e-Islami — that has the greatest concern about the course of the dialogue.
A New Delhi-Hurriyat deal could lead to some secessionist factions contesting elections, and thus dividing the social alliance which has driven the PDP´s dramatic rise as a critical actor in Jammu and Kashmir politics.
PDP leaders have responded by launching an energetic campaign to build mass support for their self-rule proposals. During rallies and meetings across the State, PDP leader and former Deputy Chief Minister Muzaffar Beig has been explaining threadbare the party´s complex Self-Rule Document released last year. The document calls for the State to be demilitarised, the Line of Control to be opened for free movement of peoples and goods, and the creation of cross-border elected bodies.
Any sign of peace talks may help reduce tension in the state, the focus of conflict between India and Pakistan for decades. The Hurriyat has urged New Delhi to pull out troops, release prisoners and end human rights violations before resuming peace talks.
Shiromani Akali Dal stressed restoration of pre-1953 position as it was quintessential for initiating a dialogue process with the pro-freedom parties, said that India was playing dual policy to curb the ongoing freedom struggle in Kashmir.
Besides confidence building measures along the lines of self-government, no political hegemony, no masters and no surrogate, there has to be an amicable relationship between India and Pakistan.
to address the deepening alienation of the Kashmiri people and the political uncertainty hanging over Kashmir, all the political outfits and separatist leaders should reach into a healthy consensus as there seemed indifferences of ideology among all.
Untill and unless the separatists and mainstream leaders did not think of the common document of Kashmir, and resume the talks, I think the the issue can be dragged and passed on to next generations to come.
Today, you have to take into consideration sentiments of Kashmiris and the dynamics sweeping across the world. We have to go beyond beaten tracks and hostilities. Today, the only way out for India and Pakistan is to work on actual issues. Peace and dispute can't coexist and nuclear weaponisation in the subcontinent has added an alarming dimension.
All the people at the helm should try to build a consensus because the issue cannot be dragged and passed on to next generations.
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