Kashmir issue and its solution
How has the ongoing conflict in Kashmir affected the people of the region? Are there any steps that can be taken to help resolve the long standing dispute between India and Pakistan? On April 27, 2004, the Institute hosted a presentation by senior colleague Wajahat Habibullah on "The Kashmir Problem and Its Solutions". He presented his research for the project and his many years of service to the Government of India in Kashmir, outlining the problem and pointing out some of the factors that make it difficult to resolve. In particular, they discussed the economic impact of the war on the lives of Kashmiris and the consequences of fueling further conflict. He suggested ways to move the dispute towards settlement.
Wajahat Habibullah is on leave from his post as Secretary to the Government of India in the Department of Consumer Affairs. His deep involvement in Kashmir affairs includes a term as Deputy Chair and Chief Executive of the Jammu and Kashmir Lakes and Waterways Development Authority (Srinagar, 1999-2000), which covers the administration of the eight districts of the Kashmir Valley and Ladakh. He is the Chief Divisional Commissioner (1990-91 and 1993), and served for 15 years in the State of Jammu and Kashmir, where he held the State Assembly elections in 1977. As commissioner in Kashmir in the early 1990s, talks were called for his release. The militants took hostages. He also made several major inquiries into human rights violations by Indian security forces.
(Courtesy Greater Kashmir Daily Online)
Senior colleague Wajahat Habibullah began by noting that the views expressed during his conversation were his own and not necessarily those of the Government of India. He then gave a brief overview of his research at the Institute last year and some background on the current situation in Kashmir.
A closer look at Kashmir
He observed that the issue of Kashmir was basically represented as an issue between India and Pakistan and on the occasion of independence, issues of justification of Kashmir's accession to India were raised. He argued that this was not the case today, but that since the accession the situation had changed to such an extent that the local insurgency had intensified. Habibullah pointed out that in the current situation, the debate should focus on the experiences and aspirations of the people of the Kashmir Valley.
Ethnic and religious diversity in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, which is divided into three regions, has played an important role in complicating the Kashmir issue. The majority of the 5.4 million population of Jammu and Kashmir resides in the Kashmir Valley. Their religion is 98% Islam with distinct Sufi characteristics. The Jammu division, on the other hand, has a population of 4.4 million, of which more than one percent are Hindus and 30 percent are Muslims, with the latter representing a majority in three of Jammu's districts. Languages are different from Punjabi and different from Kashmiris, widely spoken in the valley. The third component, the largest and most remote of the three in the region, is Ladakh, with a population of about 3,233,000, with a thin Muslim majority. It is mostly Shia, as the Kashmir Valley as a whole is separate from the Sunni majority.
Understanding the origins of insurgency
Commenting on the beginning of the insurgency in the late 1980s, Habibullah noted that it was in fact mostly a racial issue. Over the years, however, rebellion has been carefully and deliberately turned into a religious one. This created an atmosphere of intolerance, intimidation and, ultimately, violence throughout the valley, which only exacerbated other current tensions - a situation that led to the deportation of Kashmiri Hindu Pandits from the region. Today, Habibullah laments that a large segment of the population is orphaned or helpless, has a high suicide rate in the Valley, and that psychiatric services are virtually unavailable after postnatal distress.
Habibullah said reviving the economy in the valley would help solve some of these problems. Explaining the government's control over most businesses in the region, he noted that employment in the Valley is a virtual stalemate. To address this issue, he advocated a more open private sector to provide more shares to Kashmiris in the future. In addition, a vibrant economy as a whole will further alleviate the unemployment crisis that is currently plaguing Kashmir. This is a situation that clearly attracts young Kashmiris to insurgent movements, as in many other conflict areas around the world.
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