Article published November 22, 2005
Political fissures in Himalayan landscape
PESHAWAR, Pakistan - The devastating earthquake on Oct. 8 that destroyed much of Pakistani-controlled Kashmir and parts of northwest Pakistan not only created deep fissures in the picturesque Himalayan landscape but also unearthed wide political gaps that separate Pakistan from neighboring India over the very territory that was the epicenter of the calamity.
There was hope that the disaster would, at least for the time being, lead to the opening of the heavily fortified and mined Line of Control that has divided Kashmir for the past 57 years. Ground realities, however, scuttled that Godsend opportunity.
As the magnitude of the disaster became evident, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf suggested that the LoC should be opened at five points to allow Kashmiris from both sides to cross over and help their relatives. Like a venomous snake, the LoC has kept the divided families from visiting each other for more than half a century.
After intense negotiation, both countries agreed to open certain crossings but in stages. While Pakistan offered unlimited access to Kashmiris from the other side, India refused to reciprocate and for good reasons.
There has been an ongoing indigenous insurgency in the Indian-controlled Kashmir that is in part fueled by the Pakistani Kashmiris crossing over to the other side. Pakistan has been under pressure from India and the United States to stop infiltration of Kashmiris from Pakistan.
An open border, according to India, would increase the risk of further attacks on government installations in Indian Kashmir and in India, as happened recently in New Delhi. For most Kashmiris, however, the border is an unnecessary hurdle in reunification of divided families.The root of the dispute goes back to 1947, when the Indian subcontinent was partitioned into a predominantly Muslim Pakistan and a majority Hindu India. Pakistan claims Kashmir because it is a majority Muslim area and is geographically contiguous with Pakistan. India claims Kashmir because the ruler of Kashmir opted to join India after the partition. In the past there have been many attempts at mediation by the United Nations and countless talks between the two countries. Nothing has broken the deadlock, including two costly and bloody wars they fought in 1948 and 1965. The Kashmir dispute took on an added urgency when India and Pakistan went nuclear.
Enter the United States, but through an inconspicuous back door. With prompting by the United States, both countries have been inching toward an understanding on Kashmir. To pacify militant, right-wing politico-religious parties in both countries, they have instituted confidence-building measures that include ease of travel between the two countries and frequent people-to-people contacts, including a bus service between divided parts of Kashmir. This might lead India and Pakistan to compromise on their oft-stated claim on the entire region.
Kashmiris, however, think differently. They would like a unified Kashmir independent of India and Pakistan. They consider the LoC a personal affront and would have liked the border to disappear completely after the earthquake.
Because roads and mountain tracks had been in disuse or destroyed in the past 58 years, it took an effort to open the five crossings agreed to by India and Pakistan. Some roads and bridges had to be rebuilt for vehicular traffic, and along the way land mines had to be cleared.
The last of the five crossings was opened last week under the glare of television cameras when smiling Pakistani and Indian officials exchanged greetings and relief goods. The most important commodity, the people, however, were not permitted to cross.
The first crossing of people is expected to happen later this week when the ubiquitous and time-consuming paper work is completed.
Meanwhile, large crowds gather on both sides of the crossings and try to get a glimpse of their long-separated relatives on the other side. The comments of one woman on the Indian side, 60-year-old Farida Begum, are telling. She reportedly said: "If they allow us to cross, it will be like doing the Haj pilgrimage [to Mecca]." To a majority of Kashmiris, reunification of their divided land is an act of faith.
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A correction: In my last column I erroneously reported, based on government sources in Islamabad, that earthquake donations to United Nations Development Program would be matched dollar for dollar. UNDP will spend each donated dollar for relief efforts but will not match it. I regret the error.
Dr. S. Amjad Hussain is a retired Toledo surgeon whose column appears every other week in The Blade.
Contact him at:
aghaji@buckeye-express.com
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