Kashmir, the “Final” solution!

[HalfMoon]

Kashmir, the “Final” solution!

Reportedly, Prime Minister Modi is going to announce the “Final” solution of the Kashmir problem before 2019 elections!


M.Ashraf
Srinagar, Publish Date: Sep 26 2018 9:41PM | Updated Date: Sep 26 2018 9:59PM

Representational Pic
Recently there was a news report that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is going to announce the “Final” solution of the Kashmir problem very soon. In fact, the Eurasian Times on September 12 carried an item titled, “PM Modi will divide Kashmir in three parts before 2019 elections”. The writer poses a question, “Is Delhi planning to divide Jammu and Kashmir into three parts i.e. Hindu Majority Jammu, Buddhist and Shia Muslim dominated Ladakh and Sunni Muslim dominated Kashmir Valley? As per reports in a local Jammu and Kashmir daily, Indian PM is keen to change the political map of J&K before Indian elections of 2019”.

“Quoting the sources, the Jammu based paper reported that the PM Modi wants to resolve the Kashmir issue during his first-term itself. “It is possible that the PM may himself in a month or so declare division of Kashmir into three parts,” it said. According to PMO officials, Delhi was working out a plan that would lead to the trifurcation of the J&K state. “If all goes well, the Kashmir map would be changed and Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh would be created as the union territories,” they said.


The report claimed that the ‘division’ of the J&K territory would lead to the ‘resolution’ of many obstacles. “BJP knows that it cannot form a government in Jammu and Kashmir on its own and that it has to depend either on the National Conference or the People’s Democratic Party if it wants to come in power. Under such a situation of joint power-sharing with NC or PDP, Delhi cannot abrogate Article 370 of the constitution. An Indian official at the PM Office claimed that the Modi government would divide the J&K state before the general elections of 2019”.

The word “Final Solution” gives one creeps because of an ominous ring which reminds one about the “Final Solution of the Jewish Problem”, mentioned by Adolf Hitler in his autobiography, Mein Kampf. That final solution which he had designed resulted in the death of six million Jews and created the most notorious concentration camp of Auschwitz! Probably, some of the fanatic followers of Hindutva may be thinking on those lines in regard to Kashmir. Kashmiris to be reduced to a minority in Kashmir! However, the division of the state will not result in that. It will on the contrary create a unit of Kashmiris only with hundred percent Muslim population. Jammu will lose its importance as it is known only because of its association with Kashmir. Jammu as Jammu on its known is not so much known not only abroad but even in India itself. Ladakh does have an independent recognition as the “Little Tibet”. Incidentally, a famous statesman from Jammu, Balraj Puri died with his dream of Regional Autonomy. He did have a viable preposition but no body listened to him. Giving three regions internal autonomy within the overall State of J & K should not have been a problem. It would fulfil the regional aspirations without changing the overall character of the state.

The division of the State into three union territories would change its status in relation to the UN Resolutions passed regarding the final disposal of the erstwhile State of J & K. The case is still on the agenda of the UN Security Council and the UN observers continue to be stationed here. Unilateral division of the State without asking the people their choice violates the UN Mandate. It should normally invite immediate UN intervention. In fact, on the other side, the people living in the former Northern Areas now known as Gilgit-Baltistan had been clamouring for a long time to be declared the fifth province of Pakistan. The same could not be done by the Government of Pakistan because of the UN resolutions on the subject. Reportedly, the feeling there was that such an act would weaken Pakistan’s case. Accordingly, Pakistani’s gave them some sort of autonomy on the pattern of the Ladakh’s Hill Development Councils.

The recent contradictory declarations regarding holding of Indo-Pak foreign ministers meeting in New York and then its abrupt cancellation by India does not augur well. Additionally, the two Army Chiefs have issued somewhat belligerent statements. That straightaway forestalls any “Final Solution” as has reportedly been envisaged by the Prime Minister. That solution, if attempted, may be the spark not only to light a fuse of an unmanageable Indo-Pak conflict but may be the beginning of disintegration of the whole sub-continent.

ashrafmjk@gmail.com

https://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/opinion/kashmir-the-final-solution/297695.html

 

[bananarepublic]

how about we give everyone a gun and have a battle royale in Kashmir
the one who wins will get chicken diner which even the Hindus can eat

 

[HalfMoon]

how about we give everyone a gun and have a battle royale in Kashmir
the one who wins will get chicken diner which even the Hindus can eat

Modi is trying to solve the issue peacefully.

Jammu goes to India.

AJK, GB & Kashmir valley gets to choose to join Pakistan or remain independent.

Norway is negotiating this deal.



PAK ADMINISTERED KASHMIR
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File Photo


Former Prime Minister of Norway KjellMagneBondevik Sunday visited Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, and discussed the “latest situation” in Jammu and Kashmir with the PaK president Sardar Masood Khan. Bondevik, who visited PaK on the invitation of Masood, visited Srinagar on Friday where he met top Hurriyat leaders including Syed Ali Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.

Bondevik briefed Khan about his visit to Srinagar and a meeting with the Joint Resistance Leadership there.


Khan told the visiting dignitary that the “grim situation in Kashmir requires diplomatic and political initiatives by the international community to end the sufferings of the Kashmiri people”.

“Diplomacy can help bridge divides and come to an understanding on a just and lasting resolution on the Kashmir dispute,” Khan said, adding that a UN Security Council resolution on the Kashmir dispute, adopted under chapter 6 of the UN Charter, outlines the modalities for the “pacific settlement of the dispute”.

Khan said the unsettled Kashmir dispute is a “danger to the regional and international peace and security and, therefore, negotiation, mediation, and observation are important to break the current deadlock”.

“The unresolved dispute of Jammu and Kashmir poses a serious threat to peace and security and therefore the UNSC cannot leave Kashmir in the lurch. It must step in to reactivate mechanisms for implementation of the UNSC resolution that calls for plebiscite in Kashmir,” he said.

Kashmir, he said, was “not just a legal dispute about territory, it is about the political destiny and future of the people of Jammu and Kashmir”.

“Pakistan and Azad Kashmir (PaK) welcome former Norwegian Prime Minister’s keen interest in the resolution of the dispute of Jammu and Kashmir and assures full support to his initiative,” he said.

“We welcome initiatives made in good faith”, he said.

Norway had a long history of constructed and impartial diplomacy and we do hope that the country will play a role in peaceful settlement of the Kashmir dispute, Khan said and praised Bondevik for this “role as peacemaker”.

Masood said that Kashmiris strongly believe that there is no military solution to Kashmir and “India will have to sit across the table with Pakistan and genuine representatives of Kashmiri people to work out modalities for a peaceful settlement of the dispute”.

Speaking on the occasion, Bondevik while referring a report of the UNHRC expressed his grave concerned over “growing incidents of human rights violations in Kashmir”, according to officials.

He said that peaceful settlement of Kashmir issue through dialogues and other means is imperative for lasting peace and stability in the region.

“He expressed his wish that all the parties to the Kashmir dispute including representatives of Kashmiri people must sit together to find an amicable solution to it,” officials said.

Bondevik also held a meeting with representatives of All Parties Hurriyat Conference (AJK Chapter) and discussed matters relating to Kashmir dispute, and visited the Line of Control (LoC).

https://m.greaterkashmir.com/news/p...ets-pak-president-in-muzaffarabad/304171.html




Jammu and Kashmir: Former Norway PM makes surprise visit to separatist Hurriyat leaders
By: FE Online | Published: November 25, 2018 12:05 PM
Former Norwegian prime minister Kjell Magne Bondevik paid a surprise visit to the top separatist leaders of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday, The Indian Express reported.

Separatist leader Mirwaiz said they welcomed Bondevik’s initiative. (Express File Photo)
Former Norwegian prime minister Kjell Magne Bondevik paid a surprise visit to the top separatist leaders of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday, The Indian Express reported. Bondevik met top Hurriyat leaders Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Syed Ali Shah Geelani at Geelani’s residence in Hyderpora. The meeting was also facilitated by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s Art of Living.

The visit came days after India and Pakistan decided to open up the Kartarpur corridor for the Sikh pilgrims.

Mirwaiz Umar Farooq told Indian Express that they received a call from him, only a day before. He said, “This is the first time we are meeting foreign dignitaries, in years. So far, New Delhi never allowed such visits before, and as of recently, foreign diplomats are also reluctant to meet us.”

“A representative of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s Art of Living had accompanied the PM, and it is clear that the visit was only possible after a go-ahead from the Indian government itself,” he added.

Bondevik told the Hurriyat leaders that the main purpose of his visit was to access the ground scenario in Kashmir and listen to their viewpoints. “We don’t know yet what will be the outcome of this visit, but we hope this will lead to a meaningful discussion between the two countries,” Farooq said, mentioning the opening of Kartarpur corridor as a positive effect.

Mirwaiz Umar Farooq also mentioned how the relationship between India and Pakistan have hit a wall, and the two need outside help to bring it back on track. Bondevik reportedly will also hold talks with officials in Delhi, and then head to Pakistan where he will visit Azad Kashmir.

Welcoming Bondevik’s initiative, Mirwaiz told Indian Express that the former Nerwign PM told them, how the two countries need assistance with this issue as there is no positive development in the last four or five years.

The Hurriyat leaders also reportedly told Bondevik, “the dispute needs to be resolved peacefully, and the violence has to stop.”

“If only India and Pakistan are willing to resolve the dispute on Kashmir along with the people living here, then only we can help,” he said.

A senior police official told Indian Express, that they had clear directions to allow the Bondevik’s visit, who has also met a few pro-government activists and the members of Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Bar Association at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Conference Centre.



https://www.financialexpress.com/in...visit-to-separatist-hurriyat-leaders/1392946/

 

[HalfMoon]

SPOTLIGHT: Is Norway acting as peace mediator between India, Pakistan on Kashmir?

Political experts call Bondevik’s visit to Srinagar an ‘interesting development’


ABID BASHIR
Srinagar, Publish Date: Nov 26 2018 1:15AM | Updated Date: Nov 26 2018 1:15AM

File Photo
The maiden visit of former Prime Minister of Norway KjellMagne Bondevik to Kashmir recently has generated fresh hopes of a possible resolution of the vexed Kashmir issue, with political experts remarking that such a development was “both interesting and worth-watching.”

During his visit to Srinagar on Friday, Bondevik met two top resistance leaders Syed Ali Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq who briefed him about the “fragile” political situation in Kashmir and the need for a resolution of the Kashmir issue.


The former Norway PM then went to New Delhi where he met top political bigwigs, according to a source, and is scheduled to visit the Pakistan-administered Kashmir as well as Islamabad to “widen the ambit of reconciliation between India and Pakistan vis-à-vis Kashmir resolution”.

Norway has a history of resolving conflicts in several countries in a peaceful manner.

“After his New Delhi sojourn, he will travel to PaK and Islamabad,” the source said, without disclosing the names of people Bondevik met in New Delhi. However, the source said, he met “relevant people”.

The source said the Bondevik’s Srinagar visit “seems to have approval from New Delhi which has been out-rightly rejecting any third-party intervention in Kashmir”.

“So this appears to be a good sign,” he said.

Bondevik’s proposed visit to PaK and Islamabad comes at a time when Pakistan has thrown open Kartarpur corridor to facilitate a pilgrimage of Sikh community across the border to visit the revered shrine of Baba Guru Nanakji. Prime Minister NarendraModi Friday hoped the Kartarpur corridor would act as a bridge between the people of India and Pakistan, and even referred to the fall of the Berlin Wall to underline its importance.

The Hurriyat Conference (M) chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has termed Bondevik’s Srinagar trip a welcome development.

WHAT EXPERTS SAY

Former interlocutor on Kashmir, professorRadha Kumar, said it seems that Bondevik has been interested in Kashmir since 2001 and may be even before that.

“He went to PaK in 2017 and earlier this year held a seminar in Oslo where MashalMullick (wife of JKLF chairman Muhammad Yasin Malik) spoke,” Kumar told Greater Kashmir over phone from New Delhi. But, she said, “I think Bondevik’s visit is unlikely to have an official sanction from the Prime Minister NarendraModi-led administration. However I would be happy if it did indicate opportunities for peacemaking for the government of India.”

Political commentator professor Sidiq Wahid, while commenting on the former Norway PM’s Srinagar visit and his meeting with Geelani and Mirwaiz, said: “It is indeed an interesting story. Too soon to tell how it develops, but Delhi being on board is an interesting development”.

Professor Wahid, who is presently a senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research New Delhi, said “it seems to indicate that there is pressure on New Delhi to do something”.

“Perhaps, a report of the UNHRC on rights violations in Kashmir has stirred Europe and the international community. From a J&K perspective, we need to assert that there is transparency in the discussions and that things must be done with wide consultations,” he said.

Political analyst professor Gul Muhammad Wani said “it seems a surprising thing for an average Kashmir that something is going on in Kashmir, like someone associated with the Oslo centre coming to Srinagar and meeting Hurriyat leaders”. “As reported in the press, he will go to PaK and Islamabad (and it) seems something very important keeping in view the fact that for a long time, New Delhi has taken recourse in a coercive diplomacy as far as Pakistan and engaging Kashmiri leadership are concerned,” he said.

“Also Norwegian interlocution is important because the country has a certain record of credibility as far as mediation and resolution of international conflicts are concerned. Norway facilitated dialogue between various ethnic groups, though issues in Sri Lanka and Nepal were different. But so far it has not facilitated any dialogue process between India and Pakistan or New Delhi and Srinagar.”

He said Bondevik’s Srinagar visit can’t be underestimated.

“Since BJP-led by PM Modi took reigns in Delhi, they have been following a coercive diplomacy vis-à-vis Pakistan which has created a huge distrust and diplomatic vacuum within the India-Pakistan sub-continent,” he said. “Elections (in India) are vital. We have been debating time and again whether major steps can be taken before or after elections. Between 2002 and 2008, we saw that the level of engagement between India and Pakistan was better.”

“With the passage of time, the contours of mediation can become clear,” Wani said.

https://www.greaterkashmir.com/news...between-india-pakistan-on-kashmir/304168.html

 

[Imad.Khan]

To be honest, i still think that a plebiscite is still the best solution, hold them in GB,AJK and J&K on district wise and let them decide once and for all. IMO even if India hands over the Sunni majority Kashmir part to Pakistan the issue will not get resolved because there will always be voices on both sides claiming that people were not happy and were forced.

Once this is issue is resolved watch how both Pakistan and India's prosperity will skyrocket.

 

[HalfMoon]

To be honest, i still think that a plebiscite is still the best solution, hold them in GB,AJK and J&K on district wise and let them decide once and for all. IMO even if India hands over the Sunni majority Kashmir part to Pakistan the issue will not get resolved because there will always be voices on both sides claiming that people were not happy and were forced.

Once this is issue is resolved watch how both Pakistan and India's prosperity will skyrocket.

Modi's proposal is to hold plebiscite in Kashmir Valley.

Do you think Jammu will like to join Pakistan?

 

[Imad.Khan]

Modi's proposal is to hold plebiscite in Kashmir Valley.

Do you think Jammu will like to join Pakistan?

I actually don't think Jammu wants to join Pakistan, nor does Leh (not sure about Kargil), but the only way to prove it is to hold a plebiscite there as well. There are hate mongers on both sides, to squash them and their narratives, this is the only solution.

 

[HalfMoon]

I actually don't think Jammu wants to join Pakistan, nor does Leh (not sure about Kargil), but the only way to prove it is to hold a plebiscite there as well. There are hate mongers on both sides, to squash them and their narratives, this is the only solution.

Modi is offering only Kashmir valley to choose. If Pakistan has problems then it is bound to fail.

 

[GumNaam]

Modi's proposal is to hold plebiscite in Kashmir Valley.

Do you think Jammu will like to join Pakistan?

70 years too late for a plebiscite. The kashmiris aren't gonna accept anything sponsored by india now that they have the indian military of the defensive coupled with a continuous supply chain of weapons and fighters coming from their ajk brothers. either india withdraws and a plebiscite is held under the un eye or rubber bullet shall decide. For every kashmiri killed or injured, there are 5 indian personnel that are killed or injured. The kashmiris are in the position position of power.

 

[Unite & Defend]

THE WHOLE OF KASHMIR WILL BE PAKISTANS SOON ENOUGH AND SOME PARTS OF WHAT IS CURRENTLY India. Hindus will not defeat Muslims in battle

 

[HalfMoon]

70 years too late for a plebiscite. The kashmiris aren't gonna accept anything sponsored by india now that they have the indian military of the defensive coupled with a continuous supply chain of weapons and fighters coming from their ajk brothers. either india withdraws and a plebiscite is held under the un eye or rubber bullet shall decide. For every kashmiri killed or injured, there are 5 indian personnel that are killed or injured. The kashmiris are in the position position of power.

THE WHOLE OF KASHMIR WILL BE PAKISTANS SOON ENOUGH AND SOME PARTS OF WHAT IS CURRENTLY India. Hindus will not defeat Muslims in battle, the maggots that they are.

It is for people from valley to decide. Modi is giving them the option.

Role reversal: When India proposed a plebiscite to solve Kashmir – and Pakistan rejected it

After Nawaz Sharif brought up the plebiscite again at the UNGA, looking back to the time when MA Jinnah said no to one.

Shoaib Daniyal

Kashmir is no stranger to uprisings but even by its own tumultuous standards, the current agitation is unprecedented. The police have had to flee south Kashmir and to maintain the presence of the state, the Indian army has had to move in. For the first time in recorded history, Eid prayers were banned in the Valley’s major mosques and prayer grounds. Mainstream politics has also been frozen, as the mood on the street rejects symbols it considers as representing India.

Reacting to the troubles, the third player in this sordid drama, Pakistan has proposed that India conduct a plebiscite in Kashmir in order to determine the wishes of the Kashmiri people. As is also par for the course, India rejected the demand.

This bit – Pakistan demanding a plebiscite and India sticking to its stand that Kashmir is non-negotiable – has been done so many times that it now barely makes the news. Given how wedded both India and Pakistan are to their positions, it is interesting to point out that they had polar opposite stances in 1947. In that year, just a few months after the birth of the two dominions, it was India that proposed a Kashmir plebiscite. And it was Pakistan – in a move that might count as amongst the worst ever in international politics – that rejected it.

Background
As the Raj ended, Kashmir entered into chaos. The Maharaja lost control of large parts of his kingdom and, in panic, even attempted to ethnically cleanse Muslims from some regions. By September 1947, Pathan tribals, supported by Pakistan, started to stream into Kashmir. Soon the Maharaja acceded to India and the Indian Army entered the conflict.

The concept of a plebiscite first entered into the equation in September 1947, not in relation to Kashmir but with respect to the tiny Gujarati principality of Junagadh, whose Muslim ruler had acceded to Pakistan. This infuriated India, given that Junagadh was in India and wasn’t contiguous with Pakistan. As a result, India toppled the ruler’s administration and proposed a plebiscite to solve the matter (a vote that India would easily win). Of course, this also set a precedent and Nehru accepted that this would also apply to other states. The concept of a ruler deciding accession was now on shaky ground – a decision that would of course apply to Kashmir. In the meeting where this was decided, British bureaucrat HV Hodson noted that, “Liaquat Ali Khan’s [the Pakistan Prime Minister] eyes sparkled” at the possibilities this opened for Kashmir.

This though was not that much of a surprise. The Congress had for a long time held that the princely states should be decided as per the wishes of its people. In November, 1947, therefore, the Governor General of India Lord Mountbatten headed to Lahore to conduct talks with Pakistan’s Governor General, Mohamed Ali Jinnah.

Jinnah-Mountbatten talks
While Governor General Mountbatten, a Britisher and the last Viceroy of the Raj, technically held a constitutional post, in actuality he had a fair bit of power even after August 15, 1947 – he even supervised Indian military operations in Kashmir. For these talks with Jinnah – that could have changed the subcontinent’s history – he went with the Indian cabinet’s approval to offer something that has now been Pakistan’s demand for the past seven decades: a plebiscite in Kashmir.

On November 1, in Government House, Lahore, Mountbatten put forward India’s proposal: a plebiscite to decide the fate of Junagadh, Hyderabad – and Kashmir. This was the exact wording of India’s proposal:

The Governments of India and Pakistan agree that, where the ruler of a State does not belong to the community to which the majority of his subjects belong, and where the State has not acceded to that Dominion whose majority community is the same as the State’s, the question of whether the State should finally accede to one or the other of the Dominions should in all cases be decided by an impartial reference to the will of the people

To sweeten the deal, Mountbatten even assured Jinnah that the United Nations would be allowed to supervise the process.

Jinnah rejects the plebiscite
Amazingly, Jinnah actually rejected this proposal. He could never accept any formula that included Hyderabad since (at the time) the princely state wished to remain independent, argued the Governor General of Pakistan.

Mountbatten then pointed out that this was as a good a deal as Pakistan would ever get given Pakistan’s much weaker position militarily relative to India. This was sound advice: India and Pakistan have fought four wars and India’s vast military superiority has ensured that the position of the Kashmir Valley remains unchanged.

Historian AG Noorani claims that Jinnah’s inexplicable stand was because he was “besotted with Hyderabad”. Noorani also points out that Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan was more open to the idea but was overruled by Jinnah.

The inability of Jinnah to process India’s military superiority was not unexpected – he had shown a similar failure to deal with realpolitik in the negotiations leading up to Partition, thinking mostly as a lawyer and not as a politician.

Missed opportunity
In hindsight, this was a terrible decision – especially given the fact that modern Pakistan has been near-obsessed with Kashmir. Not only has the pursuit of Kashmir cost Pakistan a lot of money, it has corrupted its society. Its military has grown to control the state, propped up by the bogey of India. Kashmir has also allowed Islamist militants to grow, giving them popular legitimacy in the 1990s. Today, those same militants have turned on Pakistan itself, tearing to shreds law and order in the country. And this is not to even begin to go into the human cost of seven decades of conflict in Kashmir.

Another real shot at a plebiscite never came again. Although a 1948 United Nations resolution called for plebiscite (and as a first step, asked Pakistan to withdraw its troops, which it refused to do), after 1971 this was a dead letter: the Simla Agreement of 1972 ensured that the entire Kashmir dispute would see no third-party intervention, not even the United Nation’s. Today, the Indian stand is that Kashmir is an “integral part” of the Union, which of course rules out a plebiscite even in theory.

On June 3, 1947, the Congress had accepted the communal division of Punjab and Bengal in return for stable, centralised rule. Mountbatten’s November 1947 offer to Jinnah for a Kashmiri plebiscite was a part of the same thought process. In the chaos of 1947, it seems the Congress was prepared to allow Kashmir the option of a plebiscite in order to stitch up the massive hole that Hyderabad represented in the map of India and ensure the new dominion’s stability.


https://scroll.in/article/816661/ro...ite-to-solve-kashmir-and-pakistan-rejected-it

 

[Imad.Khan]

Modi is offering only Kashmir valley to choose. If Pakistan has problems then it is bound to fail.

Its not just Pakistan that will have problems, other people in the Jammu and Ladakh might cry about it and then the violence might start again. Well i hope for the best for all people.

 

[Sal12]

Modi's proposal is to hold plebiscite in Kashmir Valley.

Do you think Jammu will like to join Pakistan?

I don't think Modi will ever agree to hold a plebiscite even in Kashmir Valley which is a small part of overall Jammu & Kashmir (GB + AJK + Indian Kashmir + Jammu + Laddagh).

 

[HalfMoon]

I don't think Modi will ever agree to hold a plebiscite even in Kashmir Valley which is a small part of overall Jammu & Kashmir (GB + AJK + Indian Kashmir + Jammu + Laddagh).

The proposal to restrict the plebiscite to Kashmir valley only is being socialized through Norway's mediation. It is up to Pakistan to take it or leave it.

If Pakistan asks for plebiscite in Jammu then India would ask for plebiscite in AJK & GB.

 

[Sal12]

The proposal to restrict the plebiscite to Kashmir valley only is being socialized through Norway's mediation. It is up to Pakistan to take it or leave it.

If Pakistan asks for plebiscite in Jammu then India would ask for plebiscite in AJK & GB.

Pak will agree for plebiscite in Kashmir Valley but Modi will not. Also Indian Jammmu and Kashmir cannot be divided administratively as different units unless BJP gets 2/3 of majority in Kashmir assembly which I don't think BJP can get in near future otherwise BJP would have done it couple of years ago.