A Visit to Kashmir: Some Impressions

I visited Kashmir in July for my research. It was a research trip, hence there was little time to roam around the valley and enjoy its serene beauty. The valley, which was once the center of militancy related violence, was witnessing calm. There were sporadic incidents of violence such as the one in which a militant threw a grenade at a telephone communication facility, or a few young men displayed the Islamic State flags in the outskirts of Srinagar. But overall there was calm in the valley. It needs emphasis that in the vast landscape of undivided Jammu and Kashmir, or in the part that is in the Indian side of the Line of Control, the Kashmir valley was the most turbulent during militancy years. Now the violence has gone down.

One of the marks of declining violence was the rush of tourists to the valley to enjoy its cool climate to escape hot northern India, and enjoy the Dal lake and house boats on it, and beautiful gardens around the city. As I walked on the banks of the Dal Lake I saw hundreds of tourists from different parts of India roaming around the banks . One of the local businessmen, who was an owner of a hotel and also a houseboat, told me that the leaders of the militants now realize that targeting the tourists would hit the local economy and the local people. One of the major sources of income of the valley people is tourism, and the peak tourist season is summer. The militants were apparently aware of this economic dimension of the conflict. And in the case of the grenade attack mentioned above, one of the individuals who were present in the facility complex told me that the grenade thrower first ordered the office occupiers to leave the building before throwing.

About the display of Islamic State flags or shouting anti-India slogans, one professor from Kashmir University told me that these events are more for display and media consumption. These events usually take place after Friday prayers during which few young men from the congregation display their frustration at India’s policies by shouting anti-India slogans and, nowadays, by displaying Islamic State flags. The professor told me that Indian government in this situation behaves like a Spanish bull, which at the display of a red flag rushes towards it. Though the peace loving local people downplayed the importance of such events, the news that Indian government is establishing an agency to counter the spread of Islamic State influence has shown India’s seriousness towards the issue. I went to a place called Nowhatta, a suburb of Srinagar, to see the display of IS flags, but by the time I had reached, the protesters were dispersed by the police.

As I walked around the city, and particularly the areas surrounding the famous Hazratbal Mosque, I could see normal life all around. I could see women walking around the busy alleyways in the market, children from school queuing up for halwa puri in front of a sweet vendor, two individuals talking about Sufi poetry, and stray animals particularly dogs roaming around. Besides the local people, there were a large number of tourists enjoying the parks and gardens around the Mosque, buying souvenirs such as book stands or holy book. Against the conventional advice not to walk around in night, I enjoyed the cool breeze in the banks of the Dal Lake till late evening. It was full of life; there was least fear of militant attack. Though the environment, much more created by media and the past events of violence generated fear, I did not confront any such event. A student told me that a part of the university, with dense trees, was a site of regular cross-firing between India’s security forces and militants at the height of the militancy. But now there is total calm.

When I travelled towards the border at Uri to visit the trade center, I could not come across any unusual incident. I could see visible signs of alienation and protests. I found many stores and market complexes writing KMR, instead of J&K, on their sign boards. This was another sign of protest because J&K, implying Jammu and Kashmir, is the official name of the state, while KMR is unofficial and perhaps illegal from Indian state perspective. The driver of the vehicle informed me that KMR stands for Kashmir, which some of the local people preferred than the India’s abbreviated term for the state J&K. Though the sight of KMR was not frequent but that somehow brought the point that alienation is still a factor in the valley. As I visited the border areas crossing small towns and a district headquarter town called Baramulla, I could see the flow of life all around. While driving towards Salamabad trade center, the center of trade between the two parts of Jammu and Kashmir, I could see on the way power projects on the river Jhelum. For one of the projects, built jointly by UK, Sweden and India, the water was diverted 16 kilometers in a tunnel under mountain. I could come across an old Hindu temple in Uri, called Datta Mandir, selected as a UNESCO heritage site and one central school and a Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya.

The hospitality of people of Kashmir is without parallel. Whether it is my host in Srinagar, or in Uri, or in other places in the valley, I have always been enamored by their hospitality. They have emerged stronger from the shock of the flood that devastated the valley last year. I remember during my last visit after the flood, it was difficult to find a suitable place to stay as most of the hotels on the banks of the lake were damaged . Whether it is offer of Kashmiri bread, or salt tea, or Kahwah, the people are always forthcoming. Even the officials, at Uri or at Srinagar, were very helpful. As I talked to the traders and officials at the trade center, the traders expressed divergent views on cross-border trade. One trader told that the ex-militants have benefited from this trade, which in turn has helped address the alienation of the people. They also argued that the trade is not enough to address the alienation and the stakeholders to the conflict have to engage more effectively.

While walking around the trade center a consignment of trucks arrived from the Pakistani side of the LOC. I could see trucks with name plates Balochistan (see the photograph). The trucks carried apple, herbs and almond. One official took a handful of almond from one packet and offered me as a gesture of good will. I started chatting with people including the drivers from Pakistan. When I requested two drivers whether I can take a photo, they smiled and said, “why one, take two photos.” I could see through their genuine smiles, and felt in my heart that these drivers are not different from the people in this side of the border. I thought – it is the human folly that creates borders and divisions. Human being by nature is full of good will and friendship. 

Post-Flood Jammu and Kashmir: An Account

Kashmir in the Indian side is going to elections this month. The elections after two months of the devastating flood have raised many issues. The conflict in Kashmir (the legal name is Jammu and Kashmir) has gained attention as a violent conflict between India and Pakistan. Attentions on the internal dynamics are rare. A visit to various parts of Jammu and Kashmir brings forth divergent perceptions on the post-flood elections in the conflict-torn region.

The snow clad Pir Panjal mountain divides Jammu, predominantly Hindu, and Kashmir, predominantly Muslim. Further northeast Zojila mountain divides Ladakh, predominantly Buddhist, from the valley. Jammu and Ladakh are diverse in terms of their religious compositions than the Kashmir valley. Though majority Hindu, Jammu has significant number of Muslims and Sikhs. A trader in the border town, Poonch, was animated to explain the amicable relations among the people: “You will find Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs eating together, attending celebrations and funerals together.”

Further north, travelling through the Mughal road (used by the Mughal emperors to enjoy the salubrious climate of the valley during summer), one comes across rare hospitality. At the highest spot on the road, the travelers are offered free salt-tea and fried wheat flour. The spot also hosts the worship place of Muslim Saint Baba Abdul Karim. Descending to the valley at Shopian, one comes across beautiful landscapes. One also comes across security checks, reminding that not everything is fine. The horrific pictures of the past militancy become vivid.

 Floods devastated parts of the valley last September. One has to cross through broken bridges while driving through the Muslim-majority valley. The green valley has turned grey as a miasma of dust covered the trees and the houses. A local resident pointed his finger towards the wall of his office located near Iqbal Park in Srinagar, the summer capital. There was a mark of flood water at about eight feet. Some of the hotels in the city were closed as they were repairing for the coming tourist season. The first floors of many hotels were completely destroyed due to the floods. Dal Lake, a major tourist attraction, was in shambles with no tourists on the famed houseboats. The loss was terrible. I was, however, amazed to witness the spirit of the local people. They have recovered fast. Life has moved on.

A local resident told, “When the valley is recovering from the floods and people are collecting pieces from the tatters, conducting elections does not make much sense.” His argument was to shift the elections to a later date in order to concentrate all energy on the reconstruction of the valley. The government of India this time has exhibited alacrity in terms of providing assistance, with the Prime Minister visiting the valley twice within five months of coming to power. The policy to hold elections in time is perhaps motivated by two factors: one, pushing the schedule further into colder months will be harsh for the voters and second, the gap in elections may provide miscreants leeway to play havoc.

While the popular concerns over elections bears logic, the call of militant organizations to boycott elections does not. Regular elections over the past few decades are considered fair and that reduces the appeal of the militants. The militants see each action of the governments with suspicion and advocate violence. The moderate separatists have articulated the alienation of the people in the valley and some of them have joined the electoral politics. The establishment of an Al Qaeda branch in the Indian subcontinent and the appearance of Islamic State (of Iraq and Syria) flags in the valley have made the peace loving people and the administration jittery.

Some of the major issues that have surfaced in the electoral campaigns include: communalization of the state politics, dominance of dynasty, peace and development. The rising popularity of India’s nationalist party, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which also rules in New Delhi, has caused concern among the local parties. BJP’s policies have not gone well with some of the parties. BJP has not hidden its ambition to secure the majority of assembly seats. If the party wins the majority of seats, it will be for the first time in the history that a nationalist party will rule the region. More importantly, it will have far reaching implications for conflict and peace discourse. The local political parties like National Conference (NC) and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) are dominated by particular families. The NC, along with the Congress party, ruled the state for most of the time since 1950s. The PDP that came to power in 2002 for one term has become popular due to its people friendly policies. The current NC led government has been struggling with anti-incumbency factor.

The internal dynamics of Jammu and Kashmir are equally compelling as its external dynamics. The post-flood electoral politics provides ample testimony to this. An interaction with the local people gives the impression that the conflict has many subtler dimensions which need more attention. 

Music as a Tool of Conflict Transformation?

“I have waited and dreamt of this moment for years…We only want to do good. Music must go out from here to all our friends everywhere… To all Kashmiris,” said world renowned conductor, Zubin Mehta on 7 September 2013 while leading the orchestra in the famed Mughal Garden in the heart of Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir on the Indian side.

The concert, organized by the German embassy in New Delhi, was perhaps the first of its kind in the troubled Kashmir, in which the famous Bavarian State Orchestra of Germany played Beethoven, Haydn and Tchaikovsky. The orchestra also played Kashmiri music in conjunction with a Kashmiri ensemble, led by Abhay Sopori. The concert titled Ehsaas-e-Kashmir (the feel of Kashmir) can be watched here.

Expectedly, the music program received opposition from separatist leaders, who called for protests against it. Some opposition groups organized a parallel concert titled Haqeeqat-e-Kashmir (the reality of Kashmir) in the city. The good thing that can be observed is that the protests took the shape of another music concert, not violent demonstrations and bloodshed.

Can music be an instrument of conflict transformation? Putting it in another way, can music like other forms of art such as dance and drama, literary fests, etc. play an effective role in changing the mind of leaders and their followers who seek resolution of conflicts through violent methods? Particularly in the case of Kashmir, which has a rich Sufi culture and various musical traditions, how far can such an occasion can be a catalyst in moderating the violent positions of the parties?

Before the start of the program, German Ambassador John Steiner told the audience that the concert is a tribute to the people of Kashmir and their culture. In his words, “The distance between Munich and Srinagar is 7,756-km. Today, the distance reduces to zero. German and European cultural heritage bow to Kashmir, to its history, to its beauty and to its difficult reality and journey.”

Such a program also took place in 1955 when the Soviet leaders Khrushchev and Bulganin visited the valley. However, in the 1990s the separatism took a violent turn with support from across the border and also with repressive measures by the Indian security forces. The violence led a whole generation of Kashmiris, who were born and brought up in those years, to question the very status of Kashmir and turn towards violence under the guidance of radical leaders.

But one can notice that even the separatist leaders were divided on this concert. Some of them questioned the very organization of the program by Germany in a disputed territory and called the move a ploy to showcase that everything is normal in Kashmir. While some others described the expensive event as a waste of resources which could be diverted for poverty eradication or development purposes. The Nawaz Sharif government of Pakistan, a party to the conflict, remained muted concerning the concert. This indicated the moderate approach of the newly elected government to the conflict, and its interest in cultivating friendly relations with India.

Music, which is not essentially religious, has often been a victim of radicalism in Kashmir. Radical groups in Kashmir like Lashkar-e-Toiba, Dukhteren-e-Millat, Jaish-e-Mohammad, etc. perceive music as antithetical to religion. Besides music, they perceive freedom of expression and gender equality in the same way. In that sense, they share same values and ideas with other radical groups like the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Pragaash, an all-girl rock band in Kashmir, which was getting popular in the region due to its avant-garde music, had to vanish within months of its emergence due to threats from these radical groups. In contrast, another girl of Kashmir origin in Pakistani city of Karachi, Maha Ali Kazmi has become popular due to her romantic song Nazar, which can be watched here.

Any observer with having a sense of reality of the Kashmir conflict, and an understanding of the reality of national, regional and global politics in the post-cold war globalized world will be comfortable in arguing that neither the rigid positions of India and Pakistan, nor the separatists are going to be realized. The official Indian position that undivided Kashmir is an integral part of India, and Pakistan’s official position of supporting Kashmir’s right to self-determination (with the hope that it will merge with Pakistan), are matters of the past. This was realized in the early 2000s when both countries decided to make the border flexible, allow people- to- people contacts and commence cross-border trade. I have argued in my monograph ‘ Making Kashmir Borderless‘ that a borderless Kashmir with free flow of goods, ideas and people across the border (while retaining the symbolic division to satisfy national egos) will perhaps be the most feasible solution to the protracted conflict.

The South Asian subcontinent, which includes India, Pakistan and the undivided Kashmir, shared a common history and many aspects of culture. This is no truer than in case of music and drama. Noted Bollywood actors like Balraj Sahni, Dev Ananad, Dilip Kumar, Sunil Dutt, Kapoors and a host of others hailed from Pakistan, while noted Pakistani singers like Mehdi Hassan, Munni Begum, Reshma and many others hailed from India. The history of cross-cultural linkages is indeed legendary. The famous Sikh shrine Nankana, the birth place of Sikh religion founder Nanak, lies in Pakistan, while the famous Sufi shrine in the name of Chisti, frequented by Pakistani Muslims, lies in India. As a friend from Pakistan told me, it is the vested interests that create most of the problems. Common people, busy in the daily routines of life, want to live in peace and enjoy themselves. The concert early this month sends this message. More such events should be organized in both parts of Kashmir with support from New Delhi and Islamabad.

Published in http://blogs.umb.edu/paxblog/ on 29 September 2013