Peace and Justice Post

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By Conor Friedersdorf, The Atlantic, July 12, 2012

It’s one thing to support killing militants, and quite another to empower one man to do it in secret without checks or meaningful oversight.

Reuters

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5th of February is being celebrated every year as the “Kashmir Day” by every Pakistani and Kashmiri all over the world to express solidarity with the freedom fighters, demanding their legitimate right of self-determination from India. In wake of the ongoing uprising (Intifada), the day not only reminds the sacrifices of Kashmiri people, but also history of various forms of state terrorism which have continued unabated by the Indian security forces and paramilitary troops on these innocent people.

Earlier, the misfortune of Kashmiris who comprises 94 percent in Jummu and Kashmir, started in 1846 when their territory was sold by the British colonialists to a Hindu, Gulab Singh who continued his brutal policies—memories of which remain alive today. During the Dogra rule (1846-1947), Kashmiri Muslims were leading so miserable life that it was difficult to differentiate them from beasts. Slave labour, capital punishment for cow slaughter, and living under constant terror was order of the day. On April 19, 1931, the ban of Eid Khutba ignited widespread demonstrations in the Jummu city. For the first time, people openly opposed the oppression. On July 13, 1931, thousands of people thronged the Central Jail Srinagar. As the time for obligatory prayer approached, a young Kashmiri stood for Azan. The Dogra soldiers opened fire at him. In this way, 22 Kashmiris embraced martyrdom in their efforts to complete the Azan.

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Tauseef Mustafa/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Both India and Pakistan claim the Kashmir Valley, a predominantly Muslim region. The valley was once a unique and idyllic patch of India, filled with apple orchards and shimmering fields of saffron framed by spiky, snow-capped peaks. Kashmir’s mosaic of relatively peaceful coexistence first began to crack during the partition of British India, in 1947. Sixty years of bitterness, including two wars, have followed.

For decades, India maintained hundreds of thousands of security forces in Kashmir to fight an insurgency sponsored by Pakistan. The insurgency has been largely vanquished. But those Indian forces are still in place, and have faced major popular unrest in recent times. From 2008 to 2010 more than 100 civilians were killed in clashes between stone-throwing protesters and heavily armed security forces in Srinagar, the state’s major city. Each death prompted a fresh set of angry demonstrations that prompted even tougher crackdowns, leading to more bloodshed. The valley’s economy virtually collapsed.

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MICHAEL KOLODNER makes a detailed study of
Indian brutality in Kashmir.

Michael Kolodner, Defence Journal, Nov 1998

History and Geography of Kashmir

The State of Jammu and Kashmir is, as its name implies, made up of more than one territorial unit. The Vale, or Valley, of Kashmir and the region of Jammu are joined with Ladakh, Poonch, Gilgit, and Baltistan to form what was, before 1947, a single governmental unit under the rule of the Dogra Dynasty. Each of these regions is distinct from the others in many aspects, and this heterogeneity is important to bear in mind during study of the Kashmir question. However, Kashmiris have a strong culture of their own as well as a distinct language. In many ways, Kashmir’s regions are more like each other than anyone is like the rest of India.

Srinagar, the summer capital of the State, is located in the centre of the Vale. This is the most populous region and the most significant agricultural centre, though it constitutes only 10% of the total land area of the state. The population of the Vale of Kashmir is overwhelmingly Muslim. In 1941, Muslims accounted for over 93% of the Vale’s population. Also living in the Vale, though highly outnumbered, is a population of Kashmiri Brahmin Hindus known as the Pandits. Many leaders of the Indian independence movement came from this community, among them Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.

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• Associated Press
• guardian.co.uk, Sunday 8 July 2012 21.22 BST

Abdus Salam won the Nobel prize for predicting the existence of the Higgs boson. Photograph: AP

In what is perhaps a sign of the growing Islamic extremism in the country, Pakistan‘s only Nobel laureate, who helped develop the theoretical framework that led to the apparent discovery of the subatomic “God particle” last week, is being largely scorned in his homeland because of his religious affiliation.

Abdus Salam, who died in 1996, was once hailed as a national hero for his pioneering work in physics and his contribution to Pakistan’s nuclear programme. Now his name is stricken from school textbooks because he was a member of the Ahmadi sect that has been persecuted by the government and targeted by Taliban militants, who view them as heretics.

Their plight – along with that of Pakistan’s other religious minorities, such as Shiite Muslims and Hindus – has deepened in recent years as hardline interpretations of Islam have gained ground and militants have stepped up attacks against groups they oppose. The majority of Pakistan’s citizens are Sunni Muslims.

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• guardian.co.uk,
• Tuesday 10 July 2012

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By Franklin Lamb, ICH, July 8, 2012

Presidential candidate Barack Obama is being targeted by the US Israel lobby from A to Z, (Ackerman, Gary & Aipac to Zuckerman, Mort & the Zionist Organization of America) as no American President seeking re-election has been in the country’s 236 year history.

Israel’s duel loyalty agents, as well as more fair minded American Jewish voters have historically intimidated and influenced US presidents seeking reelection, especially those in a tight race, with various financial and political threats and rewards. That’s part of the American political game and obviously plenty of other lobbies do it also.