'Kashmir is not Kosovo'
Sanjay Suri
Mid-Day
April 26, 1999
Title: 'Kashmir is not Kosovo'
Author: Sanjay Suri
Publication: Mid-Day
Date: April 26, 1999
The crisis in Kosovo is set to have long-term consequences for
Kashmir: a debate in Britain's House of Lords early last week
indicated that the West now wants to keep further away from Kashmir
than ever before.
Most members of the House of Lords seemed almost to recoil from the
thought of any Kosovo-like intervention in Kashmir. They were
responding to a debate opened by Lord Nazir Ahmed, an MP of Pakistani
origin, who clearly sought renewed Western interest in Kashmir on the
Kosovo model.
It was not hereditary Lords who joined the debate; nor were most of
them India or Pakistan 'hands.' To begin with the House of Lords
almost emptied out in time for the debate. Lords have attended debates
on Kosovo in strength, but most were not interested in Kashmir.
Lord Evans made a straight connection with Kosovo. He quoted Prime
Minister Tony Blair as saying about Kosovo: "This is a conflict we are
fighting not for territory but for values, for a new internationalism
where the brutal repression of whole ethnic groups will no longer be
tolerated." He added: "What is right in the Balkans must surely he
right in South Asia" and went on to speak about "ethnic cleansing" in
Kashmir.
The Earl of Dartmouth said the case for intervention was stronger for
Kashmir "which, unlike Kosovo. is an area where Britain has both a
moral responsibility and strong historic links". But most others -
including Baroness Symons. who spoke for the Government - promptly
smothered attempt at such a connection.
Lord Swraj Paul, who is of Indian origin, said "goodwill is not often
sustained by unsolicited involvement in the of friendly states." Lord
Rea, who was part of the group that visited Pakistani Kashmir along
with Lord Ahmed, said the Pakistani side gave their view of the
conflict but that "we heard enough from other sources to learn that
neither side can claim to be wholly innocent".
Only Lord Clarke, Lord Evans and the Earl of Dartmouth spoke in
support of the UN resolutions of 1948 and of a right for
self-determination in Kashmir.
In the face of this the government reply was telling. Baroness Symons
acknowledged that there has been no resolution of the Kashmir dispute
and that human rights violations continue. But she called for "an end
to all external support for any violence in Kashmir". And she said it
is "for India to determine its own legislation in the face of
continuing violence from militant groups." This was a far cry from
Western responses to Kosovo.
The language of the debate was deeply revealing. Lord Ahmed's stated
subject was support from Britain to "promote fresh international
initiatives to alleviate the current state of tension between India
and Pakistan." But he soon came to the point. He wanted an
international war tribunal to investigate atrocities against the
people of Kashmir. In ways polite and some-times less than polite,
other Lords quickly nailed some of the inaccuracies inherent in Lord
Ahmed's remarks.
"Surely abuses of human rights are an international matter," said Lord
Ahmed. He offered figures saying 65,000 had been killed in Kashmir and
that the UN had, for example, recorded 4,551 violations of the Line of
Control by the Indian army.
Lord Avebury, who had for long supported the Pakistani cause on
Kashmir, countered saying that according to Amnesty
International the
official toll was about 20,000, with perhaps three to four thousand
deaths more than that occurring.
He said no UN figures were available of the kind quoted by Lord Ahmed.
"As the noble Lord pointed out, its (the UN's) are not made public."
Lord Avebury said. Lord Ahmed had pointed out no such thing, and he
did not defend his figures. The point Lord Avebury was making was not
missed.
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