KASHMIR NEWS SERVICE
Young people shouting slogans in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, on Aug. 9, 2010. PHOTO/The New York Times
Asserting that younger generation of Kashmiris has witnessed valley’s militarization and grown up traumatized, noted academic and writer Dr Nyla Ali Khan has said that youth of Kashmir have tremendous potential which can be honed only through right opportunities made available in academia. She also said the government and private sector will have to encourage their (Kashmiri youth) growth.
Speaking at a symposium on ‘War is Not an Option’ at the Naveen Jindal School of Management Dallas, Texas recently, Dr Nyla in her emphatic speech highlighted the basic reason of turmoil in the peace process saying,
“The most negative thought that would hinder any progress toward a peaceful resolution of the Kashmir issue is the perpetuation of a politics that emphasizes, reinforces, or creates cultural myopia and mono-cultural identities, which in a society as diverse as ours, would be the bane of our existence. This damaging short-sightedness results in intolerance, arbitrary justice, tyranny, and ignorance. The contemporary political discourse in the state, particularly the Kashmir Valley, doesn’t have to be limited to the framework of the two-nation theory. Nor should dissatisfaction with the policies of the Governments of India and Pakistan vis-à-vis Kashmir encourage the glorification of reactionary politics.”
The symposium was organized by Project Pakistan USA, a project of Dr. Mona Kazim Shah. Project Pakistan campaigns for human rights issues, runs philanthropic projects, radio shows with space for open mics, and works to encourage dialogue to resolve conflicts and promote South Asian art and culture in the USA. The focus of the symposium was to bring youth from Pakistan, Kashmir and India together for peace talks and healthy dialogue to take their voices further.
The discussions highlighted the problems faced by India, Pakistan and Kashmir and possible solutions. The four panelists included pro-peace, pro-dialogue journalists, academicians, activists, artists with experience in this area and some have even paid a price for their beliefs.
Dr. Nyla suggested that both India and Pakistan should realize that translating the political and social vision into reality requires an effective administrative set-up and vibrant educational institutions (not just intellectualizing), to produce dynamic citizens while remaining aware of the exigencies of the present. She feels that politician’s unable to understand that the changing nature of the struggle need, to look at it with a new vision and pioneering spirit to prevent being marginalized.
Besides Dr Nyla, the panelists were Beena Sarwar a journalist, artist and documentary filmmaker and Raza Ahmad Rumi a journalist and policy analyst from Pakistan; Dr. Amie Maciszewski, an international musician, and Amitabh Pal Managing Editor of The Progressive, the author of “Islam Means Peace: Understanding the Muslim Principle of Nonviolence Today” from India.
Dr. Nyla is a strong believer that war is not an option rather firm and practical action needs to be taken to resolve the crises. Since India and Pakistan were founded on the idea of religious difference, the agendas of fundamentalist groups now rule over the Indian subcontinent.
According to her, the border carved at the time of Partition has led to further brutality in the form of riots, pogroms, and organized historical distortions and cultural deletions with which the histories of independent India and Pakistan are replete. War leads to economic exploitation, death and destruction of resources and terrible atrocities on women and children, and innocent civilians bear the brunt of the arrogance of nation-states through exodus of communities and refugee issue. The current plight of Afghanistan, Libya, and Syria speaks volumes about the irreparable damage caused by war.
She believes a strong and prosperous India is a guarantee to peace in the region, along with a strong and prosperous Pakistan to strengthen that guarantee. The goal should be to find a solution to the deadlock which enables peace in the subcontinent, while maintaining the honor of everyone involved.
The symposium was on webcast a many people say the interactions live in Pakistan and India also, the audience were open and receptive to the speakers and their suggestions, and it can be said that overall the symposium was a success.
The Kashmir issue must be resolved and that can happen only when both India and Pakistan sit down and talk amicably. All these years Kashmir has suffered due to these two countries, its time the issue is resolved once and for all. In the recent UNGA session PM Nawaz Sharif presented four points to resolve the long standing issue peacefully but India has refused to pay heed to it. Such emotional out bursts will not help the humans of Kashmir nor is it going to help the current scenario of the region. Times, politics and strategies of this region have changed it has to be understood by the leaders before it is too late.
(Nyla Ali Khan is a faculty member at the University of Oklahoma, and member of Scholars Strategy Network. She is the author of Fiction of Nationality in an Era of Transnationalism, Islam, Women, and Violence in Kashmir, The Life of a Kashmiri Woman, and the editor of The Parchment of Kashmir. She is editor of the Oxford Islamic Studies’ special issue on Jammu and Kashmir. She can be reached at nylakhan@aol.com)
This article first appeared in Kashmir News Service