The Indian Election Commission recently set April 27, May 2, 7 and 21 as the dates for holding parliamentary elections in Jammu and Kashmir. India's direct rule over this area, imposed six years ago, is due to end in April and the Indian government needs some way of ensuring its continuing hegemony in the region. However the elections will be a farce, because all of the parties running are pro-India. In a country that is being plundered by Pakistan-supported fundamentalists and a ruthless occupying Indian army, the people are tired of war and want a real solution. In Delhi, SUJATHA FERNANDES from Â鶹´«Ã½ Weekly spoke to RAFIQ AHMED BEG, president of the Jammu Kashmir Students Union, about the current situation.
Question: What do you think of the decision by the Indian government to hold elections in Jammu and Kashmir?
There are no illusions among the people that these elections are going to be other than a farce, a sham. The Indian government tried to hold elections in 1987, but these elections were totally corrupt. The votes were supposedly in favour of Congress, but the majority of people had not voted for Congress.
The situation in Kashmir is very tense because you have the Indian government killing the people on the one hand, and on the other hand you have the militants killing the people. In such a situation, the decision to hold elections will only lead to more violence and an escalation of activities by militant groups. It is the ordinary people who get caught in between and have to suffer.
Question: Is the demand for independence still being raised by the Kashmiri people?
The demand of the people is for independence, for self-determination and for freedom. But since 1989 so many innocent people have been killed in exchanges of fire between the militants, and so many have been killed and tortured by the militants. As a result, most people do not support the militants but their demand for self-determination is still firm.
The sentiment for independence is very strong. The people will still demonstrate and hold processions despite the repression by the Indian Border Security Forces [BSF]. Last year Indian troops were holding a holy shrine in Durga. The people of Bejhbihar, in the district Anantnag, held a huge procession to demand the lifting of the siege of this holy shrine, and they raised the demand of freedom for Kashmir. The demonstrators were bombarded by bullets and mortar shells from the Indian army. They were run over by army vehicles, and nearly 70 people were killed.
In the Idgarh locality of Srinagar, a militant was shot dead by the troops and there was a funeral procession. During the procession, people began demanding self-determination and they were raising pro-freedom slogans. The young people in particular were militant and expressed their anger. That procession was attacked by the forces, and again many people were killed.
Whenever people try to organise processions or demonstrations, the Indian troops will not allow it. People were demonstrating in front of the UN office, and even here they were attacked by the BSF forces.
Now the Indian government has introduced counterinsurgents who are paid by the Indian military. These counterinsurgents are killing innocent people and relatives of activists. India claims that these people are being killed by the militants, when actually it is the BSF-supported counterinsurgents. The hatred is increasing in the hearts of the people, but due to the threat of the gun they keep silent.
Question: What is the role of your organisation?
Our organisation organises peaceful demonstrations. We are not linked with any political organisation, but there are many of us who have socialist ideals. It is very difficult to express socialist thoughts in Kashmir.
One of the main militant organisations, the Hizbul Mujaheddin, doesn't allow socialist or democratic thought among the people. The HM want the rule of Islam in this country, they want to affiliate with Pakistan, and they don't allow anyone to do anything that goes against Islam, such as drinking. Due to the threat of the militants, most of the socialists have been forced to leave the country.
I am interested in socialism, I have been inspired by the socialist movement in India. It may be a bold step to express this in my society, and it needs courage because of the militants. But there are many young people in our organisation who are interested in socialism, and there is the possibility of building a mass movement to marginalise the militants.
At the moment the media are portraying the issue as polarised between whether we should join India or Pakistan, but I think that people really want a free society where they can express their thoughts, they can move freely and they are all equal. I have been inspired by the rally held here in Delhi by the Communist Party of India — Marxist Leninist and I want to go back to Kashmir and motivate people there to link up our struggle to the struggles of the Indian people.