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Growing US-Pakistan tension worries Kashmiris
Saturday December 03, 2011 05:18:06 PM,
Sheikh Qayoom, IANS
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Srinagar: In the wake
of the NATO attacks in Pakistan that killed 28 soldiers, the
common man in the Kashmir Valley is worried about the region's
instability and its fallout here.
Kashmiris have always reacted with concern to political upheavals
in Pakistan. What has increased the common Kashmiri's worries
about Pakistan is the latest statement by its army chief, General
Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, authorizing ground soldiers "to retaliate
with full force without fear of cost and consequences" if such an
attack is repeated.
Worsening ties between the US and Pakistan and a statement by
Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani that there was no
apprehension of an army coup in the country are being discussed by
the locals these days with concern.
"If the US war against terror loses its support from Pakistan the
region faces a grave situation. Believe it or not, the instability
in Pakistan could have a serious fallout in Kashmir", said Javaid
Shah, a local newspaper editor here.
The common man is keenly watching the developments and hoping
things do not come to a showdown between the US and Pakistan.
"It is like an earthquake that has its epicentre somewhere in
Pakistan. If Pakistan is jolted by political or security turmoil,
we cannot escape the consequences.
"The entire prospect of peace in Kashmir depends upon the
stability in the region and better relations between India and
Pakistan. Unless the government there is in full control how can
it engage in peace talks with New Delhi," a Nizam-ud-Din, 59, a
retired school teacher here, told IANS.
When Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was hanged on April 4, 1979, there were
violent protests in the Valley during which five persons were
killed in police firing. Even the death of the Pakistan dictator,
Gen. Ziaul Haq, in an air crash on August 17, 1988, caused law and
order problems in Kashmir with protesters blaming the US for
engineering the crash of the plane carrying him and the American
ambassador.
"Emotions have always run high in Kashmir with the unfolding of
events in Pakistan. Today, when that country is placed
precariously vis-a-vis its relations with the US, the growing
concern in the Valley is understandable. Nobody would benefit if
Pakistan comes to harm," said Professor Muzaffar Ahmad, a college
teacher here.
"The undermining of the political authority in Pakistan would
definitely affect the future of the peace process between the two
countries whose inevitable fallout could be the continuation of
turmoil in the Valley," Ahmad told IANS.
As cable television networks beam commentaries and news about the
strain in relations between the US and Pakistan, for a change
Kashmiris remain glued to these programmes during the chilly
winter evenings.
(Sheikh Qayoom can be contacted at sheikh.abdul@ians.in)
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