The Hindu Business Line : Kashmir: Why not a Jointly Owned Demilitarised Area?

KASHMIR has been very difficult local, regional and global problem, causing three major wars and endless strife between India and Pakistan. Apart from the huge sums spent by both countries there is the loss of thousands of lives, not only of innocents in the cross-fire but also of soldiers and militants.

In the process, over the last five decades, there has been only a hardening of attitudes on all sides. In the larger geopolitical calculations, the needs and agonies of ordinary people have been ignored. Is there a solution that takes care of the needs of all sides, while enabling a return to normalcy for the people of the region.

The situation on the ground is dire. Kashmir is partitioned largely between India and Pakistan. The issues may be identified as follows:

Both India and Pakistan claim ownership of the whole of Kashmir,

Both countries have some legitimate claims and some questionable claims to territorial rights,

The voice of the people of Kashmir has been neither properly heard nor acted upon,

A territory with historical traditions of culture and unity is badly fractured,

Kashmiri residents have been traumatised by over fifty years of strife,

The territory (on both sides) is underdeveloped with high incidence of unemployment and illiteracy,

There is heavy militarisation with consequent infringement of civil liberties,

There is daily potential for violence and death due to militant and military activities,

Democratic rights to representation have been infringed upon and held hostage to strategic imperatives,

Native people have been forced to abandon livelihoods and property and forced to resettle,

Religious fundamentalism has taken root, further limiting the potential for a political settlement,

There is no reasonable solution at hand, except for preserving the status quo, which is unacceptable to all parties concerned and only serves as a foundation for further conflict.

Keeping in mind the needs and compulsions of all parties, the following proposal, called JODA (Joint Ownership Demilitarised Area), is suggested:

A new Kashmir Territory shall be created by joining India- and Pakistan-controlled Kashmir.

Both India and Pakistan shall have joint ownership rights to this new Kashmir territory.

The territory shall be fully demilitarised, leaving no troops from either country within 15 km of the Kashmir territory border.

No heavy weapons by any group shall be allowed inside Kashmir.

All people with a historical claim to residency in Kashmir, dating to pre-Independent India, shall have "citizenship" rights in Kashmir. Such citizenship shall consist of a special JODA Kashmir passport with all rights and privileges for living in Kashmir and travel rights to both India and Pakistan. Elected leaders of JODA Kashmir shall explicitly disavow independence.

Such citizens of Kashmir shall be allowed to elect their local and territory-wide leaders for governance. Neither India nor Pakistan shall have any say in such elections, except for purposes of facilitation. No party with affiliation to any party or national entity in India, Pakistan or elsewhere outside Kashmir, shall be allowed to contest elections.

Citizens of Pakistan and India shall have visitation and commerce rights, but shall not be allowed to purchase property or convert to residency in Kashmir territory except with the approval of the JODA assembly.

The elections shall be overseen by an election commission, consisting of eminent persons from Kashmir, Pakistan, India and elsewhere in the world.

The JODA Assembly shall be guided and governed by a JODA Commission, consisting of equal number of representatives from Pakistan and India. The members of this commission shall include the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Home and Finance of both Pakistan and India.

The JODA Commission shall be empowered to administrate the territory at a hands-off level and shall be mandated to ensure that the Kashmir territory is nourished for survival and prosperity.

The JODA commission shall approve budgets for the Kashmir territory, distribute funds to Kashmir territory from monies contributed equally from India and Pakistan, and shall facilitate trade and commerce between the Kashmir territory and India and Pakistan.

This JODA proposal shall be approved by at least two-thirds of the elected representatives of Pakistan and India with suitable constitutional amendments as required.

All political parties in Pakistan, India and Kashmir shall sign a pledge abjuring from violence.

All parties to the agreement shall agree to preserve this status for Kashmir for 25 years without seeking to change its status either by overt or covert means. This JODA proposal has benefits to all stakeholders in this process.

After review by experienced statesmen, it may be advisable to form a tripartite committee of Pakistan, India and Kashmiri representatives to take this proposal forward.

A simple but comprehensive proposal to solve the Kashmir problem has been advanced. This fulfils the aspirations and hopes of all parties to the conflict, but does not deprive them of existing, and perceived, on-the-ground advantages.

Much like a marriage, the individual parties bring in assets into the new partnership but are then rewarded with the ability to utilise all assets of the partnership.

All stakeholders benefit from this proposal which eliminates needless spending, locked-in political positions and untold human suffering.

All parties can legitimately claim victory and satisfaction at the outcome.

(The author is a technology entrepreneur based in the US.)

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