Between the Great Divide

by Anam Zakaria

  47.Peerzada Ashiq, ‘China has established its presence across PoK,’ The Hindu, 3 September 2015. Web: http://www.thehindu.com/news/china-has-establishedits-presence-across-pok/article7608736.ece (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  48.Ibid.

  49.Ershad Mahmud, ‘The scenic AJK,’ The News, 21 May 2017. Web: http://tns.thenews.com.pk/scenic-ajk/#.WSvadPqGM1h (Last accessed: 29 May 2017).

  50.CPEC, ‘Kohala Hydel Project, AJK,’ CPEC Projects. Web: http://cpec.gov.pk/project-details/23 (Last accessed: 21 January 2018).

  51.CPEC, ‘Karot Hydropower Station,’ CPEC Projects. Web: http://cpec.gov.pk/project-details/16 (Last accessed: 21 January 2018).

  52.The Nation, ‘3 hydro-power projects being executed in Azad Kashmir,’ 5 March 2017. Web: https://nation.com.pk/05-Mar-2017/3-hydro-powerprojects-being-executed-in-azad-kashmir (Last accessed: 21 January 2018).

  53.Peerzada Ashiq, ‘China has established its presence across PoK,’ The Hindu, 3 September 2015. Web: http://www.thehindu.com/news/china-has-establishedits-presence-across-pok/article7608736.ece (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  54.Safdar Rasheed, ‘Mangla dam becomes biggest water reservoir in Pakistan,’ Business Recorder, 26 August 2013. Web: http://fp.brecorder.com/2013/08/201308261224882/ (Last accessed: 14 June 2017).

  55.Fahad Shah, ‘How the clash in Kashmir moved abroad foreign affairs,’ Foreign Affairs, 3 August 2016. Web: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/kashmir/2016-08-03/how-clash-kashmir-moved-abroad (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  56.Ali Baraan, ‘Punished for living near Mangla dam,’ The Express Tribune, 11 May 2011. Web: http://blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/5880/punished-for-livingnear-mangla-dam/ (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  57.Martin Sokefeld and Marta Bolognani, ‘Kashmiris in Britain: A Political Project or a Social Reality?’ Pakistan and its Diaspora, Palgrave Macmillan, 2011, p. 116.

  58.Human Rights Watch, ‘With friends like these,’ Volume 18. No.12, September 2006, Web: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/pakistan0906webwcover_0.pdf (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  Chapter 9

  1.Whereas previously there were various pedestrian routes that connected parts of what became ‘Azad’ Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, for instance routes from Kel and Taobat in Neelum Valley to places like Astore in Gilgit-Baltistan, these routes were never converted into proper roads after Partition. Geographically speaking, these routes entailed the shortest distance not only between ‘Azad’ Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan but also between Pakistani cities and Gilgit-Baltistan. Nomads travelling on foot between Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan still continue to use these routes. However, in the post-Partition years, these historic ties were ignored. Bypassing Neelum Valley, major highways have been constructed connecting Gilgit-Baltistan with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab instead of strengthening already existing routes between the two parts of Pakistan-administered Kashmir. These new highways have become the dominant route, which means that people from ‘Azad’ Kashmir now have to travel via Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (thereby travelling through Pakistan) to reach Gilgit-Baltistan. By forging connections with Pakistan, these routes increase the distance between ‘Azad’ Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, both geographically but also ideologically, making it difficult for the two parts to act as a cohesive unit. The divisions create fragmented identities in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, which for the nationalists prevents the region from maintaining a strong front against what they perceive as Pakistan’s hegemonic policies.

  2.Shams Rehman, ‘Ban on books is azadi of Azad Kashmir?’ The Kashmir Walla, 9 March 2016. Web: http://thekashmirwalla.com/2016/03/ban-on-books-is-azadi-of-azad-kashmir/ (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  3.AJK Textbook Board, Civic Studies, Grade 4, p. 17.

  4.Maqbool Bhat, a Kashmiri nationalist and co-founder of the Jammu and Kashmir National Liberation Front (JKNLF) which advocated freedom from both India and Pakistan, was hanged in Tihar Jail in New Delhi on 11 February 1984. Accused of being an agent by both India and Pakistan at different points of time, and periodically arrested by both countries, Bhat was finally awarded the death sentence in India for the killing of inspector Amar Chand of Kashmir CID in 1966. (The Times of India, ‘30 years later, Afzal Guru’s hanging brings back memories of Maqbool Bhat,’ 10 February 2013). Bhat’s body was not handed over to his family and Kashmiris on both sides of the LoC continue to demand it till today, commemorating his death anniversary as a black day every year on 11 February. For many ‘Azad’ Kashmiris, he serves as a symbol of freedom and several pro-independence Kashmiris continue to consider him as their leader.

  5.‘Nomination form for election to the legislative assembly.’ Web: http://ajkec.pk/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/AJK-Legislative-Assembly-Elections-Rules-Forms.pdf (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  6.Human Rights Watch, ‘With friends like these,’ Volume 18, No.12, September 2006, p. 72. Web: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/pakistan0906webwcover_0.pdf (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  7.In 1949, representatives of the Government of ‘Azad’ Kashmir and officials of the Government of Pakistan met to sign the Karachi Agreement, which defined the governing relations between the two parties. They decided to give Pakistan the administrative control of Gilgit-Baltistan until a final decision was made about the accession of the state of Jammu & Kashmir, primarily because it was going to be geographically easier for Pakistan to govern the region rather than the resource-starved ‘Azad’ Kashmir. ‘A separate ministry was created by the Pakistan government; the federal ministry of Kashmir Affairs and Northern Areas was to run Gilgit and adjoining areas. No leader from Gilgit was included in this agreement, and a handover of power took place without the consent of the people of Gilgit.’ Zulfiqar Ali, Tariq Naqash and Jamil Nagri, ‘“Almost” Pakistan: Gilgit-Baltistan in constitutional limbo,’ Dawn, 19 January 2017. Web: https://www.dawn.com/news/1198967 (Last accessed: 23 May 2017).

  8.Tahir Mehdi, ‘GB’s aspirations,’ Dawn, 16 June 2015. Web: https://www.dawn.com/news/1188410 (Last accessed: 12 November 2017).

  9.Dr Pervez Hoodbhoy, ‘Why they killed Arif Shahid,’ The Express Tribune, 30 May 2013. Web: http://tribune.com.pk/story/556368/why-they-killed-arif-shahid/ (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  10.Zulfiqar Ali, ‘Kashmiris protest at killing of Sardar Arif Shahid,’ BBC, 16 May 2013. Web: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-22559730 (Last accessed: 12 November 2017).

  11.Ibid.

  12.Census of India, 2011. Website: http://censusindia.gov.in (Last accessed: 1 November 2017).

  13.David Smith, Paul Lewis, ‘UN peacekeepers accused of killing and rape in Central African Republic,’ The Guardian, 11 August 2015. Web: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/aug/11/un-peacekeepers-accused-killing-rapecentral-african-republic (Last accessed: 4 June 2017).

  14.Ewen MacAskill, Michael Howard, ‘US soldier sentenced to 100 years for Iraq rape and murder,’ 23 February 2007. Web: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/feb/23/usa.iraq (Last accessed: 4 June 2017).

  15.Urvashi Sarkar, ‘Kashmir: A look at the Kunan Poshpora rapes,’ Al Jazeera, 24 December 2016. Web: http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2016/10/kashmir-kunan-poshpora-rapes-161020121136644.html (Last accessed: 30 October 2017).

  16.Abhishek Saha, ‘Kunan Poshpora: A forgotten mass rape case of 2 Kashmiri villages,’ Hindustan Times, 8 February 2016. Web: http://www.hindustantimes.com/india/kunan-poshpora-a-forgotten-mass-rape-case-of-2-kashmir-villages/story-1rmD1TqawPnMMB11LQzgyJ.html (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  17.Ibid.

  18.BBC, ‘Pakistani soldiers accused of rape,’ 28 July 2005. Web: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4725157.stm (Last accessed 15 January 2017).

  19.Human Rights Watch, ‘With friends like these,’ Volume 18, No.12, September 2006, Web: https://www.hrw.org/report/2006/09/20/friends-these/human-rightsviolations-azad-kashmir (Last accessed: 17 January 2017).

  20.Human Rights Watch, ‘Pakistan: Free Kashmiris far fro
m free,’ 21 September 2006. Web: https://www.hrw.org/news/2006/09/21/pakistan-free-kashmir-far-free (Last accessed: 17 January 2017).

  21.Human Rights Watch, ‘With friends like these,’ Volume 18. No.12, September 2006, Web: https://www.hrw.org/report/2006/09/20/friends-these/human-rightsviolations-azad-kashmir (Last accessed: 17 January 2017).

  22.Human Rights Watch, ‘Pakistan: Free Kashmiris far from free,’ 21 September 2006. Web: https://www.hrw.org/news/2006/09/21/pakistan-free-kashmir-far-free (Last accessed: 17 January 2017).

  23.Al Jazeera, ‘Outrage over India award for “human shield” soldier,’ 23 May 2017. Web: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/05/outrage-india-awardhuman-shield-soldier-170523110224040.html (Last accessed: 4 June 2017).

  24.Live Mint, ‘Human shield case: Human Rights Watch criticizes Indian Army for rewarding officer,’ 1 June 2017. Web: http://www.livemint.com/Politics/p0gD3ri9c3qAlnnXD1ZmpI/Human-shield-case-Human-Rights-Watch-criticisesIndian-Army.html (Last accessed: 4 June 2017).

  25.Tariq Naqash, ‘PPP, PML-N ignore AJK’s real issues,’ Dawn, 14 July 2016. Web: https://www.dawn.com/news/1270727 (Last accessed: 4 June 2017).

  26.Tariq Naqash, ‘Remembering 8 October 2005: the day the earth shook,’ Dawn, 8 October 2015. Web: https://www.dawn.com/news/1211695 (Last accessed: 4 June 2017).

  Chapter 10

  1.The Muslim Conference, which has historically dominated AJK politics, has been losing its influence over the years, especially since PML-N AJK was created, which attracted many Muslim Conference supporters. The Muslim Conference’s historical roots can be traced back to 1932, when the All J&K Muslim Conference was formed to protect the interests of Muslims residing in J&K. In 1939, the party was renamed the All J&K National Conference in order to project a secular outlook. It was hoped that this would encourage non-Muslims to join the party as well as garner support of the Indian National Congress in the anti-Maharaja struggle. However, some Muslims felt that the secular principles of the National Conference might compromise Muslim interests. The Muslim Conference was hence revived in 1941 by these ‘disgruntled Muslims.’ (Christopher Snedden, Kashmir: The Unwritten History, HarperCollins Publishers India, pp. 21-23). Over the years, the Muslim Conference has allegedly served the role of a pro-establishment party in AJK. Since the rise of PML-N after 2010, its significance has diminished as many former Muslim Conference workers have joined the PML-N, believing that it is more beneficial to be a part of a mainstream Pakistani party. In 2016, the Muslim Conference won three seats in an assembly dominated by the PML-N.

  2.Dawn, ‘Bilawal urges Kashmiris not to vote for India-friendly PML-N,’ 10 May 2016. Web: http://www.dawn.com/news/1257491/bilawal-urges-kashmiris-not-to-vote-for-india-friendly-pml-n (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  3.Tariq Naqash, ‘PPP, PML-N ignore AJK’s real issues,’ Dawn, 14 July 2016. Web: https://www.dawn.com/news/1270727/ppp-pml-n-ignore-ajks-real-issues (Last accessed: 4 June 2017).

  4.Ibid.

  5.Ershad Mahmud, ‘The real test begins,’ The News, 31 July 2016. Web: http://tns.thenews.com.pk/real-test-begins/#.V666bz5941i (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  6.Ibid.

  7.Danish Khan, ‘Underdevelopment in AJK,’ The News, 27 June 2015. Web: https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/48195-underdevelopment-in-ajk (Last accessed: 15 June 2017).

  8.Ershad Mahmud, ‘The real test begins,’ The News, 31 July 2016. Web: http://tns.thenews.com.pk/real-test-begins/#.V666bz5941i (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  9.Ibid.

  10.Ibid.

  11.Ibid.

  12.Tariq Naqash, ‘Pro-Freedom parties defy odds, contest elections,’ Dawn, 16 July 2016. Web: http://www.dawn.com/news/1271202 (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  13.Ibid.

  14.Ibid.

  15.Ibid.

  16.BBC, ‘Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif resigns after Panama Papers verdict,’ 28 July 2017, Web: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-40750671 (Last Accessed: 9 June 2018).

  17.Fahad Shah, ‘How the clash in Kashmir moved abroad,’ Foreign Affairs, 3 August 2016. Web: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/kashmir/2016-08-03/how-clash-kashmir-moved-abroad (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  18.Martin Sokefeld and Marta Bolognani, ‘Kashmiris in Britain: A political project or a social reality?’ Pakistan and Its Diaspora, Palgrave Macmillan, 2013, p. 117.

  19.Dawn, ‘AJK not entitled to royalty of Mangla Dam, assembly told,’ 9 November 2001. Web: http://www.dawn.com/news/404127/ajk-not-entitled-to-royalty-of-mangla-dam-assembly-told (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  20.The Express Tribune, ‘Mangla dam: AJK seeks 45 per cent royalty from Islamabad,’ 22 June 2013. Web: http://tribune.com.pk/story/566603/mangla-dam-ajk-seeks-45-per-cent-royalty-from-islamabad/ (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  21.Tariq Naqash, ‘Mangla dam royalty: Necessity drives AJK govt to demand arrears from Islamabad,’ 17 June 2010. Web: http://tariqnaqash.blogspot.com/2010/06/mangla-dam-royalty-necessity-drives-ajk.html (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  22.Tariq Naqash, ‘AJK urges PM to grant water use charges,’ Dawn, 24 December 2016. Web: https://www.dawn.com/news/1304180. (Last accessed: 4 June 2017).

  23.The reforms announced in May 2018 are meant to address some of these long-standing issues. Reportedly, ‘to preserve natural resources of AJK, it has been made conditional that no new project can be initiated without obtaining prior permission from the AJK assembly. (Further) Wapda (Water and Power Development Authority) has to pay water usage charges to AJK at the rate fixed for Punjab or Khyber Pukhtunkhwa.’ For more details on the reforms and their intended impact, see: Ershad Mahmud, ‘Devolution of Power in AJK,’ The News, 10 June 2018. Web: http://tns.thenews.com.pk/devolution-power-ajk/#.WyCmAdWFO34 (Last accessed: 13 June 2018).

  24.Jon Boone, ‘Thousands at funeral of Pakistani executed of murdering governor,’ The Guardian, 1 March 2016. Web: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/01/funeral-pakistani-mumtaz-qadri-executed-salmaan-taseer (Last accessed: 5 June 2017).

  25.Adil Pasha, ‘Mumtaz Qadri’s shrine: In memory of Salman Taseer’s assassin,’ Dawn, 27 December 2016. Web: https://www.dawn.com/news/1302289 (Last accessed: 5 June 2017).

  26.Martin Sokefeld and Marta Bolognani, ‘Kashmiris in Britain: A political project or a social reality?’ Pakistan and Its Diaspora, New York, Palgrave Macmillan, 2013.

  27.Shams Rehman, Azad Kashmir and British Kashmiris, National Institute of Kashmir Studies (NIKS), Mirpur, 2013, pp. 135-156.

  28.Ibid.

  29.Martin Sokefeld and Marta Bolognani, ‘Kashmiris in Britain: A political project or a social reality?’ Pakistan and Its Diaspora, New York, Palgrave Macmillan, 2013, p. 111.

  30.Ibid.

  31.Ibid., p. 115.

  32.Madeleine Bunting, ‘Orphans of Islam,’ The Guardian, 18 July 2005. Web: https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2005/jul/18/july7.religion (Last accessed: 15 January 2017).

  33.The Satanic Verses was published in 1988 and was denounced by some in the Muslim community as a blasphemous book, with Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran pronouncing a death sentence on Salman Rushdie, the author. Andrew Anthony, ‘How one book ignited a cultural war,’ The Guardian, 11 January 2009. Web: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/jan/11/salman-rushdie-satanic-verses (Last accessed: 4 June 2017).

  34.Bal. K. Gupta, Forgotten Atrocities: Memoirs of a Survivor of the 1947 Partition of India, Lulu Enterprises, Inc. USA, 2012, p. 39.

  35.Ibid., p. 143.

  36.Dawn, ‘Kashmiris hoist Pakistan flags in Srinagar,’ 24 March 2016, Web: https://www.dawn.com/news/1247593 (Last accessed: 28 March 2018).

  37.Express Tribune, ‘Kashmiris celebrate Pakistan’s Independence Day with zeal,’ 16 August 2017. Web: https://tribune.com.pk/story/1482464/kashmiris-celebrate-pakistans-independence-day-zeal/ (Last accessed: 30 October 2017).

  38.The Nation, ‘Kashmiris observe India’s Independence Day as Black Day,’ 15 August 2017. Web: http://nation.com.pk/15-Aug-2017/kashmiris-observe-indias-independence-
day (Last accessed: 30 October 2017).

  39.Dawn, ‘Kashmiris hoist Pakistan flags in Srinagar,’ 24 March 2016, Web: https://www.dawn.com/news/1247593 (Last accessed: 28 March 2018).

  40.Sehrish Wasif, ‘People who smoke, eat openly during Ramazan face 3-month imprisonment,’ The Express Tribune, 11 May 2017. Web: https://tribune.com.pk/story/1406760/senate-panel-approves-ehtram-e-ramazan-bill/ (Last accessed: 5 June 2017).

  41.Rory McCarthy, ‘Pakistan says Indians killed family in Kashmir,’ The Guardian, 26 February 2000. Web: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2000/feb/26/rorymccarthy (Last accessed: 22 August 2017).

  Photographic Inserts

  Whose side are you on: A view of Keran in Neelum Valley, with ‘Azad’ Kashmir on the right and Indian-administered Kashmir on the left, and the Neelum river in between acting as a natural ‘border’ between the two regions.

  Divided families are allowed to travel across the bridge at this crossing point between Chiliana (‘Azad’ Kashmir) on the left and Tithwal (Indian-administered Kashmir) on the right. However, permits have to be acquired and paperwork completed, turning the crossover into an almost unachievable dream for many Kashmiris.

  All photographs by Amiruddin Mughal unless stated otherwise

  A view of Kotli, the chief town of Kotli district in ‘Azad’ Kashmir. This district faces cross-LoC firing despite a 2003 ceasefire agreement in place between India and Pakistan.

  A view of the town of Athmuqam, headquarters of Neelum district in ‘Azad’ Kashmir, which directly faces Indian Army posts and which suffered the worst of the conflict at the Line of Control in the 1990s.

  The historical Dumel Bridge, also called the Ranbir Singh Bridge, named after the Dogra king, stands above the Jhelum, which flows in from Indianadministered Kashmir.