Zahid Buneray
11-04-2006, 01:37 PM
By George L. Singleton USA
GSingle556@aol.com
Years ago France and Spain fought a year’s long war over a region both claimed known as the Kingdom of Andorra. Eventually, the Vatican in Rome negotiated a settlement whereby alternative oversight of the disputed region was rotated between Spain and France.
Ethnic animosities were high and lasted hundreds of years.
Eventually, the revolving governance of Andorra was resolved by a unified government with national defense and international relations allowed, to this day, remaining the responsibility of both France and Spain. Today Andorra is literally and totally, geographically within France, but via the hundreds years old treaty negotiated by the Vatican, Spain still has some say so over defense and international relations of what we might loosely refer to as the southern part of Andorra adjacent to Spain.
Religious and ethnic hostilities run deep in both PAK and IAK. And, from what we read and hear in the US, the Kashmiris themselves would prefer to be independent of both Pakistan and India. However, this is neither literally practical nor desirable, as Kashmir is a poor, underdeveloped region.
Rather, I would support as one former US resident of both Peshawar and Karachi years ago (1963-1965) an election in both parts of Kashmir to elect a single Parliament of Kashmir, to sit alternately in PAK then in IAK, rotated as appropriate.
Meanwhile both Pakistan and India would retain both defense and international relations responsibilities for PAK and IAK respectively. Over very many years to come, with the single Kashmiri Parliament, if hot heads on both sides of Kashmir, as well as terrorist prone hot heads in both Pakistan and India, can be put down and suppressed permanently in years to come, then perhaps, like Andorra, then a unified Kashmir might more literally be possible. At that future time, the people within all of Kashmir, not the government of Pakistan or the government of India, could decide their future fate.
I frankly think this evolution toward a unified Kashmir will take several hundred years and that folks are kidding themselves to think otherwise. And economically, Kashmir, whether in parts or in whole, would always be best served by national defense and international affairs remains in an overview sense under guidance of both Pakistan and India.
This is my view, as I have since 9/11 been in on line discussions with some key JLKF folks, that such an approach must be included among the most likely to work resolution options the JKLF and all other Kashmiri nationalist groups are constantly reviewing with both Pakistan and India.
Right now, this modified Andorran Model needs to be carefully considered as this approach pragmatically is the most common sense starting point.
Over expectations and hopes for a fast "one sided" resolution of the entire Kashmir issue is illogical and will not practically be possible in any of our lifetimes I am certain. This is a hard reality all must own up to.
My best wishes to all the NWFP good men, women, and children, as well as to all Kashmiris in both PAK and IAK, as well as the moderate and peaceful, well intentioned masses in Northern India.
GSingle556@aol.com
Years ago France and Spain fought a year’s long war over a region both claimed known as the Kingdom of Andorra. Eventually, the Vatican in Rome negotiated a settlement whereby alternative oversight of the disputed region was rotated between Spain and France.
Ethnic animosities were high and lasted hundreds of years.
Eventually, the revolving governance of Andorra was resolved by a unified government with national defense and international relations allowed, to this day, remaining the responsibility of both France and Spain. Today Andorra is literally and totally, geographically within France, but via the hundreds years old treaty negotiated by the Vatican, Spain still has some say so over defense and international relations of what we might loosely refer to as the southern part of Andorra adjacent to Spain.
Religious and ethnic hostilities run deep in both PAK and IAK. And, from what we read and hear in the US, the Kashmiris themselves would prefer to be independent of both Pakistan and India. However, this is neither literally practical nor desirable, as Kashmir is a poor, underdeveloped region.
Rather, I would support as one former US resident of both Peshawar and Karachi years ago (1963-1965) an election in both parts of Kashmir to elect a single Parliament of Kashmir, to sit alternately in PAK then in IAK, rotated as appropriate.
Meanwhile both Pakistan and India would retain both defense and international relations responsibilities for PAK and IAK respectively. Over very many years to come, with the single Kashmiri Parliament, if hot heads on both sides of Kashmir, as well as terrorist prone hot heads in both Pakistan and India, can be put down and suppressed permanently in years to come, then perhaps, like Andorra, then a unified Kashmir might more literally be possible. At that future time, the people within all of Kashmir, not the government of Pakistan or the government of India, could decide their future fate.
I frankly think this evolution toward a unified Kashmir will take several hundred years and that folks are kidding themselves to think otherwise. And economically, Kashmir, whether in parts or in whole, would always be best served by national defense and international affairs remains in an overview sense under guidance of both Pakistan and India.
This is my view, as I have since 9/11 been in on line discussions with some key JLKF folks, that such an approach must be included among the most likely to work resolution options the JKLF and all other Kashmiri nationalist groups are constantly reviewing with both Pakistan and India.
Right now, this modified Andorran Model needs to be carefully considered as this approach pragmatically is the most common sense starting point.
Over expectations and hopes for a fast "one sided" resolution of the entire Kashmir issue is illogical and will not practically be possible in any of our lifetimes I am certain. This is a hard reality all must own up to.
My best wishes to all the NWFP good men, women, and children, as well as to all Kashmiris in both PAK and IAK, as well as the moderate and peaceful, well intentioned masses in Northern India.