Daily Times

Albert Einstein and Rabindranath Tagore saw nationalism as an infantile disease and a great menace. This fits India and Pakistan. Nationalism has bound diverse peoples within state boundaries. But it has also made inferior outsiders and evil enemies of each other.

The major reason is that both countries have negated their common history and culture for mutual animosity. A contest over territory and a history of violence had made matters worse.

Opportunistic leaders and demagogues exploit the addictive power of nationalism and the immaturity of people for their immoral motives. It helps to paper over the massive common problems of poverty, unemployment, malnourishment, and lack of healthcare in the region.

If there was a valid case for nationalism getting a bad rap, it is in Kashmir. The clashing nationalisms of India, Pakistan, and the separatists demanding independence hold the people of the territory hostage in their tight grip. It’s responsible for the heartbreaking blood and gore that Kashmiris endure daily.

This has far-reaching consequences in Kashmir, involving two powerful armies armed with nuclear weapons in a deadly face-off. The small band of Kashmiri nationalists willing to embrace martyrdom for independence adds more fuel to the fire. Kashmir as a tragedy with no obvious end is a blight on South Asia.

Because of colliding nationalisms, India is at war with its people. Pakistan squanders scarce resources dreaming of annexing all Kashmir. The separatists ruin the futures of generations of youth in a hopeless cause.

Binding people in solidarity, fate, and common political aspirations seems to have passed over South Asia

The other sad truth is those controlling the strings in the conflict have little incentive to abandon confrontation. It would mean giving up the vast privileges gained from controlling political power, military budgets, and instruments of terror and violence.

But if we remove the ugly side of nationalism from the equation, Kashmir isn’t the seemingly intractable dispute that we make it out to be. Some sober realities about the conflict are worth considering.

One, India with an enormous army and sufficient resources can hold on to its part of Kashmir indefinitely. But it is paying an exorbitant price for its newly found muscular Hindu-only nationalism. The lengthy detention of Kashmiri leaders, restraints on political activity, torture and enforced disappearances, and attempts to change demographics. Overall, the stream-rolling over the rights of the people of Kashmir undermines Indian democracy itself.

Two, Pakistan’s strategy to bleed India in Kashmir, supposedly at low cost, has backfired. Using Kashmir as a pillar of Muslim nationalism and sustaining the decades-old jihad to drive India out of Kashmir has consigned the country to economic ruin. The military establishment that controls Kashmir policy, as other important national decision-making, can’t remain immune from the post-COVID-19 economic free-fall and its social consequences.

Three, the dominant discourse among separatists in parts of Kashmir and Pakistan that the freedom struggle in Kashmir and the right of self-determination recognized by UN resolutions can force India to resolve the dispute doesn’t mirror ground realities. This would require a decisive shift in international opinion against India, not on cards in the foreseeable future. Several credible polls in Indian- and Pakistani-administered Kashmir reflect polarized opinions. As expected, the support for independence is very high in the primary Muslim areas at the centre of the insurgency. But it is very low in predominantly Hindu areas. While people know that there are no “simple fixes” to the problem, and few are optimistic about peace talks, an overwhelming majority want a solution to the dispute.

Setting aside the governance mistakes of India, the constant meddling by Pakistan, and the maximalist demands of the separatists, a Kashmir solution lies in political compromise.

For instance, all parties must respect and recognize existing borders. India should restore the administrative autonomy in its part of Kashmir, eroded by its recent actions. In exchange, Pakistan must commit to halting terrorist groups crossing its borders to carry out attacks in India. For their part, Kashmiri separatists should drop the demand for independence. Finally, India and Pakistan must reduce the risk of war by taking steps to demilitarise the region.

There’s little doubt that it will take a seismic shift in the public consciousness to ease competing nationalisms. Binding people in solidarity, fate, and common political aspirations seems to have passed over South Asia. It is in the hands of Indians, Pakistanis, and Kashmiris to break down the walls created by endless mutual hostilities and focus their energies on bettering the region. Harmful policies need a major rethink devoid of nationalist hysteria.

(This article was first published in The Globe Post on June 16, 2020)

Saad Hafiz is an analyst and commentator on politics, peace, and security issues. He can be reached at shgcci@gmail.com