The Honorable Madeline Albright
Secretary of State
The State Department
Washington , D.C. USA


Dear Secretary Albright,

As you prepare for your visit to Pakistan and India on November 16, let me first state that the deplorable and brutal killing of four Americans and a Pakistani national in Karachi on November 12th must be seen as an act of extremist elements who wish to impede warmer relations between Pakistan and the United States . I express my deepest personal condolences to the families of those killed in this ambush. While the media understandably gives full attention to the terrible killings of innocent victims in Karachi , let those of us who desire lasting peace look to the underlying issues that are tearing our troubled region apart; foremost of which is the struggle for Kashmiri freedom. For I, as another daughter whose father also struggled for peace in Kashmir , urge you to heed the words of our fathers, learn from the lessons of the past and take bold, fresh and innovative approaches to solve this deteriorating crisis.

As you will recall, your father, Josef Korbel, as an early official of the newly formed United Nations, was sent to India and Pakistan by the UN Security Council in 1948 as the Czechoslovakian representative to and Chairman of the UN Commission on Demarcation for Kashmir . Its purpose: to seek a negotiated settlement of the worsening Kashmir crisis. Your father's 1954 book on his experience, "Danger in Kashmir ", remains a seminal accounting of this geopolitical and human rights tragedy; a book which I recall from my youth as required reading. Your father's words of warning from that time ring with greater urgency today: "kashmir has become a veritable powderkeg for the whole of Asia ". US State Department officials have said that your historic trip to Pakistan -- the first Secretary of State to visit South Asia since 1983 -- will not include Kashmir as one of the 'central themes'. Rather, that your focus will be on democratic development, human rights and the conflict in Afghanistan .

Relegating Kashmir to the diplomatic back-burner would constitute a tragically missed opportunity for resolving this cancerous affliction. Serving twice in the capacity of Prime Minister of Pakistan, I know all too well the difficulty of seeking rapprochement between India and Pakistan vis-à-vis Kashmir . I also know that without a resolution of the Kashmir crisis, there can be no wider peace or stability in South Asia . Thus, if the United States would like to seek an increased sense of security on the nuclear issues of South Asia , the United States must address Kashmir , now. As our fathers knew before us, the Kashmir crisis is no intellectual debate. With each passing day, tens more die at the hands of the brutal Indian occupation; hundreds more remain in jail without hope of seeing the light of day; millions more live lives of fear and repression. As you well know, two of the three Pakistan-Indian wars have been fought over Kashmir . Since 1989 alone, over 20,000 people -- a conservative estimate -- have died in the struggle for 'Azadi', or freedom. India has stationed over 600,000 troops in Jammu-Kashmir. Every major human rights organization in the world has condemned India for excessive use of force. Extrajudical killings and brutal torture are rampant and routine. The Kashmiris are a people under a most heinous occupation. Bearing in mind the lives and work of our fathers before us, I call upon you to move beyond diplomatic convention and strike out on a bold and new course.

It is both right and just for the United States to play a central role in solving the Kashmir crisis. Specifically, the United States can and should convene, in conjunction with China , Russia and Britain , a peace process for Kashmir . Britain has indicated its willingness to assist, and President Clinton recently stated that, "As a neighbor of India and Pakistan , China will influence whether these great democracies move towards responsible cooperation, both with each other and with China ."

No process leading to the fair and equitable resolution of the fifty-year Kashmir conflict can move forward, however, without concrete steps by both Pakistan and India . On India 's part, there are a number of confidence-building measures to be taken immediately, including:

A dramatic reduction of the nearly 600,000 troops now stationed in Kashmir .
Ceasing all forms of torture, intimidation and extrajudicial killings.
Opening Jammu-Kashmir to monitoring by international human rights groups.

Likewise, for my part, I will vigorously pursue the following initiatives in Pakistan :

Open, along with India , the Line of Control to international observers and the UN Monitoring Team for India and Pakistan .

Provide observer status for the rightful representatives of the people of Kashmir , namely the All-Party Hurriyat Conference, in all deliberations.

Soften borders in conjunction with India to allow freer movement between families, increasing trade and strengthening cultural ties.

These steps by both Pakistan and India , taken jointly under the auspices of a US/China/Russia/Britain process, would build confidence on all sides, reinstill hope for the Kashmiri people, and provide a new and dramatic opening for what has been for fifty-years too long an intractable and costly occupation of a proud and peace-loving people. We, the Pakistan Peoples Party, welcome this new US interest in South Asia affairs, and urge all parties to rise above the deplorable killings by extremists in Karachi . For, it is my hope, as another daughter of the Kashmir crisis, that during your upcoming trip, you, too, will also remember the words of my own father: "There can be no peace without a solution of the Kashmir problem".

Sincerely,
Benazir Bhutto

Chairperson , Pakistan Peoples Party
Islamabad , Pakistan
(via digital transmission)

Top