The Canadian Federation of Students – Ontario condemns India’s ongoing violence in Kashmir and affirms its solidarity with the people of Kashmir and all people resisting occupation and fighting for self-determination.
Kashmiri people have been denied autonomy and self-determination for 78 years, and for many of those years they have lived under occupation. Since the end of British colonial rule in 1947, Kashmir has been controlled by India, Pakistan, and China. In 1948, following conflict amidst India and Pakistan, the United Nations passed a resolution indicating that a democratic vote was to take place to determine Kashmir’s accession into India or Pakistan. This vote has yet to take place, further undermining the autonomy of the Kashmiri people and their ability to determine their own statehood.
The Himalayan region of Kashmir is rich with resources; water sources, minerals, and other natural resources are routinely exploited for financial gain, a significant reason behind the constant violence and battle for control. This further leads to exploitation, human rights violations, and heavy militarization for many people living in Kashmir.
On April 22, a group of gunmen killed 26 people in Pahalgam, Kashmir. After the attack, the mainstream Indian and western media framed it as an operation done by an armed resistance group in Kashmir; despite the disavowal of the resistance group, the Indian government has used this attack as justification for an increase in their violence and genocidal rhetoric against Kashmir.
The people of Kashmir have long been fighting for independence, despite the imperialist forces’ best efforts to silence and subdue them. These efforts from the Indian government to silence Kashmir and undermine their legitimacy and autonomy often take the form of unilateral revocations of the internet and communications– thrusting Kashmiri people into isolation and precarity. These actions are not done unintentionally. They often precede or follow an onslaught of state violence against Kashmiris who dare to resist. Bans of this nature are a consistent settler-colonial tactic that have taken many forms throughout the years; one that we have witnessed as recently as in Gaza throughout the last two years of this genocide.
Tourism has consistently been one of the most popular ploys to forward settler-colonial projects and obscure the ongoing violence enacted upon Indigenous populations, as we have seen in Kashmir, Palestine, Puerto Rico, and many other instances. Since the 2019 revocation of Kashmir’s autonomy, tourism in Kashmir has skyrocketed. Land grabbing in Kashmir has become common to further the tourism sector, which has been causing environmental degradation and the displacement of Kashmiris from their lands.
So-called canada continues to export military aid and maintain financial relationships with other settler-colonial and imperialist states. As students living in the imperial core, our tuition money is routinely used to fund imperialist-led war; as such, it is of the utmost necessity that we remain firm in our support and solidarity for those living under occupation and imperial violence. As we continue the fight for a free and accessible education, we stand with students, youth, and those across the world who are fighting against oppressive systems and injustice, and we encourage you to learn more about the history of Kashmir, their struggles, and the ongoing fight for autonomy and liberation. Free Kashmir!
Sources
- Amnesty International: Realities of Life in Kashmir
- Al Jazeera: Pahalgam attack: A simple guide to the Kashmir conflict
- Reuters: India says it attacked nine sites in Pakistan-administered Kashmir
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