Sweden’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Margot Wallström tweeted today that in a phone call with Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, she stressed that “the EU, including Sweden, supports, a bilateral political solution between India & Pakistan over Kashmir, dialogue through diplomatic channels.” What’s wrong with that hare-brained, completely worthless proposal? It completely disempowers Kashmiris & ignores their struggle for self-determination. They are not even invited to participate in negotiations over their fate. It ignores Indian colonialism & the presence of nearly one-million Indian troops using pellet guns & live ammo against unarmed civilians. It makes no demands on India whatsoever when it should, at least, be denouncing the occupation & the hermetic blockade. Let’s call this proposal what it is: a sham, an evasion, an obfuscation for the fact that the EU, including Sweden, intend to do nothing to pressure India to withdraw its troops & stop its murderous siege of Kashmir. There’s too much trade & commerce money at stake.
Any serious negotiations with India over Kashmir would begin with demands for the immediate, unconditional withdrawal of all Indian troops & the immediate release of all Kashmiri political prisoners & only then would proceed to negotiations requiring the presence of democratically chosen Kashmiri representatives so that Kashmiris can damn well speak for themselves.