Understanding India: Myth or reality

Laura Schuurmans ,  Jakarta   |  Mon, 10/26/2009 1:27 PM  |  Opinion

India is a success story. India has achieved considerable economic development that has lifted millions of people out of poverty. It is now the world's second-fastest growing major economy and is poised to become a new world power. Indians should rightfully be proud that they live in the world's largest democracy.

Since India's creation in 1947 its leadership has been striving hard to improve the living standards of the population. Freedom of opinion and the press, human rights and equality are all important aspects that have contributed to India's success.

But behind each success, there is also a story. Since independence from the British, India has been left with many challenges of which one is the territorial dispute between Pakistan and India over Kashmir.

During the partition of British India in 1947 the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir was free to choose to accede to either India or Pakistan. Based on the two-nation theory it was widely expected that Kashmir would accede to Pakistan. On Oct. 26, 1947, the Hindu Maharaja of Kashmir decided to accede to India and the Indian army positioned its troops in Kashmir the following day.

In the eyes of pro-independence Kashmiris, the decision of the Maharaja to join India has been rather controversial, and the arrival of the Indian army on Oct. 27, 1947 is considered a black day in Kashmir's history.

Each year on Oct. 27 Kashmiris commemorate this black day to bring the Kashmir dispute to the attention of the international community, to appeal for an end to human rights violations and to bring about a solution of the Kashmir dispute in line with the aspirations of the Kashmiri people and the United Nations resolutions on Kashmir.

After Pakistan and India first went to war in 1947, three more wars were fought in 1965, 1971 and 1999. Both nuclear giants, however, have failed to resolve the dispute. Consequently, millions of Kashmiris have been living under severe oppression and tens of thousands of people have since been killed. Moreover, the conflict has seriously jeopardized regional peace and security.

If Indian claims are correct that the state of Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India, this beautiful country may then not be as *'incredible'' as its tourism campaign "Incredible India" has portrayed. Today, Indian-administered Kashmir is the heaviest militarized region in the world where 700,000 Indian troops have been keeping a population of 7 million Kashmiris under tight control. India has argued, however, that its military presence is vital to fight Islamic militants that have been crossing the border from Pakistan.

Besides the Kashmir dispute, India has been dealing with other internal challenges. Only 50 percent of the population has access to electricity, one in four Indians goes to bed hungry, and illiteracy rates particularly in rural areas where the majority of Indians live remains high. Separatist and Maoist movements in India have been active for decades and Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have repeatedly reported on communal violence between Hindus, Christians and Muslims.

In comparison to India, Indonesia, the world's fourth-largest democracy, may have achieved more success in some cases. Although Indonesia suffered for more than three decades under military dictatorship, it has made considerable progress over the past decade. Indonesia has been successful in keeping the country unified, it has settled disputes in East-Timor and Aceh, and it has significantly improved its human rights record.

Although sectarian violence and separatist violence has occasionally erupted, overall different ethnic and religious groups have been living peacefully side-by-side. Indonesia's diverse and rich culture represents many ethnic, linguistic and religious groups and although India is far larger in population, Indonesia does have a national language that is spoken by almost everyone across the archipelago. Hindi, the most widely spoken official language in India, is only spoken by an estimated 30 percent.

Going back to the Kashmir dispute, if Indonesia together with mediation from the international community can resolve the East Timor problem and Aceh's separatist movement, it may be time that India returns to the negotiating table as per the wishes of the Kashmiris. To bring about a solution to the more than 60-year-old Kashmir dispute is essential for regional peace and security and will allow India to be a true and incredible democracy.

The writer is a freelance writer based in Jakarta. She is currently completing a master's degree at Paramadina Graduate School.

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Ak pandey (not verified), delhi — Sun, 11/01/2009 - 5:35pm

Please read article 370 of Indian Constitution. I t will give you some idea on when and how state of Jammu & Kashmir was joined with Indian Union. It was not by acceptance of Maharaja of Kashmir but by and agreement between Indian Union and Constituent Assembly of Jammu & Kashmir in 1955

A k pandey (not verified), delhi — Sun, 11/01/2009 - 5:29pm

I am surprised how ILL INFORMED people talking on this forum are. India is a Hindu Majority state. Till recently the President was a Muslim, Prime minister a sikh and Most powerful lady in country a Christian (Mrs. Sonia Gandhi). Kashmir did not became part of India through acceptance by Maharaja of Kashmir but through an agreement between Indian Union and Constituent assembly of State of Jammu & Kashmir in 1955 which was representative body of people of Kashmir. We dont have to write about what has happened to Pakistan which ran under Military rule for most of its life, there had been fight between civilian and military rule always and that it is being repeatedly referred to as a failed state. I request people of Indonesia to read independent international papers to get a clear picture. The writer is confused and has half information about Indian polity, social structure, historical facts and economic situation. Last year India was the only country which did not get affected by the recession and number of jobs and economy actually grew. It was simply because of the fact that Indian industry and economy is not dependent upon foreign demand and would get shattered if demand goes down 10000 km away. India is a self sustained economy and a COMPARISON OF INDIA & PAKISTAN IS A JOKE.

Andy2 (not verified), Singapore — Fri, 10/30/2009 - 2:13pm

Does Laura and others simply want India to turn the other cheek? Just roll over and die? That unfortunately is the final objective of the implacable Pakistanis who have become radicalized and would like nothing better than India's heterogenous democracy to fall apart. At the end of the day, Laura, India loves its children, all its children, more than it hates its enemies. It hasn't obliterated the Kashmiris like the West Paksitanis did their Bengali compatriots (how shameful that no one even remembers this outrageous genocide; even good Indonesian muslims either wilfully forget it or are ignorant of it!). Nor has India suppressed Kashmir the way China has suppressed Tibet, or Israel has fragmented the West Bank; or the manner in which Pakistan has itself seperated the Northern Areas from Pak adm Kashmir, and gobbled it up. But this sort of restraint means nothing for Laura, for India -the great, giving democracy- must bleed by the Pakistanis' thousand cuts, no?! The sacrificial imagery of India needing to prove the worth of her democracy in her blood is a characteristic of those analysts who either hate India or abjectly mis-understand the broader context of its experiences and reactions. Unity in diversity are the core political principles of Indian secularism as well as Indonesian Pancasila (sanskrit word meaning 5 principles). And long before, you, Laura, showed up at Paramadina, these two countries have cultivated a rich "indic" socio-political tapestry that has become the basis of their political DNA. These structural socio-political and constitutional features of both countries have remained intact and -whether you like it or not, or think it possible or not- will ensure a pace of development and growth that outpaces those nations that are hung up on settling old scores, and sacrificing their kids to push ahead with vengeful and sectarian agendas. May god grant you more analytical balance, intellectual honesty, and a broader perspective on what is really happening in these two countries.

Ananda (not verified), Jakarta — Thu, 10/29/2009 - 6:04pm

@shine at Darmstadt..I don't who you are..But you scold people on comparing Indonesia with India..while at the same time you don't have a clue what is Indonesia is. At this moment this Country is the 16th largets economy in the world, and increasingly have bigger economy then most of Europe save to big boys like Germany, French, Britain, Italy, Russia. Just like many European who downgraded Turkey and not realising Turkey also larger economically than most of European nations, save the big boys. India show strong prospect to become one of the biggest economy in the world. But only a potential yet and still not a strong possibility or near certainty like China is. Your comment only show how 'patthetic' you are on the world matters.

Miriam Fischer (not verified), London — Thu, 10/29/2009 - 5:39pm

Dear Jakarta Post editors....please stop publishing articles about India. Everytime you publish an article about India, your website is flooded with smelly Indians with their typical upleasant body odor, who mostly have problem with attitude. Oh dear, I have to call an Indian call centre (it will be a nightmare for sure).

Asish (not verified), thomas — Thu, 10/29/2009 - 2:44pm

This is in reply to `Bhartiya` ,if you think India is doing better why did you go out of india to ASEAN countries to work?Myself an Indian , I would say the situation there is far worse than what the writer described.I urge you to realise that counter arguments will not cover up the truth.look at the face of kids in India and look at those kids in any of ASEAN countries.do you know what malnutrition means?It is pathetic that 5+ years you spend in Indonesia and other countries were not enough even to uplift your understanding to the level to acknowledge the problem.The very counter productive and foolish("or bollywoodish") attitude found in you as well as in hundreds of millions of your fellow mates back in India,is making sure that LIFE IN INDIA IS STILL 50 YRS BEHIND.All I would suggest you is to go back to India,hug your beliefs and get a life!.your words might have worth reading if you were still in India

Duhan (not verified), Bandung — Thu, 10/29/2009 - 12:18pm

Initially I did not give much importance to this article as it was written by a student who doesn't have much knowledge about the places mentioned in the article but the kind of response this article is getting, I'm compelled to correct some factual mistakes of this article. I would strongly suggest the writer to please read authentic 'history books' for research and not some 'pakistani propaganda' material freely available on internet. In this article many historical facts are distorted regarding the state of Jammu & Kashmir. At the time of partition there were 3 options available to all princely states and not 2 as mentioned in your article. Third option was to remain independent and this was the option selected by Maharaja of Kashmir. Pakistani forces attacked Jammu & Kashmir and tried to capture it by force. When they almost reached the capital city Srinagar, Maharaja signed the agreement and ceded Jammu & Kashmir to India. At this point Jammu & Kashmir legally became part of India. Then Indian forces were sent to stop Pakistani forces from capturing Srinagar and stop plunder, loot and rapes. Then India moved to UN to resolve this issue. UN security council passed resolution 47 that states that India will maintain forces, Pakistan to withdraw its forces from the territory of Jammu & Kashmir and then a free and fair plebiscite will be conducted. Both Indian and Pakistani governments agreed to hold the plebiscite but Pakistan did not withdraw its forces from Kashmir thus violating the condition for holding the plebiscite. Once again Pakistan tried to capture Jammu & Kashmir by force and again failed. Knowing fully well that they cannot win a conventional war with India, Pakistan started proxy war through providing weapons, money, shelter and training to various terrorist organisations. Now these terrorists are acting against their own creator. India is a 'functional' democracy where all are allowed to raise their concerns. Free and fair elections are conducted in Jammu & Kashmir and people choose their leaders. All separatist leaders boycott these elections like what taliban is doing in Afghanistan. People go to vote even under terrorist threats. If they think that they are true representatives of the people they why do they not contest elections and prove that people really like them. Tell me a country having multiple religions, cultures and languages where separatist movements are not active. My suggestion will be to write good acticles based on facts and some deep understanding into the issues to enlighten the readers and not propaganda material.

Bhartiya (not verified), Jakarta — Thu, 10/29/2009 - 7:58am

Thanks for taking interest in Indian culture and society. This article is like 4 blind men describing an Elephant. I am an Engineer who has worked in Kashmir for 2yrs and presently I am working in Indonesia from last 5 yrs after working in several other ASEAN countries. I agree with the article that Indonesia has done significant progress in every field and is going ahead steadily. I enjoy staying in Indonesia because of its rich and open culture, friendly people and democratic values. I would not appreciate comparing even any two person left apart two big countries, as mentioned in this article. Every country has there PLUS & MINUS and probably developing countries have more minus, the reason to have the status of developing country. By comparing once negative point and others positive point doesn’t make anybody superior or inferior. I think the writer has collected all the information about India from the books and internet and that is why doesn’t have the picture actual problems. It is true that like any other developing country India also have their own problems and Indian Government is on their toes to resolve the issues in the best of India and Indians interest. We very well know that small problems take less time and big problems take more time to get resolved. The act in Kashmir is not a problem of people residing in Kashmir, but it’s a problem created by terrorist who call themselves as separatist. Please remember that terrorism does not have any religion and terrorist are not Hindu, Muslim, Christian or others, they are just terrorist. Therefore it will be wrong to call the infiltrators across the border in Kashmir as Islamic militant or anything else, they are terrorist. And as correctly said the huge Indian military is there to protect Kashmir and people living there from terrorism. Do you think any piece of land given choice to merge with India or Pakistan will choose to go with Pakistan in today’s time seeing the condition of Pakistan? Or even being an independent nation would Kashmir have survived under present scenario? Not only India, the other countries in that reason also spending heavily to protect them from terrorism. As far as electricity and education level of India is concerned then I will reserve my comment on Indonesia’s situation. Talking about language and different ethnic people living in India, like our motto ‘Incredible India’ we also have our motto ‘Unity in Diversity’. I feel sorry for the writer if he/she has been hurt by anything that is got to do with India or Indians that made him/her write his biased opinion about India.

Raj — Wed, 10/28/2009 - 8:00pm

The castle of pakistan was built on lies and hatred.....today it is in shambles...it has become a colony of USA....Viceroy Clinton has to certify before the colony can budget for food and roads.....*****How did paks reach this pathetic situation...***pursuit of warmongering and terrorism for 62 years....****about poor people in India- much smaller country with less of problems "pakistan" shoud have raced ahead of India***where is it?***WITH BEGGING BOWL!!! Without alms "pakistan" would have collapsed long ago*** about separatist movements in India...all of them died out except for Kashmir kept alive by the pak terrorists...***visit this to learn more about how kashmiris feel about pakistani terrorism in kashmir** http://www.kashmir-information.com/ ***meanwhile freedom struggle in Balochistan is intensifying ***visit here to learn about how the hapless poor people of the emerging Republic of Balochistan feel about pakistani occupation...*** http://balochwarna.com/

Irfan k (not verified), Jakrta — Wed, 10/28/2009 - 7:52pm

Yes....indeed. India is a reality but a twisted one, living in a syndrome i.e looking at the world with their own perspective and also seeking the whole world's acceptance of their blind visioin. This is very much evident from the ridiculous, baseless remarks rather isolated assumptions of my respectable friends from India. It seems that they are apparently ignorant of the fact that this era of globalization does not allow things to be swept under the carpet. They must admit by now that this is a problem to be resolved, already recognized by the world as an issue. With Azad Jammu and Kashmir State on Pakistan's side, how can the unusual deployment of more than 700,000 troops with absolut control in Indian held Kashmir can be justified, Indian forces killing infinite number of innocent people and violating human rights to an unbelievable extent. She claims to be the secular democratic state but how would world be looking at it with more than 28 other major insurgencies going on within itself. However, Indonesia may be considered a real democracy in true perspective having a diversity of religions, ethnic groups, culture and languages, she has been able to achieve much more during the last decade inspite of three eras of dictatorship. It is high time that international community must play its role in resolving the issue as per the United Nations.
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