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Lull in violence on third day of Indian cease-fire

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December 1, 2000 

SRINAGAR-- (UNB/AP) - Kashmir's secessionist alliance urged Islamic guerrillas on Thursday to accept a cease-fire offered by the Indian government for the period of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

In the only reported incident of violence Thursday, three gunmen accosted two soldiers patrolling a shopping area in Baramullah, 55 kilometers (33 miles) north of Srinagar, and opened fire. One soldier died and the other was critically wounded. The assailants fled.

"Compared to the routine attacks that take place in Kashmir, there has actually been a lull in violence," Kashmir's Inspector-General of Police Ashok Bhan told The Associated.

On Nov. 19, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee offered a unilateral cease-fire to the guerrillas and ordered Indian troops to halt offensive operations, such as house-to-house searches and attacks on militants during Ramadan.

The government hopes to bring guerrillas to the negotiating table. India government says it will stick to the cease-fire for the entire month, although soldiers can defend themselves if they are attacked.

The 14 Pakistan-based guerrilla groups have rejected India's cease-fire offer, and many have said they will step up attacks during Ramadan. Since the unilateral cease-fire came into force Tuesday, 14 people have been killed in gunbattles and land mine explosions.

In Islamabad, Abdul Ghani Lone, a leader of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, which represents 23 Indian Kashmiri separatist groups, said guerrilla fighters should follow the separatist political leadership and agree to talks with India.

"We are trying to reach a consensus with mujahedeen (holy warriors). They should not act as an independent force, but follow the political leadership," said Lone.

In Srinagar, Omar Farooq, Kashmir's highest Islamic leader and another key decision-maker of the Hurriyat, said of the guerrillas: "There is a communication gap and it needs to be filled."

The Indian government says there are about 3,500 Islamic militants in Jammu-Kashmir state, who have been fighting since 1989 to separate the region from India or unite it with Pakistan. More than 30,000 people have died, according to the government, while human rights groups say the death toll is 60,000.

Farooq said the next move after the cease-fire would have to come from the government.

"Nothing seems to be happening. People are just waiting for the government of India to start talks," he said.

Security forces kept a low profile, laying down in their sandbagged bunkers. However, patrols to stop infiltration of militants from Pakistan continued, police said.

"While we have stopped offensive combat operations, we have identified our vulnerable positions - stopping the infiltration of militants, protecting defense bases and providing security to the minorities," Bhan said. "We will lay a security umbrella around them."

More than 1,000 Hindus and Sikhs, minorities in Kashmir, have been killed in attacks by the rebels since 1990, according to the federal Home Ministry. More than 50,000 Hindu families have fled their homes in the Kashmir Valley and live as refugees in other parts of the country.

In Srinagar, helmeted soldiers of the paramilitary Border Security Force, wearing bulletproof jackets and carrying machine-guns, put up green banners in Urdu and English greeting Kashmiri people during the month of Ramadan.

"Kashmiri brothers and sisters, congratulations on the peace!" said one banner at the busy Jahangir Chowk square. In a crowded market nearby, paramilitary soldiers holding their guns in their hands joined civilians as they bought vegetables.

Many Kashmiris distrust Indian security forces who patrol their neighborhoods, search their homes and frisk them on the roads.

Also Thursday, state authorities ordered police to begin moving out migrant brick kiln workers and farm and construction laborers from areas along the cease-fire line, especially in the border district of Kupwara, where Islamic guerrillas frequently launch attacks. However, the evacuation did not begin immediately.

The laborers travel to Kashmir from other Indian states, mostly from impoverished Bihar, in search of jobs. They are paid higher wages because not many people are willing to work in the troubled state.

Since Britain carved up the subcontinent at independence in 1947, both India and Pakistan have claimed all of Kashmir and fought two of their three wars over it. A 1972 cease-fire line divides the Kashmir between the two countries.

Military intelligence officials said they were tightening defenses along the cease-fire line to prevent Pakistan-based guerrillas from sneaking into the Indian territory through the mountainous border.

Pakistan says it has no control over the movement of the guerillas from its territory into Kashmir. India alleges that Islamabad arms and funds the guerillas, but Pakistan says it provides only moral and diplomatic support.