Courtesy of Umar Ganie Khurram Pervez, convenor of Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society, a rights group.A heated political debate accompanied a concert by the world-renowned conductor Zubin Mehta and the Bavarian State Orchestra on Saturday in Srinagar in Indian-administered Kashmir. Several separatist politicians and members of civil society groups were critical of Mr. Mehta’s decision to participate in a concert organized and managed by the German Embassy in India and by the federal and state Indian governments. In response to the concert, titled “Ehsaas-e-Kashmir†(The Feel of Kashmir), civil society members in Srinagar organized a parallel cultural program, “Haqeeqat-e-Kashmir†(The Reality of Kashmir), in a municipal park.
India Ink spoke to Khurram Pervez, spokesman for Haqeeqat-e-Kashmir, who is also the convenor of Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society, a rights group. Mr. Pervez was part of the research group that published a report in December 2009 on the discovery of thousands of unmarked graves in Kashmir.
What was the idea behind organizing “Haqeeqat-e-Kashmir†(Reality of Kashmir) and what has the civil society of Kashmir achieved by organizing this event?
We conveyed our apprehensions to the German ambassador through a letter about the Zubin Mehta concert. As Kashmir remains a disputed territory, we protested the German Embassy’s initiative to organize such an event in collaboration with the Indian government. The Germans did not respond. We came up with an event that would convey the reality of Kashmir. Thus the name: “Haqeeqat-e-Kashmir†(The Reality of Kashmir).
What were the grounds on which you had opposed the concert?
Kashmir is a disputed region. India is seen here by the people as holding Kashmir through illegitimate force. The concert was an attempt by the Indian government to whitewash its crimes in Kashmir, to obfuscate the truth, hide the reality from the world. Zubin Mehta’s concert was telecasted in 50 countries. We thought it would portray an incorrect impression that all is well in Kashmir. Omar Abdullah, the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, said that this concert would help boost tourism in the state. India’s prime minister, Manmohan Singh, has spoken about normalcy returning to Kashmir on the basis of the number of tourists visiting. The Indian government had a clear political motive in organizing this concert.
Why do you think the German Embassy in India went all the way to organize the concert in Kashmir?
We have no way of knowing what motivated the Germans. Probably it was the ignorance of its diplomatic staff. The German ambassador to India, who has displayed astounding arrogance and ignorance, told reporters that the silent majority of Kashmir was with him. We fail to understand which silent majority he was talking about.
Don’t you think that a musical concert in a conflict can be apolitical? Zubin Mehta has also performed in many conflict zones in the world. They played in Sarajevo.
Kashmir remains the most militarized zone in the world and this kind of concert in an active conflict is very dangerous. We were told the concert is apolitical, but we believe in times of conflict neutrality is complicity with perpetrators of violence. Nikolaus Bachler, the general manager of the Bavarian State Orchestra, has said the event had not been properly handled and had become politicized. The orchestra had been under the impression that they would be playing for the Kashmiri people, and not at a concert restricted to the Indian elite and officialdom. They had even waived their fee to play here. They had complained they were misled by the German Embassy in India. Bachler also said that the art can’t be exploited by anyone, be it governments or by embassies or any political groups.
How did Kashmir gain or lose by organizing an event like “Haqeeqat-e-Kashmir� Was it a battle of two ideologies fighting through the medium of music?
Through our program we wanted to highlight the pain, resilience and sacrifices of the people of Kashmir. We wanted to raise questions about the campaign of obfuscation by the Indian government. The world was watching and we wanted the world to hear about and see the reality of Kashmir. We have been successful despite curbs and restrictions to attend to our program. Several people were beaten and one person was arrested. Yet people came.
What were the main attractions of your event?
We had some of the leading poets of Kashmir, and children, whose parents have disappeared, recited their poems. There were other performances that depicted the pain and suffering of Kashmir. People cried and laughed too.
Do you think artists should know the political language of conflict?
It’s astonishing that people argued “Why should Zubin Mehta know about the politics of Kashmir?†I believe if he doesn’t want to know about Kashmir, how can he pay a tribute to Kashmir? The name of their concert was “Ehsaas-e-Kashmir†(Feel of Kashmir). How can you feel for Kashmir if you deliberately chose to ignore the reality of Kashmir? Choosing to be ignorant is complicity.
German Ambassador Micheal Steiner had said the event was apolitical â€" do you agree?
It can’t be apolitical, because the list of invitees from the German Embassy was mostly political people. Among the 1,100 people the Germans had invited, only 100 were from Kashmir. I have in possession official documents that there was a list of people who were not cleared by the security agencies to attend the concert. They include more than 200 students from the University of Kashmir.
Did you watch the snippets of the Zubin Mehta concert? What do you think was its impact on the Kashmir valley?
Most Kashmiris don’t know Western classical music. It was a world-renowned orchestra playing, so those who watched it on television or Internet liked it but didn’t understand much.
By organizing this concert, do you think Germany’s position on Kashmir has changed?
Germany clearly wanted to change its stance on Kashmir. The concert was a tacit way to dilute their position. After our protest, the German ambassador did make a statement, saying that the concert will not alter the disputed nature of Jammu and Kashmir for Germany. There are resolutions by the European Parliament which have made it clear that Kashmir is a disputed territory. They are binding on Germany as well. We believe Germany has betrayed its own commitment of conflict resolution on Kashmir. Germany’s image has been tarnished in eyes of Kashmiri people. It is the German ambassador who is responsible for this.
Rouf Bhat/Agence France-Presse â€" Getty Images A paramilitary soldier keeping watch during a strike called by separatist leaders protesting Zubin Mehta’s concert in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, on Saturday.Your critics would say by organizing a parallel event to the main concert the state government had to tighten the security in the entire Kashmir valley, which led to many incidents of violence.
It was not because of our program that people died. The VIP’s who had flown to Kashmir had not come for our program but for the Zubin Mehta concert. Deployment of troops in Kashmir was increased not because of our program but for the Zubin Mehta concert. The moral obligation for the death of four young men in Shopian falls on the German ambassador and the Indian government.
The state government says it spent five 5 crore ($760,000) for the Zubin Mehta concert. How much did you spend on the parallel event?
We spent 50,000 rupees ($750). People who came to the event and supported us made contributions.
Four people were shot and killed by the paramilitary force CRPF in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir. The police describe two of them as militants, but the families and local villagers have insisted that all four were civilians. They were killed soon before Zubin Mehta started the performance. Do you think there will be an investigation into the deaths? How has the Jammu and Kashmir government responded?
The response has been denial. The police claimed that these boys were killed in a gun battle. It is a blatant lie. All four of them were civilians and not militants. Many civilians have been killed this year in Kashmir, but not even a single perpetrator of violence has been punished. It is part of an old pattern of impunity in Kashmir. The sanction to prosecute any member of the security forces has always been denied under the Armed Special Powers Act. I fear the killings in Shopian district will meet the same wall of impunity.
The killings in Shopian district on the day of the concert exposed the reality of Kashmir to the world. Had there not been a heightened deployment of troops for the concert throughout Kashmir, had the German ambassador not been stubborn and callous, those four boys might have been alive.
(This interview has been lightly edited and condensed.)
Sameer Yasir is a freelance journalist based in Srinagar.
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