I. Background

     When British India was partitioned in 1947, the independent states of Pakistan and India emerged, leaving the status of Kashmir unsettled. Through UN Security Council
     resolutions, it was decided that an impartial UN supervised plebiscite for
     self-determination would be held in Kashmir to determine the wishes of the people. 

The  plebiscite administrator was US Admiral of the Fleet, Chester Nimitz. To this day, India  (which, under Prime Minister Nehru agreed to the plebiscite) keeps Kashmir under illegal occupation with over 600,000 troops - the largest military to civilian ratio anywhere - who have committed mass killings, systematic rape, looting, burning of houses, and forcible deportations (all amply documented by international human rights groups like Amnesty  International and Human Rights Watch).

     II. Current Crisis

     The Kargil clash is a small piece of the larger peace and justice problem of Kashmir.To  cover up the Kashmir problem and its military reverses in Kargil, India is openly considering an attack on Pakistan across the international frontier.

     III. Implications

     Kashmir is not a local problem but a global one. This is the only conflict in the world
     where both the adversaries (India and Pakistan) are nuclear armed. One-fourth of humanity resides in the Indo-Pak subcontinent. Any flare-up there may well drag in others and spill over beyond the regional frontiers threatening the very well being of the world.

     IV. What's Needs To Be Done?

     1) UN observer groups should be sent to the Kargil sector to ascertain and monitor the
     ground situation;

     2) The UN and the US should work towards appointing a Special Envoy on Kashmir to
     defuse tensions and to start a dialogue towards peace under the framework of      applicable UN resolutions;

     3) Special notice should be taken of India's policy towards Kashmir, which is an extension of its brutal record against its own Hindu untouchables, Christians, and other minorities.

     4) Lawmakers, media, and the community should make special efforts to inform and
     educate themselves and others about Kashmir, a global flashpoint.