Valley of Blood and Tears : Thousands die as India fights insurgents in an ugly war over Kashmir

The spectacular Vale of Kashmir is turning into a valley of blood and tears. Day by day the number of missing or dead rises in an ugly, little-noticed war that rages in this northernmost state of India. Indian troops clash with civilians and armed insurgents, leaving behind a trail of summary executions, torture, arson and rape.

The situation in Kashmir is frightening, saddening and maddening. India and Pakistan have clashed over the predominantly Muslim region ever since the partition of India in 1947. Half of Kashmir is in Pakistan. The other half is the only Muslim-majority state in Hindu-dominated India. The Kashmir dispute is the most dangerous flash point between Pakistan and India and observers fear it could spark a large scale, even a nuclear, war.

A stop to the senseless killing is needed now. The two nations should try to resolve the problem by calling in an outside mediator before things get worse, and more deadly. India and Pakistan have fought two wars for control of Kashmir. Fighting broke out again in 1971. An independence movement simmered for years with open rebellion breaking out in mid-1989 after a rigged Indian-run election.

Since early 1990, Indian troops have regularly fought with Kashmiri guerrillas, who are fighting for independence or union with Pakistan (which has trained and armed some of them). The official death toll is about 5,500, but unofficial estimates by hospitals and U.N. officials range from 12,000 to 20,000, with civilians suffering the most.

Indian government officials in Kashmir denied any human rights abuses in recent interviews with Times Staff Writer Bob Drogin. But Asia Watch and Physicians for Human Rights have reported widespread human-rights abuses in Kashmir. And India has refused to allow visits by delegations from Amnesty International or the Red Cross, which monitors the treatment of prisoners. India’s credibility is weakened when it isolates Kashmir from the outside world. Independent monitoring of what is happening in Kashmir would be a good first step toward bringing peace to that region.