Asia-Pacific

Police issue shoot-on-sight orders in Kashmir

(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-09-15 10:19

An Indian policeman walks on a deserted road during a curfew in Srinagar September 13, 2010. [Agencies]

The region has been roiled for months by separatist protests that often descend into clashes with government forces. The violence has killed at least 88 people this summer, mostly teenage boys and young men in their 20s.

The anti-India protests turned into rare anti-US protests Monday as reports of a Quran desecration in the United States intensified the anger of demonstrators, with activists chanting "Down with America" and burning an effigy of President Barack Obama. Protesters torched government buildings and a Christian missionary school and threw rocks at troops, who responded by firing live ammunition into crowds.

The death toll from that violence rose to 19 on Tuesday, including 18 demonstrators and one police officer.

The violence came as Indian officials debated whether to make goodwill gestures to try to ease tensions in the war-wracked region, which is divided between India and Pakistan and fully claimed by both.

On Monday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh again voiced his willingness to talk to Kashmiris and to respond to their demands, but the government has not yet responded to a proposal by the separatists for peace talks.

Since 1989, a violent, separatist insurgency and the ensuing crackdown by Indian forces have killed an estimated 68,000 people. Although the armed rebellion is largely suppressed, the region remains heavily militarized, with checkpoints along main roads, hundreds of thousands of troops stationed here and harsh emergency laws still in force, creating further friction with the restive population.

This summer's demonstrations erupted after a police probe in June found Indian soldiers killed three Kashmiri civilians in a staged gunbattle, then claimed their victims were militants to get a reward. The army responded by suspending two officers.

In a protest following that incident, a teenager was killed after being hit in the head by a tear gas canister fired by police. Since then, the troubled Himalayan region has witnessed near-daily demonstrations and clashes.

Kashmiris raise their hands while chanting anti-India slogans during an anti-India protest in Srinagar September 11, 2010.[Agencies]