(6 May 2003)
Srinagar, Jammu-Kashmir state - recent
1. Wide shot armed soldier guarding Dal lake
2. Various of soldiers patrolling Dal lakes in boats
3. Various of security on streets
Srinagar, Jammu-Kashmir state - 5 May 2003
4. SOUNDBITE: (Urdu) VoxPop:
"If they talk to Pakistan, Vajpayee has given a new direction to the situation right now. If there is sincerity on both sides, then things could work out in a real sense."
5. SOUNDBITE: (Urdu) Voxpop:
"The situation in Kashmir is deteriorating day by day. If both of them can sit down and talk for the sake of Kashmir , for its people, for the sake of poor people in Kashmir, then it will be good for Kashmir and its people."
6. SOUNDBITE: (English) Voxpop:
"I think, mediation on the Kashmir issue is a must, because history has proved that bilateral negotiations have been a futile exercise."
FILE New Delhi, India - July 2001
7. Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee greeting Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf at a banquet hosted in his honour
Pulawama - April 22, 2003
8. Various of relatives of people killed by suspected Islamic militants mourning
9. Mid shot body of victim being wrapped in shroud
Srinagar, Jammu-Kashmir state - 5 May 2003
10. Abdul Ghani Bhat, All Parties Hurriyat Conference coming out of his house
11. SOUNDBITE: (English ) Abdul Ghani Bhat, All Parties Hurriyat Conference:
"It is the future of the entire South Asian region which causes concern across the globe. We have therefore to address the issues which constitute a potential threat to nuclear peace in the region. The countries involved in Kashmir will have to rise above, much above their traditional positions and address the core issue , resolve it to the flutter of all hearts across the whole globe. And if this happens, I am as sure as death that we will not only
be ensuring peace but ensuring prosperity as well."
12. Various soldier in armoured vehicle
STORYLINE :
The latest round of peace initiatives between rivals India and Pakistan were being greeted with a mixture of hope and skepticism by the people of Kashmir on Monday.
India and Pakistan said last week they would hold their first talks in two years in an effort to end 50 years of war and tension between the two.
The nuclear rivals have also agreed to appoint new ambassadors. India also agreed to restore air links, but Pakistan has so far not reciprocated.
The people of disputed Kashmir have said that they welcome the proposals but some said they would like to see mediation between the two, as bilateral talks in the past have failed.
Hindu India and Islamic Pakistan have gone to war three times since independence from Britain in 1947, two of them over mostly Muslim Kashmir, where guerillas are fighting a bloody war against Indian rule.
Both countries claim the state in its entirety.
Muslim militants launched an insurgency, that has left over 61,000 people dead in Indian-controlled Kashmir in 1989, demanding independence or its merger with Pakistan.
India accuses Pakistan of backing the rebels. Pakistan says it only extends moral, political and diplomatic support to the Islamic militants.
Kashmiri militants have welcomed the diplomatic thaw but showed no sign of calling a cease-fire or easing their demand for Indian withdrawal from the state, saying talks and armed struggle can go side-by-side.
The All Parties Hurriyat Conference, an umbrella group of 23 political and religious separatist parties in Srinagar, has also welcomed the reconciliation moves but stressed that Kashmiris must be involved in the resolution of the conflict.
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