Opinion | Kashmir Stands Together Against Violence, Citizens Leading the Path to Peace

Common people are rising together, turning away from conflict and building a society of learning, unity, and shaping the future

As a Kashmiri, I have seen both the determination and the pain of our people. Despite decades of unrest, the determination of our communities has never broken. Families, youths, and neighbours continue to work towards education, peace, development and a better life. This unshakeable hope in me demonstrates that change can indeed happen, and that we, the people of Kashmir, are capable of shaping our own destiny.

For lasting progress, we must stand against violence and accept peace. Real progress happens when there is a culture of understanding. If Kashmir is going to flourish, we need a people’s movement led by us. A grassroots movement, bridging the divides, building our collectives, leading to stability, justice, and sustainable development.

Generations of ours have grown up while living under curfew and closures that have impacted our education, damaged our mental health, and provided a lingering state of insecurity. Our valley economy, especially tourism and small enterprise, has faced repeated setbacks, making numerous persons without livelihood and without hope.

The most heinous lie of terrorism in Kashmir is not a gun but the fantasy it peddles that violence empowers us. For seven decades, the armed resistance narrative brainwashed numerous Kashmiri youths into believing that to pick up a gun was to be a hero. These guns were actually utilized in furthering foreign interests, not our destiny. Every obituary of a militant celebrated abroad was no triumph but a proof of exploitation wherein our blood was a political commodity.

The toll of this lie has been evident all around: schools burned, childhoods robbed, women made widows, futures erased. And leaders who celebrated “sacrifice” commonly sent their own kids overseas to escape harm. Violence did not bring us strength; it left us weaker, making our youth tools of another nation’s imperfect conflict.

I witnessed our united outrage after the Pahalgam attack, when Kashmiris themselves asked for a total bandh (Shutdown) the very next morning. Children to old people, all were condemning and expressing grief. It was different compared to the last 35 years, wherein separatists would control the narrative and issue such calls. That was not the case this time around. It was a new Kashmir wherein common people are taking charge and demonstrating that we can own our society and raise a united voice against any act of violence. The scenes across towns and across villages reflected how much violence hurts our social fabric and how we, common Kashmiris, crave peace.

Positive change has to come from within our own society. A people’s movement led by us would put Kashmiris in a position to reclaim our own power and build our own destiny. True revolution is about debunking a myth that a gun holds power. Power is a reality only if none can utilize our lives for bargaining, and if knowledge, abilities, and audacious choices, and not violence, define our destiny.

A people’s movement is rooted in non-violence, reconciliation, and respect. A people’s movement calls upon us to own our own destiny, not refuse to be manipulated, and build a base for a prosperous and self-sufficient society.

I have come to know from world precedents that non-violent movements can bring about transformative change. In South Africa, common people, along with leaders such as Nelson Mandela, opposed apartheid via non-violent resistance. In America, the Civil Rights Movement led by Martin Luther King made extraordinary gains via non-violent activism. We can take lessons from these forces. Transformation might not occur right away, but consistent, non-violent activism creates long-term foundations for justice and societal development.

Our youth are both the greatest victims and the strongest hope for change. The recent generations of youth have spent a chunk of their formative years being confined, locked down, and limited, and most of all left frustrated. Yet we can be peace resourceful, we, the youth of Kashmir can be the change to end violence, and we can utilize our capabilities to educate, innovate, start businesses and help the community. We are part of a civil movement to oppose violence. We can build peace clubs in schools and colleges, places to have discussions, cultural exchanges, and sports programs to foster positive engagements. If we are all against it and make it known, there is power in being joined together against violence. Together, we can shift our narrative from hopeless and helpless to resourceful, and we can surely make certain that our generation has the opportunities to build a world without oppression and propaganda.

A peaceful Kashmir is more than the elimination of violence. It is education without threat, nurturing art, culture, and tourism, entrepreneurship without prejudice, and having dialogue instead of division. To attain this notion, we must show determination, it will require patience, unity and believing that change is possible and that we have the capacity to unite and shape our fate. Kashmir has seen enough suffering. Violence has denied generations of our dreams and future, but within pain there lies an opportunity for renewal. A civil movement, led by ‘us’, based on non-violence, is the most viable option.

It is our responsibility. By refusing violence, accepting dialogue, and choosing life over war, we can recover genuine power and create our own destiny. Kashmir has to be seen not as a war zone but a land of resilience, culture, and hope. It begins with a simple but powerful decision: to refuse violence and march collectively on the path of peace, recovering power in education, in dialogue, and in community action, but not in weapons or borrowed wars.

vadaiekashmir@gmail.com