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21 Denning L.J. 1 (2009)
The Creation Story of Kashmiri People: The Right to Self-Determination

handle is hein.journals/denlj21 and id is 3 raw text is: THE DENNING LAW JOURNAL The Denning Law Journal 2009 Vol 21 pp 1-25 THE CREATION STORY OF KASHMIRI PEOPLE: THE RIGHT TO SELF-DETERMINATION Fozia N Lone * ABSTRACT If a group wishes to exercise the right to self-determination, they need to establish that they are a people within the international law definition, thereby triggering the ability to claim this right. Thus, the definition of the term people is the key in cases of self-determination and always posits difficult challenges. This article aims to determine whether the Kashmiri people could be identified as a group that fits within the contemporary non- exhaustive definition of people. Having ascended from the level of subjects of an autocratic rule to victims of human rights violations, are Kashmiris now in a position to exercise a right to self-determination? I. INTRODUCTION The territory of Kashmir, located in the foothills of Himalayan mountain range in South Asia, was until 1947 under the paramountcy of the British Crown as the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir. The British decolonisation of the Indian subcontinent became instrumental in creating a disorder that pushed Kashmir into the throes of an unending war. Britain decided to grant independence to British India; however, they did not adequately define the relationship between the Princely States and the new Dominions, i.e. India and Pakistan.1 Once the British paramountcy was withdrawn in 1947, the territory of Princely State of Kashmir became a continuous source of tension between India and Pakistan. This territory ignited four wars between these newly formed nations and has been described as the most dangerous place in the world by the former US President Bill * Assistant Professor, City University of Hong Kong & Honorary Research Assistant, University of Aberdeen. 1 H Hodson The Great Divide - Britain India Pakistan (London: Hutchinson, 1969).

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