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Pakistan has postponed some elections in the part of Kashmir it controls. It cited security concerns. Protesters took to the streets this summer demanding better representation. Betsy Joles reports from Islamabad.
BETSY JOLES, BYLINE: Polling Monday took place in parts of Poonch division. It's one of the places where Kashmir is divided between Pakistan and India by a heavily militarized de facto border called the Line of Control. Poonch is politically important, which helps explain why anger erupted there in the lead-up to these elections. Protests came with calls for more control over local resources and government. Human rights groups say security forces have killed dozens of protesters. The government also says members of law enforcement were killed. It banned the Joint Awami Action Committee, the group it held responsible, under anti-terrorism laws.
Voter Fatima Anwar (ph) says she now has doubts over the election process.
FATIMA ANWAR: (Speaking Urdu).
JOLES: "Under such circumstances," she says, "a major question mark hangs over the credibility of these elections." The internet has been tightly controlled, and during the elections, the government in Islamabad issued new rules severely restricting reporting there. Analyst Ershad Mahmud says the government is highly conscious of its image when it comes to Kashmir. It has long claimed people in its territory, home to over 4 million, have more rights than those on the Indian side. If there's trouble there...
ERSHAD MAHMUD: Then Pakistan would definitely lose its face at the international level.
JOLES: The government is also sensitive when it comes to Kashmir because of the support it enjoys in other parts of Pakistan, Mahmud says.
MAHMUD: These demands resonate with everybody's demands.
JOLES: Polling to elect the region's parliament in some parts of Poonch were postponed on Monday with the government citing security concerns. Voter Mustaq Ahmed Khan (ph) in Chamankot agrees with the decision.
MUSTAQ AHMED KHAN: (Speaking Urdu).
JOLES: "Given the somewhat dangerous security situation, it was good," he says. At another polling station in Bagh District, a group of men raised black flags, boycotting the vote in protest.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER: (Speaking Urdu).
JOLES: "The election is drama," one of them says.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER: (Speaking Urdu).
JOLES: "The politicians will merely occupy their seats, enjoy luxuries and do nothing for the people." Soon after, police disperse them from the site. The rest of the voting hasn't been rescheduled yet.
For NPR News, I'm Betsy Joles in Islamabad, Pakistan. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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