Through the lens of resilience: Renowned Belgian photojournalist unveils ‘Kashmir: wait and see’ in Islamabad
Islamabad: A landmark pictorial book documenting nearly a decade of life and conflict in the disputed territory of Kashmir premiered in Pakistan’s capital on Monday, bringing a European lens to the human rights situation in the region. The book, titled “Kashmir: Wait and See,” authored by internationally acclaimed Belgian photojournalist Cedric Gerbehaye, was unveiled at the National Council of the Arts in an event attended by a high-profile assembly of diplomats, intellectuals, and political figures, including former Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed.
The publication is the culmination of eight years of field research and photography across Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan. Organizers stated that the work serves as a “crucial tool” to highlight the human dimension of the conflict, featuring stark visual narratives that range from pellet-gun victims in the Kashmir Valley to residents of border villages along the Line of Control (LoC) who live under the constant threat of cross-border shelling. The project arrived in Islamabad following its international debut at the “Visa pour l’Image” festival in Perpignan, France, where it drew global attention to the cultural resilience and political struggles of the Kashmiri people.
Ali Raza Syed, Chairman of the Brussels-based Kashmir Council Europe (KC-EU), led a seven-member European delegation to the launch, emphasizing that the book is a cornerstone of an ongoing campaign to seek a resolution to the dispute in accordance with United Nations Security Council resolutions. He noted that the objective of the exhibition is to inform and influence international policymakers by moving beyond political rhetoric and focusing on the fundamental right to self-determination. The Council has spent years advocating within European parliamentary circles, using such documentary evidence to keep the Kashmir issue on the diplomatic agenda.
The Islamabad exhibition, which remains open through January 28, marks the beginning of a multi-city tour. The European delegation and the author are scheduled to hold subsequent exhibitions in Muzaffarabad from January 29 to 31, followed by stops in Mirpur on February 1 and 2. The tour will conclude in Lahore with a four-day event ending on February 8, coinciding with regional observances of Kashmir Solidarity Day. The initiative reflects an increasing effort by advocacy groups to utilize high-end photojournalism as a medium for international legal and moral advocacy in one of the world’s most long-standing territorial disputes.
