B.C. diaspora hopes for peace amid rising India-Pakistan tensions

British Columbians with ties to India and Pakistan are expressing concern after India fired missiles on Pakistani-controlled areas Wednesday, stoking ongoing tensions between the two countries.

Pakistan said at least 26 people died in the missile strikes, and both countries said they suffered casualties in ensuing artillery exchanges along the Line of Control — which separates India and Pakistan in the contested Kashmir region.

Jatinder Bhan, who emigrated from Kashmir decades ago, says he is trying to understand the violence in the region.

"We're hopeful that someday, peace will reign in the area and that we are able to, with the respect, go back and live peacefully with our other members of the community," said the Coquitlam, B.C., resident.

Similar sentiments were expressed at a Hindu temple in Surrey following the escalation of violence between the two countries.

Vinay Sharma, secretary of the Vedic Hindu Cultural Society of B.C., says he is praying for peace.

"In Hinduism ... we are taught that the entire world is our family," Sharma said. "So we are worried for each and every person who lives in India or anywhere else. And we do not want any killings, we do not want any war."

India-Pakistan tensions have been elevated since an attack on April 22 in Indian-administered Kashmir, where gunmen killed 26 people, most of them Indian Hindu tourists.

Indian officials have blamed Pakistan for backing the gunmen — a charge denied by Islamabad — and said the latest missile strikes were a retaliation for the April massacre. 

The April attack took place in the part of the Kashmir region that is controlled by India but claimed by Pakistan.

Kashmir, which is divided between the two countries but claimed in its entirety by each, has been at the centre of tensions for decades, including two wars. 

Haroon Khan, a director with the Pakistan-Canada Association and the Al Jamia Masjid mosque in Vancouver, says he hopes the international community works toward de-escalating tensions between the two countries.

He says members of the local South Asian diaspora are concerned about the conflict, and it's important to remember "that we're all friends and neighbours here."

"There is no place for any escalation among our own communities.... Here it's important to keep the peace and also work towards a fair and just peace for all people," Khan said.