NEW DELHI, 22 December 2003 — Kashmir’s headlines are usually soaked in blood, the images are brutal and battered, the stories are about hopelessness and terror. Some of that changed when a state government elected in peaceful elections last November successfully completed a year in power.

Kashmir was once a popular holiday destination, with an average of one million tourists a year, but as terrorism rose the numbers dropped to a dismal 6,000 annually. Capital Srinagar — famous for its Dal Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Asia — has gently rowed back onto the tourist map with at least 200,000 tourists this year, according to government figures through November.

Dal Lake’s approximately 1,400 houseboats echoed with laughter. Abdul Aziz Tuman, chairman of the Houseboat Owners’ Association, said: “We had not seen these many tourists for so many years. It could only become possible because of peace in the valley.”

The government launched a campaign in India and abroad to promote the state as a safe destination. To help restore the confidence of international travelers, guests from 50 foreign embassies were invited to the sprawling Royal Springs Golf Course in Srinagar for a three-day tournament. In April, the government hosted a group of influential Bollywood directors. Kashmir was once a sought-after film location, but fear drove filmmakers away to the security of Switzerland, Mauritius, Britain and Australia.

When Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed promised security and other benefits, director Sanjiv Puri took a team of about 100 to Srinagar for the shooting of “Agnipank”. More have promised to return, bringing revenue and jobs.

Many Kashmiris say they no longer want to think of independence or belonging to either Pakistan or India. They want jobs, development and good education, for their children and themselves.

Mufeed Bhatt, 26, who stopped studying to work after militants killed his father, said: “When India and Pakistan discuss Kashmir, they ignore the Kashmiri people. Are they any better than the British? Let them know that Kashmir is not a colony and we are not slaves. We are dying every day. We want the fighting to stop.”

Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee promised to create 100,000 jobs in two years in a bid to curb the huge unemployment problem. In October, federal government officials visited Srinagar to recruit an army of 27,000 voluntary teachers to educate a population of 800,000 illiterate adults.

Despite government efforts, the killings did continue with the worst occurring in March when militants massacred 24 Hindus in Nadimarg village. Other problems, like the thousands who have reportedly disappeared since the insurgency started, persist.

Some joined militant groups, others vanished after being taken in for police questioning, most ended up in graves without names.

According to the Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons, more than 8,000 people have disappeared since 1989 after their arrest. The government said about 3,900 people went missing in the last decade.

Shameema, a 30-year-old mother of two, said her husband was picked up for questioning by the army six years ago. “We want the government to show us his grave if he is dead, so we can offer prayers and reconcile ourselves to the fact that he is gone.”