Forgot your password?
Economist Accuses India Of Censorship Over Kashmir Map
By Sanjoy Majumder
BBC News, Delhi, BBC NEWS, SOUTH ASIA
May 24, 2011: The Economist magazine has accused India of hostile censorship after being forced by the country's authorities to cover up a map in its latest edition.
India says the map, which depicts the disputed area of Kashmir, is incorrect because it shows the region as divided between Pakistan, India and China.
Kashmir is claimed by both India and Pakistan in its entirety but has been divided since 1948. It has been the cause of two wars between them.
Nearly 30,000 copies of the latest edition of The Economist are being distributed in India with a blank white sticker placed over a map of Kashmir. The map was to be used to illustrate a cover story on the border between India and Pakistan which it describes as the world's "most dangerous".
Indian officials forced the magazine to take the step because the map did not show all of Kashmir as being part of India. The Economist says it was merely reflecting the current effective border, adding that India is more intolerant on the issue than either Pakistan or China.
Indian readers, it said, could face the political reality of the situation on the ground unlike its government. The authorities in India routinely target the international media, including the BBC, on the issue of Kashmir's borders if the media do not reflect India's claims.
