Thousands of students and protesters marched through the main city of Indian Kashmir Thursday to press their demands for independence from India. The demonstration, which came after several days of relative calm, were small compared to the massive protests that have rocked the state over the last two months. At least 34 people have been killed in the unrest. The students waved pro-independence signs as they marched through the main business district of Srinagar, Indian Kashmir's biggest city, chanting “Burn the Indian institutions” and “It has come, it has come, freedom, freedom.” A group of protesters raised a green flag at the clock tower in the city's main bazaar. Police and paramilitary forces kept their distance from the protesters and no violence was reported. The demonstration came during a planned three-day break in the protests that separatist leaders said they would spend charting a future course. They have announced plans for a massive rally and strike for Friday. The recent unrest has reinvigorated the region's decades-long separatist struggle. The protests represent the biggest challenge to Indian rule over its only Muslim-majority state since the start of a violent insurgency in 1989 that has killed an estimated 68,000 people. The crisis began in June with a dispute over land near a Hindu shrine.
