‘India’s case weak after opposition from within’

Speakers say support extended to Kashmiri cause by media and Indian intelligensia has weakened Indian govt stance.

SIALKOT: The support extended to the cause of Kashmiri people by the international media as well as by Indian intelligentsia has further weakened the Indian government’s stance on Kashmir.

This was stated by Hafiz Hamid Raza, the president of the Sialkot chapter of All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference, while addressing a conference held in Sialkot on Monday.

Raza condemned the human rights violations being carried out by the Indian army. He said that the recent uprising of the Kashmiri youth proved that the issue is domestic and not fueled by outsiders.

He said that Kashmir dispute concerned 15 million people and involved three parties (Pakistan, India and the Kashmiris), adding that the final decision rested with the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

Raza said that his organisation would continue extending moral support to the struggle of Kashmiri people until their grievances are resolved in accordance with the UN Charter for Human Rights, International Human Rights Declaration as well as the UN and NAM resolutions concerning Kashmir. He pressed upon the Pakistan government to use diplomatic and political channels to mobilise the international community. He concluded his speech by saying that Kashmiris would not accept any political package or a solution to the issue under the Indian constitution, adding that the All Parties Hurriyat Conference had already turned down an eight-point Indian formula.

Other speakers at the conference reiterated that lasting peace in South Asia was not possible without a resolution to the Kashmir issue in accordance with Kashmiri people’s wishes.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 7^th, 2010.