SRINAGAR, Nov 11: South Asia's peace and prosperity depends on a peaceful and lasting solution to the Kashmir issue, says president of the Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party Shabbir Ahmed Shah.

He was addressing a press conference in Jammu city after a 20-day tour of the Jammu region.

Kashmir Media Service quoted him as saying that the Kashmiri people were unanimous in their views that only a settlement acceptable to all the three parties to the dispute would help bring about a peaceful settlement of the issue.

He expressed the hope that India would adopt a serious and responsible attitude towards an amicable settlement of the Kashmir issue which was the basic hurdle in fostering good relations between Pakistan and India. He said that Kashmiri people were convinced that tripartite talks were vital for a satisfactory solution of the problem.

Kashmir, he said, was not just a border issue between India and Pakistan. The issue involved all the people of the Jammu and Kashmir and they needed to be associated with the Pakistan-India talks.

Shabbir Ahmed Shah denounced the rape of a mother and daughter in the Handwara area by Indian troops and said that such incidents were further vitiating the atmosphere in the occupied Kashmir instead of paving the way for a successful peace process.

He also expressed grief over the passing away of the Palestinian leader, Yaser Arafat.-PPI