KARACHI, Nov 21: Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain on Sunday called upon Pakistan and India to promote peace and improve bilateral relations. He urged both the countries not to indulge in arms race.
Addressing his party's general workers meeting via telephone, Mr Hussain stressed that neither Pakistan no India required arms and ammunition or nuclear bombs. They should, therefore, focus on improving quality of life of their people by providing better employment opportunities, health facilities and education.
Mr Hussain stressed the need for promoting peace, bilateral relations, people-to-people contact, trade and friendship which, he said, was in the interest of both the countries.
The MQM chief, who has recently returned to London after an extended tour of India, mainly focused on the outcome of his visit. He chided the pseudo intellectuals who had been levelling false allegations for making his presentation in a wrong context.
"They did not like that a Pakistani citizen succeeded in pleading the case of smaller provinces, including Sindh, in India. This thing reflects that even now these pseudo intellectuals do not like the solution of some longstanding problems," he claimed.
Mr Hussain claimed that he had never spoken about accepting LoC as international border. He had only stressed that in order to start dialogue, the two countries should reach a point and for this purpose they should accept LoC as international border on temporarily basis.
He said that even three wars between Pakistan and India could not solve the issue of Kashmir, and asked his critics that if they did not want to solve the issue through dialogues, then they should go to Kashmir to wage a war.
"Those who are talking about waging a war are not the friends of Pakistan. We should learn lesson from European countries, who had fought several wars but are now united on the platform of European Union (EU)," he pointed out.
Mr Hussain said that after his successful visit, India had started withdrawing its troops from Kashmir and the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also offered all Kashmiri groups, including the militant ones, to hold dialogues.
He claimed that after his visit, a major change had occurred and now people of both the countries were vocal in opposing war and they only wanted peace. He said he had created an atmosphere where it had become difficult for either of the two countries to think on war as peoples of Pakistan and India were pressuring their governments for friendship.
Referring to his talks with Indian leaders, Mr Hussain said that he called for opening of Khokhrapar-Munabao border. The Indian leadership, he added, responded positively and appeared ready to take measures. "Hundreds of thousands of people would get employment if this border opens ... and this border will open very soon," he observed.
The MQM chief said that during his visit, he also met the former deputy premier L. K. Advani who informed him about his forthcoming visit to Pakistan. "I invited him to visit his ancestral place in Sindh. He accepted the invitation."
Mr Hussain expressed the hope that the Indian consulate in Karachi would be reopened soon, and said that the people of Sindh would play a key role in improving relations between the two countries.
He also spoke on provincial autonomy, the upcoming protest movements of Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) and Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (ARD). He reiterated his stance that the federal government should give complete autonomy to small provinces and eliminate feudal system if it wanted to keep the country's solidarity and integrity intact.
Mr Hussain strongly criticized the MMA and ARD for launching their protest movement from Sindh. He said that people of Sindh had rejected these parties and they should stage their protest anywhere except Sindh. MNAs, MPAs, federal and provincial ministers, advisers and a large number of workers attended the meeting.
MPAS: Meanwhile, Muttahida Qaumi Movement MPAs, while commenting on a statement of Jamaat-i-Islami secretary general Munawar Hasan, said that the JI should hold public rallies in Punjab.
In a statement issued here on Sunday, they claimed that the JI had always participated in every effort that was aimed at undermining democratic process in the country. For the purpose, they added, it resorted to violent protests that could ultimately invite the armed forces to intervene. Once again, the MPA pointed out, the JI was trying to pave the way for martial law by giving calls for protest strikes and rallies.
