Quake provides chance to solve Kashmir issue: Musharraf invites India to grab opportunity
By Ihtasham ul Haque
ISLAMABAD, Nov 19: President Gen Pervez Musharraf said on Saturday that the Oct 8 earthquake has provided a life time opportunity to resolve the Kashmir issue once and for all. He urged India to step forward and grab the opportunity and said: “Let it be an Indian donation to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.”
The president, while specifically thanking the Indian government for sending a high-level delegation to the donors’ conference with relief assistance of $25 million, surprised the participants by vehemently welcoming it at the moot.
He said: “This earthquake has provided us a life time opportunity to resolve the Kashmir dispute once for all.”
Gen Musharraf urged the Indian president, prime minister, people of India, media, businessmen, opposition parties and the All Parties Hurriat Conference (APHC) to pave way for the resolution of the Kashmir issue.
He hoped that with the opening of various crossing points along the Line of Control (LoC) things would improve eventually paving way for everlasting peace in the region. “I will single out the Indian delegation to say that time has come when Pakistan and India should end differences and resolve their disputes peacefully,” he added.
Gen Musharraf said Pakistan was willing to utilize the $25 million assistance for the import of construction and housing material from India.
He said opportunities did not fly in every day and the leaders who did not take advantage of them failed to do justice to their people.
Later, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said that President Musharraf has offered India to resolve the Kashmir dispute to ensure lasting peace in the region.
He said earlier Pakistan had offered to open five crossing points along the LoC and Islamabad wanted the points to remain open throughout the week so that people of Kashmir could meet and provide relief goods to each other.
Similarly, the prime minister said, trade could be started between the two sides of Kashmir across the LoC.
He said that self-governance in Jammu and Kashmir and demilitarization could improve the situation effectively. By raising the Kashmir issue, the president wanted to tell the international world that Pakistan wanted to resolve the dispute which was the need of the time, he added.
Mr Aziz said any solution to the Kashmir problem should be in accordance with the wishes of the people of Kashmir because without their satisfaction, positive results could not be achieved.
