Mirwaiz supports demilitarization: Stakeholders should show flexibility: Aziz
By Our Reporter
ISLAMABAD, Jan 5: Chairman of the All-Parties Hurriyat Conference Mirwaiz Umer Farooq on Thursday welcomed the idea of demilitarization and self-governance in Kashmir floated by Pakistan.
“The suggestion of demilitarization is very positive as it will help in finding a final solution to the Jammu and Kashmir dispute,” he said while speaking at a joint press conference with Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz.
He said that delimitarization was a requirement without which forward movement would not be possible. He said the idea had won wide appreciation on the diplomatic level.
He said he supported the idea of self-governance but there was a need to discuss some issues in detail. He said the time had come to make concrete progress towards resolving the Kashmir problem.
The Mirwaiz said the APHC was holding talks with India and consulting Pakistan. He said it was positive that both the APHC and Pakistan had identical perceptions. He said there were new proposals and there was a need to sit together and formulate a strategy
Asked if it would be possible to convince India on the proposal of demilitarization and self-governance, he said it was widely understood on political and public level in India, that finding out a resolution to the Kashmir issue was imperative for sustained peace in the region.
He thanked Pakistan for supporting the Kashmir cause and said Pakistan’s position that any solution of the problem acceptable to the Kashmiris would be acceptable to it had helped boost their morale.
The APHC chairman cited several confidence-building measures and said they had failed to meet the objective. He said India had made the procedure so cumbersome, that the people prefer to go to New Delhi to travel to Lahore. He recalled that India had promised to process applications for crossing the Loc within 10 days, but regretted that it was not being done.
“The CBMs should be something practical and not a mere paper work”, he stated. He urged both India and Pakistan to capitalise the situation arising out of the earthquake, which has already shaken the borders to a great extent.
The Mirwaiz said the earthquake has also helped highlight the human aspect of the Kashmir problem. “It is not merely a political matter, but also a human issue,” he stressed.
He lauded the courage demonstrated by the people of earthquake stricken areas of Azad Kashmir and Pakistan, and hoped that the process of relief will soon be completed.
Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz observed that all the three stake-holders including India, Pakistan and Kashmiris needed to demonstrate courage, flexibility and magnanimity to resolve the Kashmir tangle.
He said the intricate problem should be resolved in accordance with the aspirations of the Kashmiri people to ensure durable peace in the region. He said the overall atmosphere would improve if the people of Kashmir get their basic rights.
