February 06, 2008	Wednesday	Muharram 27, 1429

RAWALPINDI, Feb 5: Former chief of army staff Gen (retd) Mirza Aslam Beg said on Tuesday that the continuing freedom struggle in Kashmir would culminate in the territory’s independence.

“Jihad is the miracle of this century and is the power which would lead Kashmir to its independence,” Gen Beg said in his keynote speech at a ‘Kashmir Day’ seminar organised by the Pakistan Ex-Servicemen Society.

There could be no long-term friendship with India unless the Kashmir issue was resolved, he said. His speech focussed on the role of “ freedom fighters”, waging wars of independence in various parts of the world.

Gen Beg criticised President Pervez Musharraf for his poor handling of the Kashmir issue and accused him of stopping moral as well as material support for the Kashmiri Mujahideen.

Disagreeing with late Benazir Bhutto’s notion that Pakistan would be the epicentre of terrorism, Gen Beg said this, in fact, was the real power which was the miracle of this century. There can be obstructions, but ultimately it would gain independence.

Former corps commander of Rawalpindi Lt-Gen (retd) Jamshed Gulzar said the Kashmir policy had been lost and over the past eight years, the government did not have any Kashmir policy. During his recent visit of European capitals, President Musharraf did not mention Kashmir at all nor did he raise the issue of violations of human rights in Kashmir.

Former chief of the Inter-Services Intelligence Lt-Gen (retd) Hamid Gul said nuclear tests by Pakistan had created a balance of power in the sub-continent but the balance had tilted in India’s favour with the Kargil debacle.

He said that Kashmir was simple case of the right of self-determination, which was a universal right and the Kashmiris could not be deprived of this right.

Lt-Gen (retd) Asad Durrani, another former chief of ISI, said that he did not regard Pervez Musharraf as the president of Pakistan because he had lost this title after Nov 3.

“We have to work at the front and join the movement of lawyers to get rid of him,” he said.

The President of Ex-Service-men Society of Pakistan, Lt-Gen (retd) Faiz Ali Chishti criticised President Musharraf for getting himself ‘elected’ from what he called a ‘de facto’ and ‘rigged’ assembly.

Gen Chishti accused President Musharraf of harming the cause of Kashmir. Referring to a statement by Information Minister Nisar Memon, he said that ex-servicemen had formed a party called ‘Tameer-i-Pakistan Party’ before forming the society. The party was registered with ‘Hammer’ as its election symbol, he said.

Former president of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Maj-Gen (retd) Sardar Anwar Khan said Kashmiri leaders should support the party which had a clear policy on Kashmir.