ISLAMABAD: Speakers at a seminar titled ‘Kashmir liberation struggle and India’s institutional and systematic war crimes in Jammu and Kashmir’ said Kashmir is not only a disputed territory but also a conflicting state where Indian forces have been committing gross human rights violations for six decades.

They agreed that Kashmiri leaders should be given their due role in the comprehensive dialogue between Pakistan and India.

The participants of the conference on Thursday, organised by the All Parties Hurriyet Conference (APHC), said the Kashmir issue should be resolved in accordance with the wishes of the Kashmiri people.

They passed a resolution recognising that the Indian held Jammu and Kashmir was an occupied territory and the most militarised zone in the world with an estimated 700,000 Indian armed forces present.

Kashmiri leaders’ inclusion in dialogues on Kashmir issue urged

In the resolution, the speakers said the time had come for the international community to do more than just condemn the actions of the Indian forces. They said the Pakistani government should highlight human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir and that the matter should be referred to the UN Human Rights Council.

Discussing Pakistan and India agreeing on starting a ‘Comprehensive Bilateral Dialogue’, they stressed that the Kashmiri leadership should be included in discussions about the Kashmir issue.

PML-N chairman Raja Zafarul Haq explained that the federal government had been pleading the Kashmir case in accordance with the wishes of the Kashmiris, which was the right of self-determination. He added that the government would not take any action without first taking the Kashmiri leadership in confidence.

“We want the Kashmir issue to be resolved in accordance with the UN resolutions,” he added.

TV anchor Hamid Mir said: “Composite dialogue was a different thing. The Comprehensive Bilateral Dialogue is a major shift in our foreign policy and the Kashmiri leadership should be taken into confidence about this.”

He suggested that Pakistan should take up the Kashmir issue before the International Court of Justice and other international forums as Indian forces have been committing serious human rights violations. “Our case is very strong,” he said.

“There are so many half widows in Jammu and Kashmir whose husbands have been picked up by the Indian forces years ago,” Mr Mir said while commenting on former president Musharraf’s formula for resolving the Kashmir issue. He alleged that Musharaff’s way of handling the issue was against the constitution of Pakistan.

The leader of Jammat-i-Islami AJK, Abdul Rasheed Turabi, stressed that the leadership of Pakistan and AJK should pressure India to resolve the issue according to the UN resolution.

APHC convener Ghulam Mohammad Safi said the withdrawal of the occupational troops from Jammu and Kashmir should be prioritised.

The resolution passed at the seminar reads: “The Indian held Jammu Kashmir has been subject to widespread and systematic violence by Indian armed forces, including the deaths of more than 10,000 people and the disappearance of some 8,000 more. There are over 6,000 unmarked and mass graves and countless cases of torture and sexual violence.”

Published in Dawn, December 11th, 2015