Mirwaiz slams inconclusive Kashmir APC
AFP / Express
Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, chairman of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, has slammed the All Parties Conference (APC) on Kashmir and said that Kashmiris will not accept any solution but independence.
Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said that there could be no dialogue until a draw down of Indian troops and a release of prisoners. PHOTO: AFP
He said he would have supported the conference if it had focused on the Kashmir resolution, but that the meeting had a limited agenda. He said India should first put an end to human rights violations in Kashmir.
"Kashmiris are fighting for freedom, not just protesting," said Mirwaiz. He added that there could be no dialogue until a draw down of Indian troops in the region and the release of prisoners.
"The meeting is a cosmetic and half-hearted measure," said Mirwaiz Umar Farooq. "Our focus continues to be on the bigger issue of resolving the Kashmir dispute." Another senior leader, Javed Mir, scorned the idea of a fact-finding mission and contrasted the response to the Kashmir violence with the reaction to recent floods in the nearby region of Leh.
"When the natural tragedy struck Leh recently, every Indian who matters, be it the prime minister, the president, Sonia Gandhi and Raul Gandhi visited the grief-struck people. But no one bothers to visit Kashmir," he said.
'Dialogue is the only way to peace in Kashmir'
Earlier, speaking at the all parties conference that was held in India to try to forge a consensus on how to defuse escalating tension in Kashmir after the worst violence in three months of protests, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that he is ready to speak to anyone who shuns violence and that dialogue is the only way to peace in the Kashmir crisis.
"The only path for lasting peace and prosperity in Jammu and Kashmir is that of dialogue and discussion," Singh added. "Those who have grievances against the government have to talk to the administration," he said. "But it is also true that meaningful dialogue can happen only in an atmosphere free from violence and confrontation."
Singh said he was "shocked and distressed" by deadly protests in Kashmir and called for calm to enable talks on the crisis to take place. He said some of the escalating demonstrations, which began in June, "may have been impulsive or spontaneous" but he also pointed the finger at "certain groups" for orchestrating them.
India's government said that it would send a cross-party delegation to Kashmir to gather information about the unrest that has left 93 people dead in the last three months.
The decision was the main outcome of the crisis meeting, with no consensus reached on withdrawing a tough military law in the region.
The Armed Forces Special Power Act enables the army and paramilitary forces to detain suspected militants indefinitely and is seen as fuelling a sense of injustice and military occupation for Kashmiris.
The fact-finding mission will help inform policy making, the government said.
However, a date for the mission's visit was not given and there were few details as to its remit, other than an order to meet different sections of the population and gather opinions.
No senior ministers or mainstream national political figures have visited the Kashmir Valley since the unrest began three months ago. Kashmiri leaders dismissed the meeting as a public relations ploy.
New Delhi has in the past blamed Pakistani groups and hardline separatists for stirring up trouble in Kashmir, which is divided between India and Pakistan.
"I was shocked and distressed to see young men and women - even children - joining the protests on the streets," Singh said at the opening of a meeting of political parties called to debate ways of easing tensions in Kashmir.
His comments came as police opened fire on another demonstration in the disputed Himalayan region on Wednesday, killing two people and injuring at least 11 others.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who admitted last week that he was "groping" for a response, is chairing the all-party meeting at his residence, with the government under pressure to show leadership in the worsening crisis.
One measure under consideration is the partial withdrawal of a tough military law in the region, which grants the armed forces immunity and is seen as fuelling a sense of injustice for Kashmiris.
The cabinet discussed this at a meeting on Monday, but decided against taking a decision on a day that saw the worst violence since mass street protests began in June. Seventeen protestors were killed in police shootings and one police officer died in the mob violence.
"Ultimately we thought that before we take a final decision, we should take into confidence all major political parties," Defence Minister AK Antony told reporters on Tuesday. "It is better to involve everybody."
A strict curfew imposed in all major towns and troublespots in Kashmir since Sunday remained in place. There were no reports of clashes overnight or early Wednesday.
Politically, the ruling Congress party is hemmed in by the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) main opposition group, which sees any concession on autonomy or security as a betrayal of the nation. "Kashmir is in turmoil due to wrong policies of the state and the centre and the need is to have more forces, but the Congress is looking to reduce the number of security personnel" in Kashmir, BJP spokesman Shahnawaz Hussain said. "The BJP wants total peace in Kashmir prior to any talks and it is of the opinion that unless this happens any form of talks is useless."
The prime minister warned last week that there "is no royal road to success" and that he "can't pull a rabbit out of a hat" in Kashmir, which is part of the northwestern state of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).
Many before him have tried and failed, producing a deadlock that dates back to the partition of the subcontinent in 1947, when the Muslim-majority region was split between India and Pakistan. It has triggered two of the three wars between the nuclear-armed nations and remains an enduring source of tension in South Asia.
The Hindu newspaper criticised 77-year-old Singh in an editorial on Wednesday, saying the protests had made a "bonfire" of his "vanity project" of finding a solution to the 60-year problem. Singh has doggedly pursued peace talks with Pakistan, argued in favour of reducing the military presence in Kashmir and repeatedly offers talks to all parties in Kashmir that reject violence.
"Each of these enterprises ended in impasse," said The Hindu. "By talking big while having little to offer, New Delhi has unwittingly fanned the flames in J&K," it said. "Firm, generous-spirited action to win over the people is needed."
For three months, young Kashmiris have thrown stones at security forces, defied strict curfews and held anti-India rallies, resulting in clashes that have left 88 people dead. The frustrated new generation has become the focus of resistance to Indian rule, superseding the militants who made the region one of the most dangerous places on Earth in the 1990s.
Since 1989, an anti-India insurgency has plagued the part of Kashmir ruled by New Delhi, claiming an estimated 47,000 lives.
But militancy has fallen to its lowest level for two decades and New Delhi estimates there are now just 500 militants active in the region, a fraction of the thousands previously.
More people have died at the hands of the security forces this year than in militant attacks. A majority in Indian Kashmir, where New Delhi has an estimated 500,000 troops, favour independence for their region, according to a recent poll.