 British MP to raise Kashmir issue with Gordon Brown
London (APP)-A prominent British Member of Parliament will take up the issue of Kashmir in his meeting next week with the British Prime Minister Gordon Brown to seek the UK’s help in resolving the 62-year-old problem between Pakistan and India which he described as a great threat of peace in the region.
Sir Gerald Kaufmann, a staunch supporter of Pakistan and a former Labour Party spokesman on Foreign Affairs, while speaking at Kashmir Solidarity Day function at the Pakistan High Commission, told the gathering that Kashmir was a paramount issue for the global community and must be resolved without further delay.
Supporting the right to self-determination for the people of Kashmir, the Manchester MP said the people of the Valley have suffered enough under repression and as refugees living in camps.
Sir Gerald, who recently led a delegation of European MPs to Gaza to witness the destruction wreaked by Israeli offensive last year, equated the issue of Palestine with Kashmir and both stands as a blot He said in his meeting with the British Prime Minister, he will take up both the issues as they are the legacies of the British rule in Middle East and the Indian sub-continent and the UK has a moral obligation in resolving them Sir Gerald described the Kashmir as a tragedy for India as it has deployed over 500,000 troops to suppress the wishes of the people of Kashmir.
He noted that his predecessors including late Robin Cook and the current incumbent David Miliband have spoken widely on the need to resolve the issue while the US President Barack Obama is also active on it. The Labour party MP said the Kashmir issue is a threat to the security of planet and given the current challenges facing Pakistan it is imperative that this long standing matter is resolved.
Earlier, High Commissioner Wajid Shamsul Hasan in his speech said those who believe in the universality of the principles of justice and human freedoms have the cause of Kashmiri people’s right of self-determination profoundly embedded in their hearts and minds.
Indeed each observance of solidarity with our Kashmiri brethren on 5th February reminds us that the Kashmir dispute still awaits resolution while the sufferings of the Kashmiri people continue relentlessly and that we are resolute to continue our moral and political support to the dauntless struggle till the Kashmiris attain their right of self-determination.
He reminded the gathering that it was in 1974 for the first time that Prime Minister Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto chose 5th February to mark solidarity with the people of Kashmir. He gave a call for a protest strike and everything came to a standstill in Indian-occupied Kashmir and in Pakistan as well. Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto continued with this tradition. Ever since then, Pakistan observes on this day solidarity with the people of Kashmir with total commitment.
The High Commissioner urged India to practice what it preaches since it considers itself to the champion of democracy. If pluralistic democratic politics is the ideal for Indians it is equally an aspiration for the people of Jammu and Kashmir. India should provide political space to the leadership of Kashmir.
Mr. Hasan said self determination is an inalienable right of the Kashmiri people, to be able to move around freely and to conduct their socio-economic and political lives in accordance with their own wishes. This right, he added, is bestowed to them under the UN Charter. He called for ending all restrictions on freedom of speech and violations of human rights and the release of all political prisoners. He said dialogue between India and Pakistan on the core issue of Kashmir as well as other areas of conflict is imperative and also welcomed the resumption of peace talks between the two neighbours.
The High Commissioner recalled that the 1972 Simla Agreement and the 1999 Lahore Declaration happened during the times of democratic governments. Saying that Britain’s historic responsibility in this issue is undisputed, he said the Labour Party’s resolution spearheaded by Sir Gerald Kaufman, adopted by its annual conference at Brighton in 1995 rightly described Kashmir issue as part of the unfinished agenda of the 1947 Partition plan executed by the then Labour government.
Labour Party cannot any longer abdicate its responsibility towards addressing this core issue between two nuclear nations which is sine qua non for permanent peace in the region as well as prosperity and well-being of over 1.3 billion people.
A number of Kashmiri leaders based in the UK including Prof. Nazir Ahmed Shawl, Dr.Misfar Hasan, Prof. Zafar Khan, Zakir Kiyani, Chaudhry Muhammad Khan and Maulana Muhammad Yaqoob Chisti also spoke on the occasion and called on India to implement the Security Council resolutions.
They said as long as human rights violations and occupation continue, avenues for a peaceful solution remain restricted. They thanked the people and Government of Pakistan for lending them political, moral and diplomat support.
The speakers noted the untold sacrifices rendered by the people of Kashmir and said hopes for a negotiated settlement remain an elusive dream. They urged the international community to recognise the importance of the issue and get involve whole-heartedly to bring about a peaceful solution. |
