LAHORE – No federal government ever changed Pakistan’s stance on the Kashmir issue, former foreign secretary Shamshad Ahmed Khan said on Saturday. He was addressing a seminar at the Aiwan-e-Iqbal Complex to highlight the Kashmir issue and express solidarity with the Kashmiris.
Aiwan-e-Iqbal Complex Chairman and Pakistan Today Editor Arif Nizami, former member of the National Assembly (MNA) Onaza Ehsan Butt, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Secretary General Liaqat Baloch, Allama Shafi Josh and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Haji Azizur Rehman Chan were also present on the occasion.
Shamshad explained history of the Kashmir issue and said that it should only be resolved through dialogue. He said that no compromise would be allowed on this sensitive issue and various governments had came and gone but the Kashmir issue has always remained the priority while negotiating with India.
The former foreign secretary informed the audience that it is true that people are occupied with domestic issues and the Kashmir issue has been left behind but Pakistanis and Kashmiris would never get tired of sacrificing for this cause. Shamshad said that incidents such as Kargil War, Samjhota Express attack and the Mumbai attacks have affected Indo-Pak dialogue negatively.
He said that after these events, Indo-Pak relations faced major setbacks but if one closely analyses the Mumbai attacks, India was the real beneficiary in this regard. The former foreign secretary said that India never wanted to talk to Pakistan on the Kashmir issue but the disputed territory is Pakistan’s jugular vein.
Liaqat Baloch said that it is our mistake that the Kashmir issue has not been resolved yet and our Kashmir policy be reviewed and reshaped. He said that mechanism concerning the Kashmir issue be updated with passage of time and Kashmiris are fed up of strikes lasting more than four months and curfews of more than three months.
Arif Nizami said that the major issues, which the country has been facing, have been too distractive to allow a single-handed focus on Kashmir. He said that the common man is forced to face so many domestic problems that the Kashmir issue seems to have faded away. The veteran journalist said that concerns of ordinary citizens have been divided into so many other directions that the Kashmir issue has slipped behind on priorities of ordinary people. Nizami said that India is free of all external pressures due to its economic clout.
Onaza Butt said that Kashmir has always been important to Pakistan and India’s frequent increase in its defence budget reflects its intentions. The former MNA said that India did not have any peaceful purpose and the issue be resolve by dialogue. “Pakistan is related to Kashmir in many ways including geographical, financial and political”, she said. Onaza said that Kashmiris be given the right to choose their future.
Shafi Josh said that Muslims make up more than 80 percent of Kashmir’s population and Kashmiris always wanted to be a part of Pakistan but Hindus and British violated the partition plan. Josh said that Kashmiris had suffered a lot and would continue to do so but never restrain from demanding their right.
“Removing Kashmir from Pakistan is like removing skin from the body”, he said adding that Kashmir and Pakistan are similar in many ways including ideology, religion, resources and politics. “There are celebrations in Kashmir whenever Pakistan wins any cricket match”, he added.
Haji Azizur Rehman Chan said that the PPP has always stood with Kashmiris and they should be given the right to choose their fate. He said that the PPP had announced a public holiday on Kashmir Day and former PM Benazir Bhutto had struggled a lot for Kashmir and the party would continue to do so under leadership of President Asif Ali Zardari.
