It will be interesting to know who funded this conference? Would Assamwatch
care to tell us?
Dilip
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[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sent: Thu, 21 Jun 2007 7.33pm
Subject: Report on PNSD Kashmir Conference
UK Parliamentarians Call for
International Intervention in Kashmir
No Solution to Kashmir Conflict Without Kashmiri Self-Determination
The Kashmir Conference hosted by 'Parliamentarians for National
Self-Determination' (PNSD) held at the Houses of Parliament in Westminster on
20 June 2007 urged the international community to urgently seek the involvement
of the people of Kashmir in order to peacefully resolve what remains one of the
world's most dangerous conflicts, in a democratic manner and in accordance with
the right of self -determination enshrined in international law.
Passing a series of Resolutions, the Conference has put down an important
marker for both India and Pakistan whose leaders will need to reflect on the
failings of their current bi-lateral dialogue which has aroused international
concern by excluding the people of Kashmir - the very people whose plight lies
at the heart of a crisis which threatens the stability of the entire region -
and who demand to be included as equal partners in the process.
UK Parliamentarians and Kashmiri leaders, including two high profile speakers
who travelled from the disputed territory, were at one in calling for the
immediate demilitarisation of Jammu and Kashmir, the cessation of human rights
abuses and the creation of a process which enables to people of the territory
to freely determine their destiny so as to remedy an historic injustice which
has resulted in a tragedy costing tens of thousands of lives. The Kashmiri
cause was wholeheartedly backed by Sikh and Naga speakers who called for a
political alliance which will strengthen the adoption of self-determination as
a practical and equitable means of conflict resolution in Kashmir as well as
their respective homelands.
Lord Ahmed, who chaired the Conference, appealed to the UK Government to
formulate effective policies towards the region and warned that the rights of
the Kashmiri people can only be truly respected if they were given the choice
of how they wish to be governed. It is, he said, for them to decide this and
the role of the international community must be to facilitate that democratic
outcome. He announced the formation of a PNSD Kashmir Advisory Panel which will
assist PNSD in taking forward the cause of self-determination in Kashmir.
Fabian Hamilton MP, a member of the influential House of Commons Foreign
Affairs Committee, stated that a resolution of the Kashmir conflict would be
top of the agenda when his Committee meets the new UN Secretary General in
October this year. Kashmiris must have the right to decide their future and
injustice in the region must end. The international community should ascertain
their intentions and, whatever they may be, respect them. He cited the UN
sponsored plebecite in East Timor as an example which offered a precedent.
Sardar Ejaz Afzal Khan, President of Jamaat-e-Islami in Azad Jammu & Kashmir,
applauded the efforts of PNSD to highlight the Kashmiri cause and fully
endorsed the Resolutions passed at the event. He said that because neither the
British exit plan in 1947 nor the UN Resolutions on Kashmir had been
implemented there was a total lack of legitimacy in the current status quo
which has only survived due to state terrorism deployed against a defenceless
people. He dismissed the ongoing Indo-Pakistan charm offensive as completely
lacking the ingredients for a solution in Kashmir and suggested that instead
the international community, including the UN, step in to provide a sensible
alternative based on the self-determination of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
The division of the territory is not, he said, acceptable to Kashmiris and the
sooner this was recognised the batter.
Brad Adams, Asia Director of Human Rights Watch, highlighted the abuses of
human rights which continue in the territory, including extra judicial
killings, disappearances, illegal detention and the use of torture which he
said was routine. The court system was not partial but instead took political
directions from the Indian Government. He condemned rights abuses whoever was
committing them and emphasised that HRW does not adopt any political position
regarding the conflict. Instead HRW was focussed on ending the ongoing crimes
against humanity and war crimes in respect of which he said there must be a
legal sanction with the guilty being held to account.
Marsha Singh MP spoke of the need to bring the Kashmir issue to the forefront
of the international agenda, saying that a political solution based on the
principle of self-determination was the only option available. The use of force
by states to resolve conflicts was a proven failure and Kashmir is no
exception. He called on the Indian Government to urgently make a statement of
its intent as to the core issue and to enter in to a meaningful, unconditional
dialogue with all Kashmiris. In addition he spoke of the need for the UK
Government to use its influence to ensure that progress is made towards a
solution as the world cannot afford the risk of another war between two nuclear
powers.
Ghulam Mohammad Safi from Indian occupied Kashmir deplored the India's claim
to Kashmir (included in its constitution) when the UN and the world as a whole
sees it as "disputed territory". He said Kashmiris want a peaceful settlement
but this has been made impossible to date due to such intransigent stand and
due to the systematic abuse of human rights to try to crush a legitimate
freedom movement. Kashmir is neither an "internal affair " of India, nor a
bi-lateral matter between India and Pakistan. It is instead about the
self-determination of the Kashmiri people and that was supported by
international law. He said Kashmiris had the right to defend themselves against
aggression and he urged the world powers to intervene in the interests of
global security as it was no secret that the conflict has the potential to
destabilise the entire region.
Paul Rowen, MP called for the immediate inclusion of Kashmiris in a
meaningful manner in the ongoing dialogue between India and Pakistan. Britain
had a moral responsibility, as the ex-colonial power which had played a role in
creating the current tragedy, to use its influence to make that happen He
congratulated PNSD for its work which he said could make an impact on solving
this and other such conflicts and urged people to work for peace and prosperity
even if states were not discharging their duties to do so. Having an Irish back
ground he noted that the Northern Ireland conflict was resolved by talking to
all parties involved and he lamented that the Kashmiris were currently so
disenfranchised as a settlement could not happen without their being involved.
Stuart Jackson, MP said it was necessary for the UN to look very closely at
India's human rights record and ensure the exercise of self-determination in
Kashmir which is a cause he supports fully.
Mohammad Ghalib of Tehreek-e-Kashmir urged UK Parliamentarians to take up the
Kashmir issue as a priority as Kashmiris in the UK were deeply concerned about
the tragedy in their homeland. Khan Farooq Khan of the JKLF spoke of the urgent
need to demilitarise Kashmir where the threat of a war involving weapons of
mass destruction was real. He suggested that this be followed by a ten year
period of self-rule by Kashmiris which should be followed by a plebecite so
that the people could freely determine the destiny of the territory without
outside interference. Nazir Ahmad of the Justice Foundation Kashmir Centre
condemned the wanton human rights abuses being carried out by Indian security
forces including the massacre of 35 Sikhs at Chithi Singhpora on 20 March 2000
who attempted to blame Kashmiris for the atrocity so as to malign their cause
during the visit of President Bill Clinton. Nazir Qurashi of the World Kashmir
Freedom Movement thanked the organisers of the event and
said that self-determination was the birth right of the Kashmiri people and
the Indian Government must halt its oppression and talk to the people it has
been tormenting if a solution is to be found; that would inevitably have to be
a solution based on the consent of the governed.
The Conference also heard from Amrik Singh Sahota, OBE, President of the
Council of Khalistan who said the Sikh Nation stood shoulder to shoulder with
the Kashmiri people in their struggle for freedom which has much in common with
the Sikh struggle for Khalistan. A similar address was delivered by Alung
Rungsung (on behalf of Isak Swu, Chairman of the National Socialist Council of
Nagalim) who said that the Naga Nation fully respected the Kashmir right to
self-determination which they should resolutely pursue even if that means
confronting any power that seeks to subjugate them. A message was also received
from Dr Mukul Hazarika of Assam Watch UK which conveyed best wishes to the
Kashmiri people for whom self-determination was the only credible means of
bringing peace and prosperity to Kashmir using internationally accepted and
democratic means of conflict resolution.
These contributions were warmly appreciated by the many Kashmiris present who
had travelled from all parts of the UK to attend the Conference. Lord Ahmed
thanked all those in attendance and pledged that PNSD would continue to advance
the cause of peace and justice in Kashmir, with the assistance of the PNSD
Kashmir Advisory Panel. The Resolutions adopted at the Conference are as
follows:
A. This Conference calls on the UK Government, India and Pakistan as well as
the wider international community to formulate policies so as to ensure that
the people of Kashmir be involved in any dialogue concerning a settlement of
the Kashmir conflict, as an equal partner to with India and Pakistan and for
the conduct of a plebecite so that the people can approve any outcome, in
accordance with their right of self-determination in accordance with
international law. That plebecite should be overseen by the UN in order to
guarantee a free and fair process which reflects the wishes of the Kashmiri
people. The EU's welcome recognition of self-determination as the basis of any
settlement in Kashmir is welcomed and the international community's
responsibility is to now give effect to that principle.
B. This Conference strongly condemns the widespread abuses of human rights in
Kashmir and demands that those guilty of state terrorism be brought to
account so that the rule of law can be upheld and so that the atmosphere be
made conducive for a free and fair political process. The international
community has a moral and legal responsibility to hold those responsible of
state terror to account and an appropriate court should be established to
deliver justice.
C. This Conference calls for the immediate cessation of military activity in
Kashmir and for comprehensive demilitarisation in order to allow democracy and
human rights to be restored as a matter of urgency.
D. This Conference calls for an international and impartial investigation in
to the Chithi Singhpora massacre in which 35 Sikhs were killed by Indian
security forces who blamed Kashmiri militants (a fact recognised by no less
than Bill Clinton whose visit was marred by the atrocity) and which was
followed by several innocent Muslims being killed in fake encounters with the
Indian forces that claimed that those were responsible for the original
atrocity. Neither the Sikhs nor the Kashmiris will accept these heinous
attempts to divide them and both nations demand that the guilty are punished.
E. This Conference expresses support for all those nations who are being
oppressed by India, such as the Kashmiris, Sikhs, Nagas, Assamese and others.
India's refusal to recognise the right of self-determination of these nations
and its resort to the use of force to prevent them exercising that right has
involved genocide and the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives. These nations
must be allowed to pursue their legitimate aspirations of freedom and security
in their respective homelands. India should not be allowed a permanent seat at
the UN Security Council until it complies with its international obligations
relating to human rights, of which self-determination has been recognised by
the UN itself to be the most basic human right.
F. This Conference calls for a meeting between the PNSD Kashmir Advisory Panel,
announced today, and the UK Foreign Office to discuss UK policy in relation to
Kashmir and the settlement of the conflict and the punishment of those
responsible for systematic and massive human rights abuses.
Ranjit Srai,
Administrative Secretary,
Parliamentarians for National Self-Determination
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