Briefing on Kashmir Situation

Friday, 8th August 2003, Room XXII, 1-3 pm

Sponsored by European Union of Public Relations, co-sponsored by Interfaith International, Afro-Asian Peoples Solidarity Organization, World Peace Council

The President of the meeting, Dr. Charles Graves, representing Interfaith International, opened the debate by presenting the main problems of the Kashmir situation. One issue he mentioned was the line of control which separates "Indian occupied Kashmir" from the "Pakistan occupied Kashmir." He then explained that the aim of the meeting was to promote the political independence of the Kashmir region.

After this short presentation, a representative of a political party, from the Pakistan-occupied zone of Kashmir, took the floor to denounce the privation of fundamental rights (the right to vote, and economic and social rights) of indigenous peoples living in the area. He strongly criticized the fact that his "culture was taken hostage" by the Pakistani government.

The next speaker, M. Mumtaz Khan, explained the situation of the Kashmiri people in the India-occupied zone. "The aim is to communalize the issue. The question is how to achieve peace," stated Mr. Khan. "The solution to the 56 year-old-Kashmir problem will not be found in one night." The peace process should be strengthened by the integration of Kashmiri people in negotiations. He rejected the idea of a bilaterally negotiated solution. He explained that Pakistan talks of "self-determination" in the sense of incorporating Kashmiri people into the state. According to the speaker, this position is devoid of meaning, since the Pakistani constitution restricts the rights of people who contest the ideology of the State.

He went on to note that Kashmiri people are not allowed to travel within their country. According to Mr. Khan, one of the main problems of Kashmiri people is that it is forbidden to participate in the political systems of both zones simultaneously. He added that this situation is in contradiction with UN resolutions, which explains the right of self-determination for indigenous peoples. He concluded his intervention by explaining that the Kashmiri problem "is not a religious issue, but a community issue, because the people of Kashmir are not only Muslim, but also Hindu and Buddhist." Finally, he recommended a dialogue between India and Pakistan. The focus would be on the suffering people of the region, and not on strategic interests of the major powers.

The President ended the first part of the meeting denouncing "the violation of the Kashmiri people by the Indian Army," and affirmed the "territorial unity of Kashmir."

The president then opened the floor to comments and questions. The first intervention by Professor R. Punjabi, of the Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi (representing the Himalayan Research and Cultural Foundation at the Sub-Commission), denounced the lack of justice in the investigations of human rights violations in the Indian Army. He then explained the strategic importance of the border of China and Central Asia. He noted the lack of civil rights especially in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The following intervener added that no NGOs are permitted in the Kashmir region in order to investigate the living conditions of indigenous people.

The debate concluded by raising institutional issues such as the autonomous status of the Indian controlled region of Kashmir and on the state of fundamental human rights in the Pakistani controlled zone.

By : Clément Therme

BACK