JKLF –UK delegation meets with British Foreign Office officials in London

A delegation of the UK based pro-independence Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) met with the head of the South Asia (India) section at the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in London in an official meeting to apprise them of the human rights and political rights situation in Kashmir. The JKLF delegation, lead by the newly elected president, Azmat A Khan, raised a number of issue with the FCO head with regards to UK policy on the issue of Kashmir and the dire human rights situation in Indian occupied areas, including reports of extra-judicial killings, false imprisonment of minors and abduction cases involving Indian security forces and the extra-ordinary case of recent discovery of ‘unidentified mass graves’ issue. During the two hour long meeting many questions were raised from both sides and issues of concern were discussed in detail in seeking UK government’s role to affect a peaceful resolution of the longstanding issue of self-determination and the position it had taken with respect to United Nations’ stance on Kashmir as well as the role of British MPs who had been vocal on pressing for peaceful end to the conflict in Jammu-Kashmir.

The high level JKLF delegation, which comprised of its president Azmat A Khan, vice president Mahmood Hussain and senior leader prof Zafar Khan, pressed on the FCO policy makers to review the ineffective and inadequate Kashmir policy and its regional security implications. They pointed to the dangers of failure and the consequential fallout both within the two sides of Kashmir as well as in the UK because of a large population of Kashmiri origin that had settled in the UK and were deeply entwined with the issue.

During the meeting the JKLF delegation made their party position clear with regard to the inept  pace and substance in bilateral negotiations between India and Pakistan officials and conveyed their discontent with ill perceived ‘confidence building measures’, which they said, had produced little dividend for the ordinary people of Jammu-Kashmir on both sides of the line of control. They put forward a number of proposals for consideration with respect to aid for India and Pakistan and the UK government’s visa policy for Indian servicemen engaged in Kashmir as well India’s visa policy for British passport holders of Kashmiri origin.

Commenting on this first important meeting since the two main factions of the JKLF were merged and a new executive body was elected in the UK in early July, a JKLF spokesman said that it was a significant high level meeting where frank and candid discussions took place and certain mutually beneficial ideas and proposals were exchanged and that there would be a follow up meeting in the new year.

FOR FURTHER DETAILS , please contact :

Azmat A Khan,  +44 (0)7912653054,  Azmatkhan@jklf.orangehome.co.uk