JKLF Diplomatic Bureau meeting with British Foreign Office
Rt.
Honourable Mr Philip Hammond
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
C/OP the Foreign & Commonwealth Office South Asian Department.
King Charles Street London SW1A 2AH
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
C/OP the Foreign & Commonwealth Office South Asian Department.
King Charles Street London SW1A 2AH
7 April 2016
Dear Secretary of State,
Sub- The right of 20
million Kashmiris to freedom, democracy and reunification of their forcibly
divided country.
During your recent visit to
Pakistan, and contrary to decades old British policy on the unresolved Jammu
Kashmir issue, you advised Pakistan Government, not to include the question of
Kashmir’s future status as part of its dialogue with India.
Secretary of State, we find your
advice unprecedented and inconsistent, especially since the United Kingdom is
far more cognisant and privy to the historic context of the conflict over
Kashmir, and has traditionally recognised its resolution as being central for
lasting peace in South Asia.
The advice therefore has been
received as a great disappointment within the million strong British Kashmiri
diaspora, as well as a cause of serious concern across both sides of the Line
of Control-LoC- that divides Kashmir, and forcibly separates its 20 million
people between India and Pakistan.
Kashmiri leadership in particular,
has interpreted this advice as a reversal of British policy due to the UK’s
changed priorities in South Asia. Kashmiris have always expected Britain to support
their legitimate, just and internationally recognised rights and aspirations as
part of a process towards a peaceful resolution of the issue.
Especially as in our considered view,
Britain has a key role in persuading India and Pakistan, to seek a solution of the
issue, by recognising and accommodating, the locus standai in the conflict, of 20 million Kashmiris as the
arbiters over Jammu Kashmir’s reunification and political status.
It is not only unfortunate but
lamentable that India of today, contrary to its commitments before the
international community and to the people of Jammu Kashmir, does not even
recognise the existence of Kashmir issue or Kashmiri dimension- a dimension-
that encompasses aspirations and fundamental rights that have yet to be
exercised over the political status of forcibly divided Jammu Kashmir.
What must also be questioned and
seriously addressed is the huge military deployment of forces by both India and
Pakistan in the territory from north to south, where both armies aggressively
confront each other eye-ball to eye-ball across the LoC.
Secretary of State this 700 mile
long LoC which, as far as the basic right of movement is concerned does not and
should not apply to inhabitants on either side of the forced divide within
International law and UN resolutions, is nevertheless a living hell for tens of
thousands of Kashmiris who reside alongside it.
During frequent flare ups between
both armies along the length of the LoC hundreds of villages are caught in the
cross fire as both armies are deployed either in or close to the populated
areas.
Equally Indian military and
paramilitary forces are heavily deployed in the rural and urban areas of Indian
occupied parts of Jammu Kashmir. This Indian military presence is extremely
intimidating and disruptive of the daily lives of ordinary people- many are
killed daily with no provocation against the military.
Indian army operates under cover of
laws such as the Armed Forces Special Powers Act-AFSPA- that give the Indian
forces in Jammu Kashmir, the impunity and immunity to perpetrate acts of violence
on a daily basis against civilians that result in deaths of innocent men,
women, young and old alike. Many of the basic rights of Kashmiri people are
violated daily by this blanket cover of immunity that the Indian military
apparatus has enjoyed in Indian held Jammu Kashmir over the past 28 years. Over
a hundred thousand have been killed by the Indian military and paramilitary
forces, around 8,000 are missing while over 7,000 unmarked graves are found
throughout Indian held Jammu Kashmir. Women’s dignity is violated including
rapes.
Pro freedom and reunification
leadership in Indian held Jammu Kashmir is being denied its basic right of
movement, assembly and of free speech. In a country that boasts of being the
largest democracy in the world, this denial is a travesty of these fundamental
rights when peaceful assembly and movement of legitimate leaders is not allowed
to take place.
Over the past one year alone for
example, Chairman of Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front- JKLF- Mr Muhammad Yasin Malik,
has been denied right to assembly and free speech dozens of times. He has been
prevented from engagement with people on many occasions through arrests, police
and judicial custody and all too often put under house arrests. Mr Malik is
also denied the right to a passport. As a result he is unable to visit and see his
wife and child who reside in Pakistan.
Secretary of State, on both sides
of the LoC, political parties that seek independence of Jammu Kashmir, are
denied the right to participate in the political process, as candidates are
required to declare their allegiance to India and Pakistan respectively. This
is not only an undemocratic condition imposed on the candidates but also a
denial of fundamental right to choice. As a result millions of people in both
Azad Jammu Kashmir -AJK- and in Indian held Jammu Kashmir are disenfranchised
by this undemocratic condition.
We would also like to draw your
attention to the issue of Gilgit Baltistan which, the previous Peoples Party Government
declared as a de-facto province of Pakistan and the current government of Mr
Nawaz Sharif attempted to constitutionally formalise it as such. The process
was halted due to concerted opposition from the public and the Kashmiri leadership
across both sides of the LoC.
The move on the part of Pakistan
government also contravened the spirit of UN Security Council-UNSC- resolution
122 of 24 January 1957 which, the UK supported and which stated “that an
attempt to change the status of Jammu Kashmir or any part of the state would
not constitute a disposition of the state.”
This particular resolution was passed
by the UNSC to repudiate the National Conference Government in Indian held
Jammu Kashmir which wished to ‘ratify’- in contravention of a plethora of
previous UN resolutions and recommendations, the conditional ‘accession’ of
Jammu Kashmir to India in 1947 by Maharaja Hari Singh.
We would therefore expect that the
UK extends its advice to government Pakistan, not to proceed with the intention
of incorporating Gilgit Baltistan as part of Pakistan federation. Furthermore
we expect that the UK would encourage Pakistan Government to reunite Gilgit
Baltistan region with AJK, to constitute a single territorial constitutional
entity of Jammu Kashmir territories that are being administered by Pakistan
since 1947.
Secretary of State the UK has a
friendly and historic relationship with India and Pakistan and as such we would
expect the UK government to extend strong and effective friendly advice to both
countries, that they seriously address the question of Jammu Kashmir’s future political
status with a purposeful and meaningful approach and actively involve the
Kashmiris with their participation in the process under the UN’s auspices.
Secretary of State as a permanent
member of the UNSC, Britain has a legal as well as a moral obligation, to ensure
that all peaceful political processes are harnessed so that 20 million forcibly
divided people of Jammu Kashmir have the opportunity to exercise their basic
democratic right over the future political status of Jammu Kashmir.
With Regards
Prof
Zafar Khan
Chairman Diplomatic Bureau
Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front-JKLF
London Secretariat
119-123 Cannon Street Road
London
E1 2LX
Email: zafargk@aol.com
Chairman Diplomatic Bureau
Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front-JKLF
London Secretariat
119-123 Cannon Street Road
London
E1 2LX
Email: zafargk@aol.com
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