Srinagar, June 20 : Chairman Hurriyat Conference (M) Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Thursday reiterated his appeal to the leadership of India and Pakistan – PM Modi and PM Khan – to “show statesmanship” while enjoying the full support of their people and resolve the Kashmir issue once and for all in the interest of humanity and peace.
It was India and Pakistan who took the issue to UN when Jammu and Kashmir got divided in 1947, Mirwaiz said while addressing the 56th foundation day of at Awami Action Committee (AAC) at its headquarters Mirwaiz Manzil Rajouri Kadal.
According to an AAC statement, the event was attended by a large number of party members and activists.
Mirwaiz, who is also the patron of AAC, said the two countries signed the UN resolutions and in the last 70 years, have gone to wars over it.
India and Pakistan signed various agreements at Tashkent, Simla, Agra, Lahore, and started the composite dialogue, but it is the people of Kashmir who have suffered the most and are at the receiving end, he said.
Mirwaiz said that Awami Action Committee was founded with a view to give voice to Kashmiris and their genuine demand for the resolution of Kashmir issue in a peaceful manner.
“It was the founder of AAC Shaheed-e-Millat Mirwaiz Farooq who first talked of alternative means of a peaceful and democratic resolution in the form of dialogue among the stakeholders including with the people of J&K, which included all the regions of the state,” he said.
“A great votary of peace, progress and friendship among the people of both the nations, he (Mirwaiz Farooq) wanted Kashmir to be a bridge of friendship between the two countries not a source of continuous belligerence, which only benefits the arms suppliers of the world at the expense of resources that should go for upliftment of millions of poor in both countries,” he said.
Hurriyat (M) chairman said that “AAC was not formed for furtherance of any vested interest or to gain power and that continues to be so”.
“The party’s purpose is to peacefully press for resolution of Kashmir issue keeping in view the sentiments and aspirations of its people. It believes in the democratic principle that the people of entire J&K as it existed in 1947 have a right to seek a resolution of the issue that arose when the subcontinent was divided and subsequently J&K also got divided,” he said.
“An artificial line runs through this land dividing friends and family. The people of Kashmir want an end to uncertainty of past many decades they want a closure. We are not against any nation or its people. We are people of peace and good will and all we say is peacefully through dialogue resolve the issue,” Mirwaiz said.
He said that disengagement, bloodshed, force and intimidation have not and will not be able to solve the issue. He termed it extremely painful that “each day we shoulder the coffins of our young, take them to graves when a bright future is what we seek for them”.
“We are losing our most precious resource our young to the conflict. In the past one week alone, more than 25 people have lost their life including armed youth civilians and soldiers to the conflict, which is extremely unfortunate and sad. We want an end to all these killings,” the AAC president said.
Meanwhile, commenting on the NIA charge against JKLF chairman Yasin Malik who is in its custody, “for forging unity amongst people and leadership”, Mirwaiz said that forging unity is no crime.
“In the past decade, people many times have launched agitations to raise their voice seeking resolution forcefully. We have always advocated a peaceful manner of reflecting our sentiment,” Mirwaiz said.
