MIRWAIZ UMER FAROOQ'S INTERVIEW
Font Size 
Kashmir can't be put on the back burner: Mirwaiz
Published on Sat, Jun 07, 2008 at 11:30, Updated on Sat, Jun 07, 2008 at 15:25 in India section
Tags: Kashmir, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq , New Delhi
 |
Related Stories
HC bars security forces from leaving Shopian - 10 years of Kargil, heroes recall the war | Pay Tribute
- CM helpless, admits Maoists extort Rs 300 cr annually
- Time for Mamata to walk the Budget talk
- Mamata's Budget express chugs in with goodies
- Los Angeles officials brace for Jackson memorial
- North Korea fires two more missiles again
- Top bosses fly high as AI struggles to survive
- Sarah Palin to step down as Alaska governor: Report
- Popular demands met, slew of sops in Rail Budget
Photogallery
 |  |
New Delhi: Chairman of the Hurriyat Conference, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, has said that the 'time has come when Pakistan has to think in terms of what is in the interest of Kashmiris rather than what is Pakistan going to get out of Kashmir'.
When Mirwaiz Farooq was asked about the sidelining of the Kashmir issue, he said, "The Hurriyat Conference is always of the view that we as Kashimiris believe that the time has come when Pakistan has to think in terms of what is in the interest of Kashmiris rather than what is Pakistan is going to get out of Kashmir."
In an interview to the Karan Thapar on CNN-IBN programme, Devil's Advocate, Mirwaiz Farooq also said that Pakistan and India cannot afford to put Kashmir on the back burner anymore.
He also said that the Pakistan Army is the most important factor and any change in Pakistan’s policy on Kashmir would not be possible without consulting it.
"The most important factor in Pakistan is the Army. So I think, any Kashmir policy, if it has to be changed, that has to be in consultation with the Army," he said.
The Mirwaiz replied in the negative when questioned about the comments and official statements from Pakistan, particularly from Pakistan People's Party co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani, suggesting a change in Pakistan's Kashmir policy.
"I don’t think there is a change in Pakistan’s policy, but definitely in approach, and which I feel is a welcome sign because if we have to address the issue of Kashmir… we have always said that out of the box solutions and out of the box approach is what is needed," he said.
After first saying that the Hurriyat is not against the Indo-Pak dialogue or the two countries coming together, Mirwaiz Farooq disagreed with the comments of Zardari and Gillani suggesting that Kashmir should not be an obstacle to an improvement of India–Pakistan relations, and, specifically, emphasising the need to boost trade as a way of bringing the two countries together.
"Pakistan and India cannot afford to put Kashmir on the back burner and talk about trade, politics, cultural exchanges, sports, because… it’s a live issue, people are getting killed. Yes, of course, there is a cease-fire on the borders. Indian and Pakistani forces are not getting killed, but the fact is that Kashmiris are getting killed in Kashmir."
When reminded that in March Zardari had said on Devil's Advocate that India and Pakistan should not be hostage to the UN resolution but could agree to disagree and, additionally, they should leave the Kashmir dispute to a later wiser generation and instead get on with improving their relationship, Mirwaiz Farooq insisted that Kashmir was important to the Pakistani people and could not be sidelined for this reason, no matter what individual politicians may say.
[ Single Page View ]
| Ads by Google |
| Related Ads: | |
URBANEYE
Read Comment | Post Comment
One Mr.Jawid Laiq from New Delhi has responded to an article appeared in The Hindu on 6th June in today's
Read Comment
I think we need to give away Kashmir now, any ways, Thanks to our leaders, Most of the Kashmir is
Read Comment
Let Mirwaiz live in a fool's paradise. India just has to drag this issue by a couple of more years
Read Comment
Read more comment »