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Islamic Party Demands "Silencing of Guns" in Kashmir
ISLAMABAD, June 26 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Hoping for success in the upcoming summit between India and Pakistan, a key Pakistani religious party Tuesday called for a total ceasefire in Kashmir by both the Indian army and separatist groups.
"We propose that all guns, both of Indian army and the mujahideen, be silenced for some time," to show flexibility during the summit in New Delhi next month, said chief of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) Fazlur Rehman.
Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee has invited Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf for peace talks on July 14-16.
JUI, a key backer of the Afghan Taliban militia and a supporter of religious organizations waging a separatist drive in the Indian-held part of the Himalayan state, welcomed the summit as a "sensible step towards a peaceful resolution of the dispute over Kashmir."
"We call upon the Indian government and the mujahideen groups to observe ceasefire to give negotiations and peace a chance," Rehman told reporters here.
The Muslim majority state of Kashmir, divided between India and Pakistan and claimed by both, has been hit by a 12-year old insurgency that has claimed around 35,000 lives in the Indian-held zone.
Rehman warned against "tough rhetoric being used by the two foreign offices" saying that it would "pollute the atmosphere."
He said the two countries should move forward in expanding areas of mutual cooperation to include trade and nuclear stabilization in the region.
Pakistan and India, foes in three wars, two of them over Kashmir, conducted tit-for-tat nuclear tests in May 1998.
"General Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee should not become prisoners of the past and should look towards the future in developing all-sided mutually beneficial relations for the betterment of our people who are suffering from poverty," Rehman said.
He said the JUI supported increased trade between the two countries and transit facilities from Pakistan for an Iran-India gas pipeline as well as a relaxation in tariff and visa restrictions.
Musharraf has invited the country's politicians for consultation on Wednesday, ahead of the summit.
He is also meeting Kashmiri leaders, including Pakistan-based representatives of Kashmiri separatist organization, the All Parties Hurriyat (Freedom) Conference, on Thursday.
There is no fixed agenda for the summit-level talks but officials here said the Pakistani side would focus on the 54-year old Kashmir dispute calling it the root cause of tension between the two South Asian rivals.
The summit, after a two-year freeze in dialogue, will also focus on the nuclear arms race between the two countries.
War with India over the disputed northern territory of Kashmir came shortly after independence - the two countries fought again in 1965.
Some 35,000 people have died since India started a violent crackdown against a 12-year old Muslim separatist movement in the Indian-held zone.
Human rights and separatist groups put the number at double this figure and blame it on Indian excessive use of force.
Pakistan, which controls the northern third of the Himalayan state, calls for a referendum so that Kashmiris can choose between India and Pakistan.
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