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by Jamshed Bokhari
WASHINGTON (Islam Online) July 28 - United Kingdom House of Lords parliamentarian Lord Nazir Ahmed spoke today in Washington DC, addressing events in his native Kashmir. Nazir Ahmed was appointed Lord Ahmed of Rotherham on June 20, 1998, becoming the first Kashmiri to take a seat in Great Britain's Upper House of Parliament. Ahmed is a member of Britain's Labor Party. Addressing recent events in Kashmir, Ahmed said he, "welcomed the announcement from Hizbul Mujahideen on the ceasefire," adding that the Indian Army has initially also declared a ceasefire. Ahmed stated that if that is so, "Then, I think it is time now that the Indian Army should make a move and start reducing the numbers in the valley and in all occupied territories," in order to balance the ratio of Indian troops to Kashmiris in the occupied areas, currently at 3 to1. Calling for the release of political prisoners in India and the end of custodial killings, Ahmed also addressed human rights violations in the region. Ahmed stated that as a Kashmiri, it might not be proper for him to comment on the subject, but that investigations by human rights groups, like Amnesty International, documented the violations well. Ahmed also believes that, "since President Clinton's visit [in March 2000], tensions did grow," between Pakistan and India. Ahmed did not hold back when discussing the nature of India's current ruling government of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). "As a British parliamentarian, I find it astonishing that no one has compared the atrocities which have increased inside India, as well as inside Occupied Kashmir, against minorities," with the Nazis of Germany. "Hitler wanted to get rid of Jews and gypsies, Hitler wanted to increase territory. And so BJP has been trying to get rid of Muslims and Christians, and they want to increase their territory and take over Azad Kashmir [Free Kashmir administered by Pakistan]." Recognizing that the Indian government justifies its actions in committing atrocities by labeling Kashmiri independence seekers as "terrorists", Ahmed points out that India is an occupation force, "and when you fight against occupation forces, you're not a terrorist." Ahmed's schedule in the United States includes a dinner later in the evening of June 29th sponsored by Muslim American students and visits later in the week with U.S. Congressional members. |
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