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Hurriyat moots triangular approach to Kashmir
November 18, 2004 19:52 IST
The Hurriyat Conference on Thursday favoured a triangular approach to resolve the Kashmir issue and said it is neither putting nor expecting conditions for a dialogue with the Centre.
"We want to clarify that going to Pakistan is not a condition laid by us for continuing talks with the Centre. We are ready to meet the government prior to going to Islamabad if the government so desires," chairman of the moderate faction of the Hurriyat Mirwaiz Umer Farooq said.
About Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's statement on Wednesday that Kashmir is an integral part of India, the Mirwaiz told reporters after a meeting of the faction's executive committee in Srinagar that the Hurriyat considered Kashmir a disputed territory. "The dispute has three parties and can be resolved when the three parties sit together and find a solution acceptable to all of them."
He said if the government of India is not ready for tripartite talks, then it could adopt a triangular approach. He said India and Pakistan should talk to each other and the Hurriyat leadership should have have separate dialogue with India and Pakistan.
The Mirwaiz said the Hurriyat has not received a formal invitation for the third round of talks with the government. "We want to continue the process of talks," he said.
He said the amalgam has prepared three roadmaps for the resolution of the Kashmir issue, which would be acceptable to all the three parties. However, he did not divulge any details.
The Hurriyat had a dialogue with the National Democratic Alliance government on the basis of three principles -- that the talks would be unconditional and Kashmir-centric and that there would be the involvement of Pakistan in the talks, he said.
"Both the Hurriyat as well as the government of India had complete understanding on this. We are still ready to continue the dialogue process based on these three principles. It is the responsibility of the government of India to accept these principles to carry forward the talks," he said.
Referring to the PM's assertion that he is for the restoration of peace in Kashmir, the Mirwaiz said the slogan of peace by 10,000 people [who attended the PM's public meeting] and the grant of Rs 24,000-crore development and reconstruction plan for Jammu and Kashmir would not bring peace in the state.
About the offer of unconditional dialogue by the PM to anyone and everyone in the state, the Mirwaiz said, "The government of India needs to clarify its stand as to whether they deem Kashmir issue as an economic problem or a political issue pending solution."