Both Syed Ali Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, heads of their factions of the All Parties Hurriyet Conference, have spoken on the Kashmir dispute, a rankling thorn that inhibits the people of Kashmir to throw off the yoke of subjugation that New Delhi has foisted upon them with its forcible occupation of their motherland and serves as a formidable roadblock to the development of Pak-India relations. That the voice of freedom has been growing louder, rather than dying down, over the past 65 years despite the crushing weight of more than 700,000 strong ruthless army of suppression is an ample proof of the strength of the urge Kashmiris feel to achieve their birthright of freedom. Both these leaders are confident that nothing can thwart Kashmiris in the exercise of their right of self-determination. The veteran Geelani is of the firm view that his people, even if forsaken by Pakistan, would make it; while Mirwaiz believes that the winds of change spreading the message of ‘freedom for all’ across the globe would ultimately force the Indians to heed the will of Kashmiris.
Mirwaiz, on a visit to Pakistan at the invitation of the government, also forcefully advocated the pulling down of barriers to free movement of Kashmiris across the Line of Control as well as open trade between the two parts. To facilitate travel, air service, including by helicopter, should be introduced; for the limited opening for the movement of people and goods at present allowed was not serving the purpose enough. Mirwaiz philosophised about the forced separation that the Kashmiris had to bear by saying: “This dividing line is not on ground but drawn across our chest.” He expressed these views during a visit to Muzaffarabad where he called on AJK President Sardar Yaqub Khan and Prime Minister Chaudhry Abdul Majeed on Sunday. In an obvious reference to the Pak-India dialogue process, he said, “No solution without the involvement of Kashmiris would be acceptable to us as we are an important party in the Kashmir dispute.” The AJK President lauded the sacrifices that the people in the Indian occupied part were making to get to their goal of freedom.
Syed Ali Geelani lamented at the sidelining of the Kashmir issue by the Pakistani leadership over the past 10 years or so. But, at the same time, he asserted that in spite of the coldness of these leaders to Kashmiris’ cause, they were fully determined to stick to their principled stand and carry on their mission till success. It is, indeed, galling not only to the Kashmiris, but also to the people of Pakistan to see how our leaders are going all-out to befriend India and since it is in no mood even to hear the mention of Kashmir dispute’s resolution they are putting it on the backburner. An occasional lip service is only paid for public consumption. One wonders when they would come to realise the singular relevance of Kashmir to Pakistan, as so succinctly and aptly termed by Quaid-i-Azam our “jugular vein”.