Pakistan should fulfill its part of UN resolutions before pointing fingers at India, say Kashmiri leaders

Foreign Affairs of the United Kashmir People's National Party said unless Pak withdraws its troops from POK and Gilgit there can be no movement on the UN resolutions

Exiled Kashmiri leaders in Geneva and Brussels have criticised Pakistan for not fulfilling its part of the UN resolutions on Kashmir and have said that Islamabad has no right to point fingers at India when it itself remains in violation of the resolutions it so frequently flags and talks about.

Mr Jamil Maqsood, Secretary, Foreign Affairs of the United Kashmir People's National Party, who is currently based in Brussels, said, "Since the Pakistan Army continues to occupy large parts of Kashmir in defiance of the UN resolutions, it has no right to talk about the implementation of the UN resolutions whose first condition is the de-militarisation of areas held by the Pakistan Army."

Clearing doubts over the UN resolutions on Kashmir, the senior Kashmiri leader from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, said that the UN resolution is actually very clear. There are three steps - they were sequential and they were conditional - The very first step was that Pakistan was supposed to demilitarise to the satisfaction of this UN body that was to be established.

The second, conditional upon the UN being satisfied with this demilitarisation, India was also supposed to demilitarise as a second step with a presence being permitted to defend itself against Pakistani aggression.

The third, having both of those two steps taken place in satisfaction, in sequence to these preferences of the UN, then the plebiscite would be held. So, all those Pakistanis who are so upset about the plebiscite that never happened, they have their own government to blame because Pakistan never fulfilled the first condition."

Islamabad's hue and cry on Kashmir and its constant "harping on the UN resolutions has no basis, because historically, it is in defiance of the resolutions," said the Kashmiri leader.

When asked about the relevance of the demilitarisation of POK, Mr. Maqsood said, "Of course, that isn't only a prerequisite, but also a stipulation set in the truce agreement. These things are very much relevant today as well."

He added that Islamabad has no right to point fingers at India as "Pakistan itself is an illegal occupier and has no legal status on Kashmir as per the United Nations resolutions."

Adding that Pakistan forces from PoK and Gilgit Baltistan must be withdrawn, Maqsood said, "Unless Pakistan withdraws its troops from POK and Gilgit there can be no movement on the UN resolutions."

Another leading exiled Kashmiri leader Sardar Shaukat Ali Kashmiri also laid emphasis on the withdrawal of troops from PoK. Describing the Pakistan Army as tribal invaders, he said, "Instead of meeting with the stipulations of the UN resolutions and the Truce Agreement, Pakistan has done her best to stigmatise the rights of the people of the erstwhile state. In this regard, her hue and cry is no more than crocodile tears."

Kashmiri added that "A country that has refused fundamental rights in its held parts of the state is advocating rights of the people of Kashmir valley is something highly condemnable."

Col. (Retd) Wajahat Hasan Mirza, Chairman of Gilgit Baltistan Thinkers Forum, currently based in Geneva said, "Pakistan must withdraw its troop without any iota of doubt. Rather than blaming India, Pakistan has to vacate our territory as per UNCIP (United Nations Commission for India and Pakistan)."

He added that "Pakistan wants to capture Kashmir valley on religious grounds".

Col. Wajahat Hasan Mirza said the " tragedy is that not many in the media and diplomatic services know the exact details of the Security Council resolutions that Pakistan talks about all the time. Instead of getting targeted India should push Pakistan to withdraw its troops from POK and Gilgit as mandated by step one of the United Nations Resolutions. It is Pakistan which is in Violation of the U.N. resolutions as long as its army stands on the soil of POK and Gilgit."