ISLAMABAD, March 10: President Gen Pervez Musharraf said on Friday Pakistan’s proposals for demilitarisation and self-governance offered a practical solution to the Kashmir dispute.
“An ultimate solution to the problem on these lines would make the Line of Control (LoC) irrelevant,” he added.
Speaking at a conference organised by a Washington-based think-tank, Pugwash, he urged the Indian leadership to come forward with a timely response to these suggestions for durable peace in South Asia.
The president said he strongly believed that the environment had never been so conducive for the solution of this problem.
“And such a solution would neither require redrawing of borders, nor make the Line of Control permanent; however, it will make the LoC irrelevant,” he said, adding that the demilitarisation would be a great confidence-building measure and provide relief to Kashmiris. “This will also help discourage militancy.”
He said Pakistan was prepared to discuss proposals for troop pullout, and renewed his call for discussions on the mutual withdrawal of the forces from the defined territories of Kashmir.
The president said Pakistan was also ready to show flexibility if India demonstrated reciprocity for a workable settlement of the dispute.
He said all three parties “must show courage to reconcile, as courage and boldness are all the more important in finding a solution to the lingering problem”.
Referring to the progress made in the peace process, the president said both the confidence building measures and conflict resolution should move forward in tandem because in the absence of conflict resolution, the CBMs would lose their effectiveness.
Describing the presence of Kashmiris of all shades of opinion at the meeting as a good omen, the president said he would be willing to attend such a conference in Srinagar or New Delhi along with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, if invited by him (Mr Singh).
APP adds: Referring to the global environment, the president said the international community, major powers and Muslim Ummah favoured conflict resolution in South Asia.
Senior All Parties Hurriyat Conference leader Professor Abdul Ghani Bhat, Barrister Majeed Tirimbo, Brussels Kashmir Centre Executive Director Sajjad Lone of the Peoples League, Khalid Ibrahim of the AJK PPP, Maulvie Iftikhar Hussain and other Kashmiri representatives, appreciated the president’s powerful emphasis on courage, boldness and flexibility in addressing the Kashmir dispute.
