International
No military solution to Kashmir issue, says Sardar Qayyum
By B. Muralidhar Reddy
ISLAMABAD, JAN. 28. The former PoK premier and Kashmir Committee chairman, Sardar Qayyum, has said that there was no military solution to the Kashmir problem and that it had to be addressed through talks.
In a statement, he said that the Kashmir policy of the present Government was more realistic in comparison to the previous ones and that the struggle for Kashmir would continue unless a logical conclusion was arrived at.
Kashmiri outfits had the main role in the freedom struggle and non-Kashmiri militant outfits had damaged the Kashmir cause. The activities of non-Kashmiri outfits were responsible for affecting Pakistan's image at the international level, he said.
In the changing world scenario, these outfits would have to change and evolve a fresh strategy. On the other hand, the difference between jehad and terrorism would have to be clarified. Pakistan's diplomatic missions were not playing their due role in the context of the Government's Kashmir policy.Mr. Qayyum said the Kashmir Committee would apprise the world community of the importance of the Kashmir issue and also pave the way for a dignified solution.
In another development, the Pakistan President, Pervez Musharraf, said that the strength of Pakistan lay in its unity. ``We cannot exist without each other. Nobody should have wrong notions. We are all one,'' he said in Islamabad while addressing the toppers of the Intermediate and Secondary Education boards of all the four provinces, Azad Kashmir and the Northern Areas.
Ban on more outfits?
The Pakistan Federal Minister for Religious Affairs, Mehmood Ahmad Ghazi, has hinted at the possibility of the Government banning more religious and militant outfits.
Addressing the convocation of Jamia Darul Uloom Islamia in Lahore, Dr. Ghazi said the Musharraf Government had not banned any religious organisations so far but such a move could not be ruled out now.
In his January 12 address to the nation, Gen. Musharraf had announced a ban on two sectarian and three militant outfits. There has been speculation ever since about a ban on more outfits.
Dr. Ghazi said some outfits had been banned because they were collecting funds in the name of ``Kashmir jehad''. But he made it clear that the Government supported the cause and would continue to do so. Pakistan would continue to extend moral, diplomatic and political support to Kashmiris till the issue was resolved in accordance with their aspirations and that of the Qaid-e-Azam (Mohammad Ali Jinnah).
He clarified that the Government had no intention of appointing supervisors for religious seminaries.JI leader released
The North West Frontier Province (NWFP) released today the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) leader, Qazi Hussain Ahmed, even as a petition challenging his detention came up before the Supreme Court.
However, in a little twist, the Punjab police detained him as he landed at the Lahore airport. According to the JI Deputy Information Secretary, S.S. Shamsi, his party leader was taken to a room at the airport and no one is being allowed to meet him. It was not clear whether it was a re-arrest or a mere formality.
The JI leader, along with those of other Islamic groups, was detained in October last after their supporters took to the streets to protest the Government decision to align with the United States-led coalition against the Taliban.
It is not possible that the NWFP would have released Mr. Ahmed without consulting the top brass in Islamabad. The JI is the largest religious outfit in Pakistan. Mr. Ahmed's release would be followed with much interest especially in view of the elections to the national and provincial assemblies in October.
On Saturday, 30 persons were released on bail by a Peshawar court after they submitted an affidavit saying that they had no links with the outlawed organisations.
The Supreme Court today disposed of a petition challenging the detention of Mr. Ahmed after the NWFP Advocate-General submitted before the Court that he had been released.
The Attorney-General, Makhdoom Ali Khan, submitted before the court that the NWFP Advocate-General, Qazi Rasheedul Haq, would file a statement. Mr. Haq said he had received information from the Government that it was releasing Mr. Qazi so that he could undergo treatment at the Cardiovascular Institute in Lahore.Islamabad is concerned over the prospect of a delay in the prosecution of activists of militant and religious outfits. There are indications that it is planning to set up military courts to speed up cases against those charged with terrorism-related offences.
Local media reports said that officials were in the process of scrutinising the credentials of over 2,000 persons to work out the guidelines for their prosecution.
The English daily, The Nation, said in a report that the establishment of military courts under the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 was in the offing. The establishment of such courts by Nawaz Sharif had proved to controversial with political parties accusing his Government of targeting rivals in the name of speedy trial and prosecution.
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