Author:
Publication: The Times of India
Date: February 11, 2001
The Hurriyat Conference would soon
be setting up four new offices abroad as part of its programme to create
awareness about the Kashmir issue, former chairman of the conglomerate
Mirwaiz Umer Farooq said here Sunday.
"The four offices will be set up
in Brussels, New York, London and Saudi Arabia as part of our efforts to
mobilise global opinion about Kashmir issue," Farooq, who was in the Capital,
said.
He said a decision to this effect
was taken at a recent Hurriyat executive meeting.
Farooq said the offices were likely
to be opened in March this year and the issue was likely to be further
discussed at the Hurriyat executive meeting scheduled for Monday.
These places had been chosen for
setting up offices because Brussels is the headquarters of the European
Union, New York houses the United Nations and Saudi Arabia was the richest
Muslim country, which has considerable influence on Pakistan.
The former chairman criticised the
Centre for its continued delay in issuing passports to the five-member
Hurriyat delegation, which was to visit Pakistan and hold talks with the
military government and militants.
"You see the situation is very interesting.
Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee wants to resolve the issue but certain
hawks are preventing him," the former Hurriyat chairman claimed.
The Hurriyat has made its stand
clear that if India moves one step forward in solving the issue, "we will
move two as our main aim is to resolve it and not to grab any seat of power,"
he added.
Appreciating the response of the
Pakistani government, he said "India should also shun its rigid stand and
work for building better relationship and bring peace in south Asia."
When asked as to why the Hurriyat
was not making its agenda for discussion in Pakistan public, Mirwaiz, who
is the religious head of Muslims in the valley, said the issue was likely
to figure in the executive meeting.
"But why create such a hue and cry
over our agenda when we have clarified that peace is our aim and solving
the Kashmir issue is our goal," he said.
However, Mirwaiz did not also rule
out the possibility of calling off the proposed trip because of what he
termed as continued indifferent attitude of the government and said "Hurriyat
Conference cannot clap with one hand, we need another." (PTI)
