Pakistani toady Geelani says Musharraf has sold them out
Playacting over Kashmir
By Syed Saleem Shahzad
KARACHI - "There is a lot of extravaganza between India and Pakistan through cricket, music, exchange of delegations and bus services [in Kashmir]. India has engaged [President] General Pervez Musharraf in a lot of fun activities and he is conveniently lost in it. It is ironic that Indians wanted to abandon the Kashmir issue once and for all, and now Pakistan is helping India to do so."
So said a grim Syed Ali Shah Gillani [1] in a telephone interview with Asia Times Online from New Delhi. Gillani is the chairman of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC), which Pakistan's military establishment has nurtured over the past 13 years as the icon of the Kashmiri liberation struggle.
A delegation of the APHC's Gillani group led by Gillani called on Musharraf in Delhi on Sunday at the Pakistani High Commission. Musharraf was in India ostensibly to watch a cricket match between India and Pakistan, but he also met senior Indian leaders.
By all accounts, Gillani's meeting with Musharraf left the general "shocked", and Gillani angry. "I told him [Musharraf], 'You have sold us out.'"
Musharraf's bilateral talks covered the Kashmir bus service, trade and other issues, but without reference to resolving the Kashmir dispute - the "core" issue that has traditionally been the foundation of any Pakistani dialogue with India.
"I had questions for Musharraf," Gillani informed Asia Times Online. "I maintained that Pakistan showed a lot of flexibility, but what is the Indian response? Are they ready to show any reciprocity? Is there any change in the ground realities? Human-rights violations in Kashmir are still rampant. Recently, 30 of our youths were given life sentences, there is no reduction in the presence of the [Indian] army in Kashmir. Confidence-building measures are supposed to lead to a reduction in atrocities in Kashmir, or are they just fun activities between the rulers of the two countries?
"I emphasized that good Pakistan and Indian relations should have yielded [results] for the Kashmiris in the shape of relief in political activity, a reduction in military operations by the over 700,000 Indian forces etc ... but there is none. Pakistani rulers do not appear to talk business on Kashmir, rather they are more interested in playing cricket with Indians and having some fun - and letting Kashmir bleed. We Kashmiris are watching these developments and a negative opinion is growing against Pakistan.
"Musharraf agreed, but said that [the] post-September 11 situation left Pakistan with little options," Gillani said when Asia Times Online asked for Musharraf's response.
"We are enraged not because Pakistan is retreating from its active support. The issue is that Pakistan is now playing a role which is tantamount to active support of the Indian agenda," Gillani fumed.
"Initially, General Musharraf dished out a proposal to set aside the UN resolutions on Kashmir [calling for a referendum] and meet India 'halfway somewhere'. It was the first retreat by Pakistan, but we swallowed this bitter pill and thought that it was a step to seek Indian cooperation for the resolution of Kashmir. The Indians did not show any reciprocity. Then, a further retreat, and Musharraf dished out a proposal to divide Kashmir in seven zones. India did not respond. After all of this, India played the gambit of the Srinagar-Muzzafarabad bus service. In the past, Pakistan never approved of the idea as it was an old Indian one. The incumbent so-called Kashmiri Chief Minister Mufti Saeed contested the elections with the same rhetoric in 2002, that he would open the Srinagar-Muzzafarabad road. After 57 years [since partition], Pakistan has opened that route and spoiled our struggle. We saw it as 'right-sizing' of the Kashmiri cause by Pakistan," Gillani maintained.
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The question is, does Musharraf really care what Gillani thinks and expresses? The reality is, Musharraf's main concern with regard to internal and external affairs is what the army thinks.
Yet Gillani is a by-product of Pakistan's military establishment, created to serve as a strong pro-Pakistani face in the indigenous struggle of Kashmiris in the Valley. He has always been approved by the military establishment as the only acceptable face, while all others were disapproved, and their integrity and familiarity with the Kashmir issue watched with a lot of suspicion.
In many ways, the very existence and continued pre-eminence of Pakistan's army relates to Kashmir - it has fought several wars over the issue. From the rank of major up to brigadier, all officers work in a single direction under a manual that has not changed in the past 57 years on the Kashmir issue: no quarter given.
The beads of sweat on Musharraf's forehead after his meeting with Gillani were understandable. Everyone knows that army chiefs come and go, but the military institution never changes its manuals.
Musharraf knows that he will not change the views of Gillani, who is now publicly expressing his condemnation of Pakistan and its rulers. Yet Musharraf does not have a viable option for any new "pro-Pakistan" leadership among Kashmiris as neither his intelligence apparatus would approve their integrity nor would Kashmiri armed groups accept them.
There is no doubt that what is playing out on the South Asian stage bears little resemblance to what is happening behind the stage. Kashmir has been described as a "lifeline" for Pakistan and an "integral part" of India. Glitzy presentations for the public will not change the situation overnight.
By Syed Saleem Shahzad
KARACHI - "There is a lot of extravaganza between India and Pakistan through cricket, music, exchange of delegations and bus services [in Kashmir]. India has engaged [President] General Pervez Musharraf in a lot of fun activities and he is conveniently lost in it. It is ironic that Indians wanted to abandon the Kashmir issue once and for all, and now Pakistan is helping India to do so."
So said a grim Syed Ali Shah Gillani [1] in a telephone interview with Asia Times Online from New Delhi. Gillani is the chairman of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC), which Pakistan's military establishment has nurtured over the past 13 years as the icon of the Kashmiri liberation struggle.
A delegation of the APHC's Gillani group led by Gillani called on Musharraf in Delhi on Sunday at the Pakistani High Commission. Musharraf was in India ostensibly to watch a cricket match between India and Pakistan, but he also met senior Indian leaders.
By all accounts, Gillani's meeting with Musharraf left the general "shocked", and Gillani angry. "I told him [Musharraf], 'You have sold us out.'"
Musharraf's bilateral talks covered the Kashmir bus service, trade and other issues, but without reference to resolving the Kashmir dispute - the "core" issue that has traditionally been the foundation of any Pakistani dialogue with India.
"I had questions for Musharraf," Gillani informed Asia Times Online. "I maintained that Pakistan showed a lot of flexibility, but what is the Indian response? Are they ready to show any reciprocity? Is there any change in the ground realities? Human-rights violations in Kashmir are still rampant. Recently, 30 of our youths were given life sentences, there is no reduction in the presence of the [Indian] army in Kashmir. Confidence-building measures are supposed to lead to a reduction in atrocities in Kashmir, or are they just fun activities between the rulers of the two countries?
"I emphasized that good Pakistan and Indian relations should have yielded [results] for the Kashmiris in the shape of relief in political activity, a reduction in military operations by the over 700,000 Indian forces etc ... but there is none. Pakistani rulers do not appear to talk business on Kashmir, rather they are more interested in playing cricket with Indians and having some fun - and letting Kashmir bleed. We Kashmiris are watching these developments and a negative opinion is growing against Pakistan.
"Musharraf agreed, but said that [the] post-September 11 situation left Pakistan with little options," Gillani said when Asia Times Online asked for Musharraf's response.
"We are enraged not because Pakistan is retreating from its active support. The issue is that Pakistan is now playing a role which is tantamount to active support of the Indian agenda," Gillani fumed.
"Initially, General Musharraf dished out a proposal to set aside the UN resolutions on Kashmir [calling for a referendum] and meet India 'halfway somewhere'. It was the first retreat by Pakistan, but we swallowed this bitter pill and thought that it was a step to seek Indian cooperation for the resolution of Kashmir. The Indians did not show any reciprocity. Then, a further retreat, and Musharraf dished out a proposal to divide Kashmir in seven zones. India did not respond. After all of this, India played the gambit of the Srinagar-Muzzafarabad bus service. In the past, Pakistan never approved of the idea as it was an old Indian one. The incumbent so-called Kashmiri Chief Minister Mufti Saeed contested the elections with the same rhetoric in 2002, that he would open the Srinagar-Muzzafarabad road. After 57 years [since partition], Pakistan has opened that route and spoiled our struggle. We saw it as 'right-sizing' of the Kashmiri cause by Pakistan," Gillani maintained.
Showtime
The question is, does Musharraf really care what Gillani thinks and expresses? The reality is, Musharraf's main concern with regard to internal and external affairs is what the army thinks.
Yet Gillani is a by-product of Pakistan's military establishment, created to serve as a strong pro-Pakistani face in the indigenous struggle of Kashmiris in the Valley. He has always been approved by the military establishment as the only acceptable face, while all others were disapproved, and their integrity and familiarity with the Kashmir issue watched with a lot of suspicion.
In many ways, the very existence and continued pre-eminence of Pakistan's army relates to Kashmir - it has fought several wars over the issue. From the rank of major up to brigadier, all officers work in a single direction under a manual that has not changed in the past 57 years on the Kashmir issue: no quarter given.
The beads of sweat on Musharraf's forehead after his meeting with Gillani were understandable. Everyone knows that army chiefs come and go, but the military institution never changes its manuals.
Musharraf knows that he will not change the views of Gillani, who is now publicly expressing his condemnation of Pakistan and its rulers. Yet Musharraf does not have a viable option for any new "pro-Pakistan" leadership among Kashmiris as neither his intelligence apparatus would approve their integrity nor would Kashmiri armed groups accept them.
There is no doubt that what is playing out on the South Asian stage bears little resemblance to what is happening behind the stage. Kashmir has been described as a "lifeline" for Pakistan and an "integral part" of India. Glitzy presentations for the public will not change the situation overnight.
posted by India News Watch at 7:39 AM
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