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| Afghanistan/South Asia |
| JKLF stresses negotiated settlement |
| 2002-02-20 |
| One of Kashmir's top Mujahideen leaders has condemned the world's "criminal negligence" of the disputed region's Muslim community and warned of an escalation in violence if India fails to promote a political solution. "The silence of the international community is an encouragement to the Indian government" to continue its suppression of Kashmir's Muslim population, Yasin Malik, the head of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), told AFP in an interview. Malik, 35, slammed New Delhi for doing nothing to promote a negotiated solution to Kashmir problem where tens of thousands of people have been killed since 1989. "If the government does not provide a space (for dialogue), then violence will automatically take place," said Malik, who laid down his arms - along with the rest of the JKLF - in 1994 after several years in Indian prisons, during which he underwent open heart surgery. For Malik, the despicable attacks of Sept 11 in the United States had simply underlined the importance of working towards a violence-free world. "For that, there are certain pending disputes which need to be resolved through peaceful means. It is up to India to respond to the new situation. Until now, they have not moved." In fact, Malik insists that Indian security forces have stepped up their operations, making it all but impossible for political leaders like himself to call on the armed militant groups to enter into a cease-fire. "The atrocities have increased and the suffering of the people is still going unnoticed," he said in his simple apartment in Srinagar, currently covered in a blanket of snow. |
| Posted by:Fred |