Speeches
and Statements
on
JAMMU &
KASHMIR
by
Mohtarma
Benazir Bhutto
Prime Minister of Pakistan
JAMMU AND KASHMIR
STATEMENTS AND SPEECHES OF
PRIME MINISTER BENAZIR BHUTTO
Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in response to
message of felicitation by the Indian Prime
Minister Narasimha Rao on her assumption of
office of Prime Minister of Pakistan, said:
"I would like to assure you that my
democratic government attaches the highest
priority to the establishment of normal,
tension-free relations with India. I am sure
that progress towards this objective would
contribute to strengthening peace and
stability in South Asia".
"I believe that the Jammu and Kashmir issue
is the main obstacle in the way of better
relations between our two countries and that
its solution must be based on the
aspirations and legitimate rights of the
Kashmiri people. My government is prepared
to engage in serious and purposeful
discussions in order to resolve this issue,
as well as all other problems between our
two countries, through peaceful
negotiations".
The Muslim, Islamabad,
The News International, Rawalpindi,
Nawa-i- Waqat, Rawalpindi,
21-10-93.
Before departure to attend Commonwealth
Heads of Government Meeting at Limassol
(Cyprus), Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto said
in Islamabad on 20th October 1993:
"Pakistan would raise the issue of Kashmir
at the Commonwealth Heads of Government
Meeting in Limassol (Cyprus) in the context
of Commonwealth value and in the light of
emergence of new humanitarian global order.
Pakistan would stress that the continued
human rights violations of the people of
Kashmir contravened the fundamental values
of Commonwealth and that the Association
should shoulder its responsibilities in
promoting a world order which respects human
rights and fundamental freedom of all
without discrimination."
The Muslim, Islamabad,
21-10-93.
While addressing at the third executive
session of the Commonwealth Heads of
Governments meeting on 22 October 93 at
Limassol in Cyprus Prime Minister said:
"Kashmir has a special importance and
symbolism for Pakistan and its people. We
believe that such disputes must be settled
through peaceful negotiations".
"Pakistan was ready to address the core
issue of Kashmir in meaningful and
purposeful manner believing it could be
settled through peaceful negotiations.
Pakistan would welcome "direct talks with
India to address all issues between their
countries including Kashmir"
The Indian Premier was the first leader to
congratulate her on her election as Prime
Minister of Pakistan and offered to hold
talks to discuss various issues between the
two countries.
She regretted that the Indian Prime Minister
Narasimha Rao could not come to Limassol to
attend the Commonwealth Summit. She was
looking forward to meet him here.
Regional tension in certain parts of the
world was becoming dangerous. In this
connection she referred to the issues of
Kashmir, Somalia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto told the
Commonwealth leaders that the PLO-Israel
Agreement was "a good example of how to
solve intractable world problems". The
Agreement signed in Washington on September
13 would set an example to other states
involved in conflicts.
While talking earlier to newsmen at Limasool,
Prime Minister said:
"Severe tension in Kashmir can be defused
when oppression ends".
"Violation of human rights in Kashmir was "A
matter of deep concern for Pakistan. Tension
is mounting high in Kashmir".
She hoped that Pakistan and India are able
to move in the right direction of seeking a
political settlement of the Kashmir issue.
Prime Minister said she attached great
importance to the Commonwealth and that this
is the reason that she has come to attend
the Commonwealth meeting after two days
being elected as the Prime Minister.
She was hoping that the Indian Prime
Minister would also be here so that they
could discuss the Kashmir issue. But now may
be only the talks can be held at the Foreign
Secretary level.
During her meeting with the British Premier,
at Limassol, the two leaders are understood
to have reviewed the present situation in
Indian-Held Kashmir besides matters of
bilateral, regional and global interest.
With Begum Khalida Zia, the Kashmir issue
was also discussed.
The Muslim, Islamabad,
The Pakistan Times, Islamabad,
The Frontier Post, Peshawar,
Nawa-i- Waqt, Rawalpindi,
Jang, Rawalpindi,
23-10-93.
Prime Minister while at Jeddah on 23
October, 93 on her way to Pakistan from
Commonwealth meeting at Limassol, condemned
the killing of Kashmir is by the Indian
security forces and called for an immediate
end to the siege of Hazratbal shrine in
Srinagar. She said, "Such harazen disregard
for human lives can only aggravate tension
in Occupied Kashmir. This will only vitiate
further the strained relations is clearly
inconsistent with the latest offer of Indian
Prime Minister Narasimha Rao for talks on
normalization of Indo-Pakistan relations.
The Nation, Lahore,
24-10-93.
On arrival on 24 October after attending the
Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit in
Cyprus said:
"The Commonwealth Summit provided her an
opportunity to raise the Kashmir dispute for
inviting the world's attention towards the
human rights violations in Occupied Kashmir.
During her visits she was able to meet
British Prime Minister John Major, Malaysian
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad and others.
These meetings with world leaders enabled
her to present Pakistan's viewpoint and to
discuss with them prevalent situation in
Held Kashmir and Bosnia.
The Nation, Lahore,
25-10-1993.
After obtaining the vote of confidence on 27
October 93, Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto,
expressed her government's resolve to
consult all political parties for a unified
stand and building a national consensus on
Kashmir. She demanded of India to lift the
siege of Hazratbal shrine and enter into
dialogue with Pakistan for the solution of
the Kashmir problem in accordance with UN
resolutions.
Prime Minister appealed to the United
Nations and international community to take
notice of the grave situation in the
Occupied Kashmir before it deteriorates
further and take steps for the solution of
the problem at the earliest.
She laid stress on the need of recognizing
the right of self- determination in
accordance with the UN resolutions. She said
the government has summoned the special
joint session of the Parliament to discuss
the situation in Kashmir and adopt a joint
resolution on the issue. She said the
session would provide an opportunity to the
members to express their point of view on
this important issue. She reminded India not
to forget that the siege of the Dargah
Hazratbal was not an ordinary matter.
She said the shrine was the center of
devotion not only for the Kashmiri Muslims
but also for the entire Muslim world as it
contains a hair of the Holy Prophet (Peace
be upon him).
She said no Muslim could ignore the
desecration of the holy relics. Ms. Bhutto
said that during siege of the Shrine, the
Indian army has committed atrocities against
innocent Kashmiris which is a shame for the
humanity.
The Muslim, Islamabad,
28-10-93.
Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto wrote to UN
Secretary General Boutros Ghali on 6
November 93. She drew his attention to the
serious situation in the Valley.
The Muslim, Islamabad,
7-11-93.
During her meeting with US Assistant
Secretary of States Mr. Robin Raphel on 7
November 93, Ms Benazir Bhutto, discussed
the situation in Kashmir. There was
agreement on the importance of lessening
tensions. The Prime Minister reiterated
Pakistan's position of the urgent need to
find a negotiated, peaceful settlement of
the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the
UN resolutions and in the spirit of the
Simla Agreement.
The Pakistan Times, Islamabad,
7-11-93.
Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has urged
world leaders to use their influence to
persuade India to end its repression in
Occupied Kashmir and engage in a substantive
dialogue with Pakistan to resolve the
dispute in accordance with United Nations
resolutions.
In special messages addressed to the leaders
of a number of friendly countries, the Prime
Minister expressed her confidence that the
world leaders in view of their governments'
friendly relations with both Pakistan and
India would take concrete steps to ensure a
reduction of tensions in the region and a
peaceful resolution of the Kashmir dispute.
Drawing their attention towards the
repressive measures the Indian government
has recently taken in Occupied Kashmir, the
Prime Minister expressed her deep concern at
the heightening tension between Pakistan and
India.
The Prime Minister said the siege of the
Holy Hazratbal Shrine continues unabated,
causing untold misery and suffering to the
Kashmiris. She said nearly half a million
Indian military and paramilitary forces
have been deployed in Indian-held Kashmir,
representing an unprecedented ratio of one
soldier to every three Kashmiri adults to
brutally suppress the Kashmiri struggle for
self-determination.
The Prime Minister said the siege of the
Hazratbal Shrine has aroused deep
sensitivities all over Kashmir and in the
region. Every step the Indian government
takes to suppress the indomitable will of
the Kashmiri people, she added, leads to an
inevitable escalation of tension.
Benazir Bhutto further said that in the
recent exchange of letters between Prime
Minister Narasimha Rao and herself, she had
underlined Pakistan's desire to resume
bilateral talks, indicating that for talks
to be purposeful, the entire status of Jammu
and Kashmir must be addressed as a separate
agenda item.
Among the world leaders to whom the Prime
Minister's message has been sent are the
heads of government of Bangladesh, China,
Egypt, France, Germany, Indonesia, Iran,
Japan, Malaysia, Russian Federation, Saudi
Arabia, Senegal, Turkey, United Kingdom, the
United States of America and the UN
Secretary General.
The News, Islamabad,
11-11-93.
In an interview to an English daily 'The
Hindu', the Prime Minister, Ms. Benazir
Bhutto said that she was originally pleased
to receive Mr. Rao's message offering talks
on Kashmir, she learnt subsequently that
India had promised earlier also to talk on
Kashmir, but when the talks took place,
India had refused to discuss the future
status of Jammu and Kashmir.
Ms. Bhutto told the interviewer Ms. Malini
Parthasarthy that Pakistan was seeking a
clarification as to whether the India was
prepared to talk about the future of Jammu
and Kashmir as a separate item on the
agenda.
She indicated during the interview that
Islamabad would have more confidence in
bilateral negotiations if India takes steps
to implement the 1989 Agreement on Siachen.
Talking about the preconditions for
bilateral talks, Ms. Bhutto said lifting of
the siege of the Hazratbal shrine and
withdrawal of security forces from the area
were essential so that the people of
Pakistan should not wonder about the
killings going on in the Valley.
Referring to the Simla Accord, Ms. Bhutto
said while it had been "a valuable
instrument" in preventing war between India
and Pakistan, it had failed to prevent
repression in Held Kashmir, but, Simla
Accord could not preclude Pakistan raising
the Kashmir issue at the international fora.
Answering a question, the Prime Minister
said if the Indian Prime Minister was able
to put Jammu and Kashmir as a separate item
on the agenda, in order to decide the future
of disputed territory and managed to have a
ceasefire in Valley, withdrawal of troops
from there, perhaps, he could set the ball
rolling.
Discussing the linkage of the Kashmir
dispute to the nuclear question, Prime
Minister Ms. Bhutto said: "If we don't link
the two issues, we are totally defenceless."
She noted that India's military capability
was more formidable, given the range of the
missiles like Prithvi and Agni and the fact
that an agreement with China made it
possible to delink troops from the Chinese
border and that the Indian army was much
bigger than Pakistan.
Ms. Bhutto rejected the idea of a similar
agreement between India and Pakistan on
Jammu and Kashmir referring to Indo-China
troops reduction, saying that it would
bypass solving the dispute.
The Nation, Lahore,
Jang, Rawalpindi,
Dawn, Karachi,
The Muslim Islamabad,
13-11-93.
On 28 November 93, Prime Minister, Benazir
Bhutto has condemned the genocide in
Occupied Kashmir during the last couple of
days and expressed her government's great
concern over it. She said:
"I have been deeply shocked and dismayed by
the brutal acts of repression that have been
perpetrated against the people of Jammu and
Kashmir over the last two days.
"Though the foreign minister has been asked
to issue a statement too, I, however, feel
this is not enough, and I must convey my
personal sense of shock and condemn such
wanton acts which are an affront to human
dignity and sanctity of life.”
"We deplore these repressive measures and
call upon the Indian Government to take
immediate steps to remove the so- called
'security cordon' around Hazratbal Mosque,
stop the use of force against Kashmiris
holding peaceful demonstrations against the
denial of their human rights, release
Kashmiri leaders and bring an end to the
atrocities perpetrated by the Indian forces
against the people of Jammu and Kashmir,
"The brutal force employed to disburse
peaceful processions in Srinagar and other
towns of Indian Held Kashmir on Friday
followed by the so-called "cordon and search
operation" in Spore, which killed a large
number of Kashmiris and burnt scores of
houses will not credit India.
"The escalating violations of human rights
regretfully are an indication that the
Government of India has no regard for the
spirit of the agreement reached for foreign
secretary level talks and the understanding
that there would be a tangible reduction in
human rights violations to create the right
atmosphere.
"Pakistan hoped that the partial end of the
month-long Hazratbal Mosque's siege would be
followed by withdrawal of the military and
para-military forces. "We were also waiting
for a visible signal for ending the
systematic repression throughout Occupied
Jammu and Kashmir."
But reports on the incidents on November 26
and 27 indicate the resolve of the Indian
authorities to continue to brutally repress
Kashmiris and to deny them their fundamental
rights, particularly their right to
worship." The Prime Minister has drawn the
attention of the world community to the
grave human rights situation in Indian Held
Kashmir and urged them to call upon India to
desist from its campaign of repression in
the Valley.
"We hope all those countries which favored a
dialogue between Pakistan and India for
peaceful resolution of the Kashmir dispute,
will .use their influence with India to
create the necessary conditions for
meaningful talks. They may also urge India
to allow unhindered access to humanitarian
relief and human rights organizations, as
well as the electronic media, to monitor and
report on the deteriorating situation in
Indian Held Jammu and Kashmir."
She has assured the people of Jammu and
Kashmir of Pakistan's determination to
wholeheartedly support their legitimate and
inalienable right to self-determination and
to make all possible efforts to ensure
respect for their human rights.
The Nation, Lahore,
The Muslim, Islamabad.
29-11-93.
On 1 December 1993, Prime Minister, Benazir
Bhutto urged the international community to
influence India to stop atrocities in Held
Kashmir in order to make the upcoming
Pak-India talks fruitful:
While addressing a Tribal Jirga from Orakzai
Agency, Benazir Bhutto said "We have made it
known to the world that the talks (between
India and Pakistan) will be of no use unless
India ends atrocities on innocent Kashmiris."
Bhutto said "all the justice loving
countries are siding with Pakistan on
Kashmir," About the struggle of the Kashmiri
people she emphasized, "They cannot be
suppressed as they are not afraid of death."
Prime Minister said Pakistan was no more
isolated in the world and the negotiations
have started with the countries with which
it did not have good relations.
The News International, Islamabad,
The Nation, Lahore,
Pakistan Times, Islamabad,
2-12-93.
Prime Minister, Ms. Benazir Bhutto on 7
December 93, said that in her forthcoming
visits to Iran and Turkey, the Kashmir
situation and massive human rights
violations in the Valley will figure in the
bilateral talks:
Benazir Bhutto raised the Kashmir issue and
informed the Iranian leaders about the
atrocities being committed on innocent
civilians by the Indian forces. She also
thanked Iran for its support to Pakistan on
Kashmir issue and hoped that this support
would continue. Iran is extending moral and
political support to the Kashmiris in their
struggle for the right to
self-determination.
The Iranian President reaffirmed Iran's
support for the right of self-determination
of the people of Kashmir. He stressed that
the solution of Kashmir dispute should be
achieved in accordance with the UN
resolutions. He said there had been no
change in the Iranian stand on kashmir
issue.
She informed the Iranian President that the
human rights violations in the Occupied
Kashmir have not ceased and in such
circumstances, Pakistan will continue to
mobilise world public opinion against India
and in favour of the kashmir struggle.
The Muslim, Islamabad,
The Pakistan Times, Islamabad,
10-12-93.
While at the shrine of Imam Raza at Mashad
in Iran, Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto
said:—
"Kashmir is a burning issue which deserved
utmost attention, where repression and
atrocities of the worst sort were being
committed by India.
"Those atrocities are of enormous magnitude,
which must awaken the Muslims," she said.
Pakistan wants resolution of the Kashmir
dispute through grant of right to
self-determination. We will continue our
endeavour to secure the right to plebiscite
for the Kashmiri people, who have continued
a valiant struggle for their birth right.
Pakistan has a special concern for Kashmir,
but it has always supported the freedom
movements all around the world.
The Muslim, Islamabad,
10-12-93.
During her visit to Turkey, Prime Minister,
Benazir Bhutto have her Turkish counterpart
a full briefing on Kashmir including the
past history and current wave of Indian
repression in the Valley. This had been
documented by world organizations like
Amnesty International. Both the Prime
Ministers emphasized the need for a solution
on the basis of the UN resolutions.
Ms. Bhutto stressed the need for completely
lifting the Indian siege of Hazratbal
shrine.
The News, Islamabad,
Nawa-e- Waqt, Rawalpindi,
10-12-93.
Turkey extended full support to the right of
self-determination of the people of Kashmir.
Pakistan Times, Islamabad,
13-12-93.
After the official part of visit to Turkey
Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto told in news
conference:
"We believe the question of Jammu and
Kashmir should be solved according to UN
resolutions. There can only be peace if
nations conduct themselves according to
recognized principles of international law.
"International law must be the denominator
for the solution of Jammu and Kashmir.
Repression is no solution. And this is what
is happening now. The repression, torture,
the destruction have all been documented by
international agencies,”
"We ask India to put an end to these
killings, to end the human rights
violations."
Pakistan was opposed to the proposal for
making India as permanent member of the UN
Security Council as it continued to violate
the Security Council resolutions on Kashmir.
Pakistan was seeking peaceful resolution of
its outstanding disputes with India
including the Kashmir issue. In this spirit
it has agreed to resume Foreign Secretary
level talks with India next month which will
discuss Kashmir issue also as a separate
agenda item.
Pakistan has not abdicated its right to
raise the Kashmir issue at international
forums and restrict it to bilateral talks
only. "We want to build a new world of peace
and respect for international law in
conjunction with other nations and expect
India to honor international commitments.
The Nation, Lahore,
12-12-93.
Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto reiterated
her government's resolve to continue
political, moral and diplomatic support to
Kashmiri freedom-fighters in their struggle
for achieving the right to self-
determination.
Prime Minister informed the Cabinet that her
Government had stepped up its efforts for
mobilizing international support on Kashmir
issue. She said Kashmir issue should be
resolved according to the wishes of the
people of Kashmir and in accordance with the
UN resolutions.
Dawn, Karachi,
21-12-93.
Prime Minister announced Kashmir Committee
of the National Assembly on 22 December
1993:
The Committee, according to the modalities
being framed for its activities, will be
responsible for monitor situation in the
Occupied Kashmir and would actively work to
mobilize national and international opinion
in favour of the kashmiris' struggle.
The Muslim, Islamabad,
23-12-93.
During her visit to North Korea, Prime
Minister, Benazir Bhutto briefed the Korean
President about Kashmir and Indian policy of
repression and terror in the Occupied
Kashmir. She also gave the background of the
Foreign Secretary level talks between India
and Pakistan. She stressed that India must
come out with a clear signal to de- escalate
terrorism in the Occupied Kashmir, must lift
Hazratbal siege, reduce the number of Armed
Forces in Occupied Kashmir and release all
the political prisoners there. She expressed
the hope that India would shun intransigence
and respond to reason.
President Kim Sung declared that Democratic
People's Republic of Korea supports the
inalienable right of self-determination for
the people of Kashmir in accordance with the
United Nations Security Council resolutions.
The News, Islamabad,
31-12-93.
Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto welcomed the
Indian foreign secretary and was glad that
the talks resumed after a gap of 15 months.
She re-affirmed Pakistan's position on
Kashmir and asked the Indian foreign
secretary to take visible steps regarding
human rights situation in the occupied
Kashmir.
