Syed Ali Shah Gilani, a prominent leader of the All-Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) and leader of Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir, said that the lack of willingness on the part of the United Nations to resolve the Kashmir dispute has fuelled instability in South Asia. Moreover, the international community's inaction to halt India's crime against humanity in Kashmir, has only served to encourage India to silence every individual voice demanding implementation of UN resolutions.

"Today, India is attempting to infuse confusion among the Kashmiri political parties, as well as in the ranks of militants to serve its own ends," said Gilani.

Talking to journalists in Srinagar, he said that the Indian government was battling hard to eliminate the APHC leadership, and to some extent it has succeeded in installing its agents among the Kashmiri political and militant ranks. These state agents indulged in such activities that is harmful to the legitimate struggle of the people. He said this had to be stopped.

Answering a question about the perspective of the Kashmir issue, Gilani recalled that India was divided on the basis of a two­nation theory. Muslim­dominated areas got acceded to Pakistan and Hindu­dominated areas joined India. According to this theory, he added, Jammu and Kashmir state whose borders were with Pakistan and the Muslims constituted 85 per cent of the total population should have acceded to Pakistan. If honest division had taken place, then Jammu and Kashmir could have become a part of Pakistan. Had Britishers not given Gurdaspur [in Punjab] to India, there would have been no road link available for India to come to Kashmir.

The APHC leader said that the people of Kashmir are ready to vote in an election or referendum held under the supervision of the United Nations to determine the future of the disputed territory. However, elections held under the auspices of Indian troops and India's Constitution will be voted by Indian forces in civilian clothes.

Asked if he favoured tripartite talks for the solution of the Kashmir issue, Gilani said that we were the first to propose tripartite talks between India, Pakistan and the Kashmiri representatives. However, any such talks should be based on the UN resolutions which guaranteed right of self­determination to the Kashmiris.

He was asked to elaborate that if guns still held sway over political means in fighting Indian occupation. The Hurriyat leader said guns have not overtaken the role of a political platform such as that of the APHC.

He warned that there was still time for India to honour her international commitment and the pledges it gave to the people of Kashmir and the government of Pakistan. The commitment is that "Kashmir is a disputed territory." Honouring her word would help in establishing peace in the subcontinent and prosperity for the people of India and Pakistan.

To yet another question about the migration of Kashmiris, Gilani said that in 1990, Jagmohan had motivated Kashmiri Pundits to migrate from the Valley in an attempt to give the Kashmiri freedom movement a communal colour. These migrant Kashmiri Pundits, majority of them camping in Jammu and Delhi, were being used by the Indian authorities to exploit the situation in Kashmir for their own ends. Whenever any foreign dignitary visited India, the government organised their visits to these migrant camps to portray that "they were forced out of their homes by the Muslims."

Responding to a question why group clashes were so rampant, the APHC leader said that failing to suppress the movement, the government of India launched a counter­insurgency operation in Kashmir, to confuse the world as well as those groups fighting for liberation. Part of New Delhi's plan was to have their agents infiltrate every political and militant organizations. These agents were armed by India; they indulge in arson, looting, murder and other anti-Islamic activities. The Jamaat's activists are particularly targeted by these agents.

"Almost for the past seven years, the 600,000 Indian army is at war with the innocent civilians of Kashmir and this small number of agents is no problem for us to deal with," he said, adding that here the responsibility rested with the people and the media. They should distinguish between group clashes and a clash between armed persons and civilians.