The election of Barack Obama as United States' President has generated hope among Kashmiris in occupied territory that the Kashmir dispute would be solved soon. Welcoming the election of Obama, All Parties Hurriyet Conference Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said: "We see a role for US in resolution of Kashmir issue and hope that Obama will fulfil his responsibility."
Mirwaiz, who had been placed under house arrest by the occupation authorities, said: "We hope that Obama will give practical shape to his encouraging statements on resolution of Kashmir issue during campaigning", KMS reported.
Senior Kashmiri Hurriyet Leader Syed Ali Gilani, who is undergoing treatment in Delhi, said the election of Obama was a historic event for America and hoped that he would use his good offices to resolve the Kashmir dispute in its historic perspective.
He appealed the US President-elect to put pressure on India to give the right to self-determination it promised to the people of Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front Vice President Bashir Ahmad Butt, while congratulating Obama on his election, said that his recent statements with regard to Kashmir were encouraging, adding: "Kashmiris are hopeful that he will use good offices in resolution of Kashmir issue."
Acting Chairman of Jammu Kashmir Peoples League, Mukhtar Ahmad Waza anticipated that Obama would uphold the avowal, which he had made during the election campaigns.
The Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association also welcomed Obama's election and decided to post a letter requesting him to intervene and get the longstanding Kashmir dispute resolved by asking New Delhi to honour the implementation of UN resolution on Kashmir.
Ecstatic over Obama's win, students of Kashmir University took out a candle light procession at Lal Chowk. "His statements on Kashmir have been really encouraging," Acting Chairman of the University Students Union, Saqib Amin said.
Meanwhile, Executive Director of Kashmir Centre London, Professor Nazir Ahmed Shawl, in a statement hoped that Obama would facilitate a resolution of the painful Kashmir conflict by using his good offices to redeem the Kashmiris' right to self-determination.