India and Pakistan should involve Kashmiris as the third party in their dialogue to ensure a solution that is durable and acceptable to all, a group of Pakistani Parliamentarians said here.
According to Kashmir Media Service the lawmakers said the negotiations to resolve occupied Kashmir and all other outstanding issues and efforts to enhance trade and other aspects of the Indo-Pak relations should be undertaken in tandem.
The delegation, which is here as part of efforts to increase contact between people's representatives of the two countries and learn from each other, feels there is ample warmth and desire in both countries to see improvement in ties as that will augur well for the entire region.
"If two big countries of South Asia (India and Pakistan) solve their issues, there will be peace in the region," said the delegation head Farzana Raja, who is Chairperson of Benazir Income Support Programme with the status of Federal Minister. Referring to the occupied Kashmir issue, she said people of the state are the main stakeholders to it besides India and Pakistan and should be involved as the third party in the negotiations.
"The people of occupied Kashmir should be involved as the third party to the issue for a solution that is durable and acceptable to all," the PPP leader said. She also spoke about the need to keep in view the UN resolutions and contemporary situation while resolving the occupied Kashmir issue.
Farzana insisted that the two countries should address occupied Kashmir and all other issues through talks for the benefit of the people of the two countries and enable the two nations to meet bigger global problems like climate change. Efforts to resolve the occupied Kashmir and other issues and strengthening trading and other ties should go simultaneously, she said while noting that Pakistani political spectrum and people were strongly in favour of better relations between the two countries.
She expressed happiness over the increasing trade, including the cross-LoC commerce, between the two countries and said such measures needed to be pushed forward. "Till we solve all the outstanding issues, we cannot address big issues of global level," the PPP leader said. Similar efforts can be made at the Saarc level too, Farzana said.
On the issue of terrorism, she said the two countries should work together to address the problem and defeat the elements who work against humanity and try to create understandings between the two countries.
When referred to reports here about Hindu terrorism being behind the cross-border Samjhauta Express blast last year, the Pakistani leader said, "Terrorism has no religion. There can be no Christian terrorism, Hindu terrorism or Muslim terrorism. "A terrorist is one who works against the humanity, one who is the enemy of the humanity.
Terrorists have their own agenda. Their aim is to destabilise the country they are working for creating misunderstandings between the two countries." India and Pakistan should be together on one platform and fight terrorism together, she said.
The visit of the Pakistani delegation was also aimed at sharing experiences and ideas about the social development being undertaken in the respective countries.
Farzana, who met Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia, said the Pakistani side was appreciative of the social and rural development schemes being undertaken by India. In particular, appreciated was the National Health Insurance scheme for unorganised workers, she said and added that a similar programme would be undertaken in her country as well. Farzana, who is heading a programme for uplift of the under-privileged sections of the society, said the work being undertaken by her institution was appreciated by the Indian side.