Pakistan, India to decide LoC routes opening today

ISLAMABAD—Pakistan and India will discuss specific steps to push cross-border cooperation to help victims of the October 08 quake in Islamabad on Saturday.
A delegation of top Indian officials led by Dilip Sinha, Joint Secretary In-charge of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran in the External Affairs Ministry will arrive here on Friday evening.
The Indian team will also comprise officials from the home ministry, Army Headquarters and the state government of Jammu and Kashmir.
The talks will focus on proposals made by both India and Pakistan to help the victims of the quake across the Line of Control (LoC) that divides Kashmir between the two countries.
Pakistan has suggested the opening of five crossing points at the LoC to facilitate relief and rehabilitation work while India has offered to open three relief centres along the LoC to facilitate meetings between divided Kashmiri families affected by the quake.
These sites were chosen for their easier access and closer proximity to areas affected by the quake that killed over 40,000 in Pakistan and over 1,400 in India.
According to sources senior leaders of both the countries are using back door channels for opening of LoC.
To this effect lengthy discussions were held between senior Pakistani and Indian officials over the opening of the Line of Control (LoC) between the two Kashmiris.
Pakistan’s National Security Advisor Tariq Aziz Tuesday held talks with Indian Prime Minister’s special envoy Satinder Lambah over opening of the LoC at three points to facilitate relief flow for victims of the Oct 8 earthquake.
“An Indian team would be coming to Pakistan Friday to formalise the agreement,” a official was quoted as saying by IANS, requesting anonymity.
Pakistan Monday had formally proposed modalities to India for a two-way movement of Kashmiris on five points along the LoC as a follow-up of President Pervez Musharraf’s statement in Kashmir last week that Kashmiris should be allowed to meet each other, share each other’s grief, and help each other.
“India however has agreed to open the LoC at three points,” said the official, adding that the suggested procedures provide for immediate access to members of divided families.
The official said that Aziz and Lambah had been involved in back-door diplomacy since the death of Indian’s National Security Adviser J N Dixit in January.
“In August this year Lambah was in Islamabad and held talks with Aziz and President (Pervez) Musharraf,” he said.
“After the Islamabad meeting, both Aziz and Lambah had a meeting in the UAE before President Musharraf’s meeting with Manmohan Singh in New York last month at the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly”.
In all Aziz-Lambah meetings, Kashmir had remained on top of the discussions.
“This is the reason that both the countries have agreed to have a formal agreement on opening of the LoC,” he said.
However, the official said that only Kashmiris from the Indian side would be allowed to come to the Pakistan side of Kashmir while there would be no movement from Pakistan to India.
The official said that both the sides would maintain lists of the Kashmiris coming to Pakistan through the LoC.
They would be allowed to stay in Azad Kashmir for one month at a stretch. They would be using the same permit to cross the LoC, which had been used by the passengers of trans-Kashmir bus service.
Leaders of both sides of Kashmir on Thursday urged upon India to open Line of Control (LoC) unconditionally enabling Kashmiris living across the divide to assist each other in wake of devastated earthquake. This demand was made by Leader of Opposition in AJK Legislative Assembly, Barrister Sultan Mahmood and Chairman Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), Yasin Malik at a joint press conference here. Both the leaders said that President General Pervez Musharraf has already proposed to open Line of Control and asked the Indian leadership to respond positively during talks between the two countries likely to be held on October 29.
Sultan Mahmood said that Yasin Malik is visiting Azad Kashmir to express his sympathies with the bereaved families and encourage people who became victim of the unprecedented quake. “His (Yasin Malik) presence here has played a pivotal role in minimising sufferings of the affected people,” he added. Expressing his resolve to continue movement for the right of self-determination, he said the entire Kashmir nation is observing the October 27 as the black day when Indian forces had entered in held valley in 1948. He, however, said the movement for the right to self- determination would continue till its solution in accordance with UN resolutions. Sultan Mahmood said he would continue his effort to unveil India’s gross human rights violations against innocent Kashmiri people at the world fora.
Speaking on the occasion, Yasin Malik said he himself witnessed destruction and devastation in various parts of Azad Kashmir especially Muzaffarabad, Bagh, Rawalkot and adjoining areas. He appreciated people of Pakistan for extending exemplary support to their Kashmiri brethren. Yasin Malik observed that an entire younger generation of Kashmir has become victim of earthquake while survivors are suffering from multiple physical and mental ailments. Every Kashmiri in occupied valley want to help their brethren in the time of need and they want to participate in the relief work in Azad Kashmir, he added. Yasin Malik appealed to the Prime Minister of India to allow the Kashmiris living in occupied Kashmir enabling them to carry out relief activities in Azad Kashmir.
Responding to a question, Sultan Mahmood said the time has come when Kashmiri people should be given some concessions. India, he said, should withdraw its forces from cities of occupied Kashmir and release all the political prisoners from the Indian jails. To a question, Yasin Malik said that the people of Kashmir should be provided an opportunity to decide whether they want to live with India or Pakistan. To another question, he said there was less human losses in occupied Kashmir while earthquake inflicted heavy damages to the properties.—Online/Agencies