| Submit your comments on this article | |
| Afghanistan/South Asia | |
| Kashmir separatist leaders welcomed in Pakistan | |
| 2005-06-03 | |
| CHAKOTHI, Pakistan-administered Kashmir - Muslim separatist leaders from Indian Kashmir were given a rousing welcome when they crossed the heavily militarised ceasefire line here on Thursday on an historic visit to the Pakistani zone of the disputed Himalayan region. The prime minister of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, Sardar Sikandar Hayat, and other senior politicians hugged the leaders as they arrived in this town near the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto border between Indian and Pakistani Kashmir. A police band played national tunes while a crowd released pigeons and The Indian Kashmir leaders walked across the Kaman Bridge on the Jhelum river, which forms part of the LoC, and then drove to Muzaffarabad, the capital of the Pakistan-administered zone of Kashmir. The entire 58-kilometre (36-mile) route from Chakothi to Muzaffarabad was decorated with welcoming bunting and banners.
Delegation member Bilal Gani Lone said he happy and excited to be in the Pakistan portion of Kashmir. "There is a hope and today's journey is the first step," he said. "Let us hope this first step brings peace and best hopes for the people of India, Pakistan and specially the people of Kashmir," he said. "The visit shows that both India and Pakistan have realised that involvement of Kashmiris is essential in resolving the dispute between the two countries," a senior Hurriyat leader Moulvi Abbas Ansari said. | |
| Posted by:Steve White |