Leaders of the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) on Saturday alleged that the ongoing political crisis in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) stemmed from the failure of the governments in Islamabad and Muzaffarabad to implement written agreements and accused the authorities of distorting facts before the public.
Addressing a press conference at the Central Press Club, JAAC core members Raja Amjad Ali Khan, Shaukat Nawaz Mir, Anjum Zaman Awan and Raja Sohaib warned that if the government failed to implement the agreement and the charter of demands by May 31, the rights movement would go ahead with its already announced programme of a strike on June 9 during which “people would take to the streets in far greater numbers than before.”
They maintained that the issue of the 12 reserved seats was not merely political but also linked to constitutional, legal and public rights. They said educated youth, lawyers, students and people from various walks of life fully understood that representation in any constitutional structure or assembly was directly connected to the social contract between the people and the state.
The JAAC leaders alleged that the government had not only treated the negotiations unseriously but had also violated commitments made during the talks. They said constitutional amendments were never introduced abruptly on the floor of an assembly but were normally the result of detailed consultations and consensus among political parties.
However, they claimed that in AJK even elected representatives appeared to be acting under the directions of a few influential personalities instead of exercising independent decision-making powers.
They said senior leaders of Pakistan’s major political parties, including Qamar Zaman Kaira and Rana Sanaullah, had participated in the negotiations, signed the agreement and assured its implementation, but later reneged on their commitments.
Had the government and political parties been serious, decisions taken by the negotiating committees would have been implemented and public trust would not have been undermined, they added.
Referring to Pakistan-based Kashmiri refugees, the JAAC leaders alleged that people with little practical connection to the state were being granted representation in the AJK Legislative Assembly.
A large number of “fake State Subject certificates” had been issued in the name of refugees and seats created on that basis, they claimed, adding that if these seats were genuinely linked to the Kashmir dispute and United Nations resolutions, the government should clearly identify the relevant resolutions and clauses providing them protection.
“If AJK is regarded as the representative government of the entire erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, why does no representation exist for Gilgit-Baltistan and Indian-occupied Ladakh?” they questioned.
Referring to the negotiation process, the JAAC leaders said it had been decided at the previous meeting of the special constitutional committee that both sides would exchange questionnaires on the justification and utility of the refugee seats and share their responses at the May 25 meeting.
“While we handed over our questionnaire, we did not receive any set of questions from the other side (AJK and Pakistan governments). Ironically, our questionnaire was leaked to the media and selected individuals, damaging the atmosphere of trust-building,” said Mr Khan, one of the three JAAC members on the special constitutional committee.
The JAAC leaders asserted that they had acted responsibly and continued negotiations despite public pressure, but the government’s “non-serious attitude” had worsened the situation.
“So far, there are no signs of the May 25 meeting, which shows that the other side itself is dragging its feet on the talks,” Mr Khan said, adding that the main purpose of the press conference was to place the actual situation before the public.
The JAAC leaders stressed that the protest movement was not confined to the issue of the 12 seats alone but also covered state resources, employment, educational rights, refugee policy and the allotment of precious land to influential local figures under the category of “local destitute.”
They demanded a complete investigation into all allotments made under the “local destitute” category since 1947, alleging that 99 per cent of such cases had benefited influential and undeserving individuals while genuine claimants were ignored.
They also criticised the government’s handling of local bodies, saying that the authorities had made tall claims about devolving powers to local councils but had neither transferred powers nor released adequate funds.
The JAAC leaders reiterated that their movement had remained peaceful since its inception and would continue to remain so.
“We have never talked about armed struggle. On June 9 too, we will come out peacefully. People will be mobilised under SOPs and a peaceful sit-in will be staged in Muzaffarabad,” they said.
Tariq Naqash
