PRESS BRIEFING

By

 Muhammad Farooq Rehmani

    Convenor APHC (AJK Chapter)

It is a great pleasure for me to welcome you in today’s press conference which I am holding as newly elected convener APHC Azad Kashmir chapter. I along with my colleagues around, am face to face with you at a very critical, crucial and decisive moment. It is our aim to set aside all confusions and unfounded predicaments. A grand unity of all pro-freedom elements is taking shape. In-sha-Allah, we will not disappoint our people who inspite of various odds are determined to continue their struggle for right of self-determination as promised in UN resolutions.

The recent Indo Pakistan confidence building measures including ceasefire is a welcome development. But it also is a fact that guns are silent on the ceasefire line but Indian state-terrorism in different parts of Jammu & Kashmir state continues unabated. Peace in South Asia is a positive phenomenon but lasting peace is possible only by resolution of Kashmir dispute.

For past some time, APHC Executive Council took policy decisions without consulting members of General Council.( such as meeting with Ram Jethmalani, talks with Indian authorities, strikes, cancellation of hartals etc).

Despite numerous reminders and letters no heed was paid to the requests made by General Council to take decisions by consensus.

The anti elections campaign was flawed despite suggestions by General Council.

In view of above, General Council members decided to rally around Syed Ali Shah Gilani and are working towards reinvigoration of the movement.

However, we want to emphasize that all pro-movement elements are our brothers and the present state of affairs of APHC is an in-house problem and its amicable solution will be seen in the coming days when we shall all work together.

To conclude I thank you for being with us here at APHC headquarters. I would like to appeal to all of you to highlight the real spirit of our freedom struggle. It needs to be emphasized that the sole spirit of our struggle is choosing a safe and certain political future in accordance with our wishes and aspirations as promised by the International Community.