MUZAFFARABAD(National Times)- PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Tuesday demanded that the government and the \u201cprotesters\u201d agree to the formation of a truth and reconciliation commission to resolve ongoing tensions in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The PPP has repeatedly called for the establishment of a truth and reconciliation commission amid protests in AJK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Over the past month, the regional administration and the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) have been at odds over various issues, most notably the committee\u2019s demand to abolish the 12 seats in the region\u2019s Legislative Assembly, which has resulted in protests across the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Addressing a gathering of party workers in Muzaffarabad amid ongoing elections in the region, the PPP chairman said, \u201cIt is necessary that during these historic elections, we restore peace and maintain fairness and transparency. To honour the future of Kashmir and Pakistan\u2019s stance on Kashmir, this is not about anyone\u2019s victory or defeat. The state and the protesters will have to accept this recommendation from the PPP.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bilawal said he had been campaigning for the formation of the commission for the past month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAll the state had to do was form a truth and reconciliation commission and task it with discerning the truth, and the protesters would have been asked to halt their protests until the commission presented its findings,\u201d he said. However, he recalled that neither party had been willing to \u201cback down\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat will then become of my innocent Kashmiris, who have no connection to either the protestors or the government?\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bilawal maintained that the unrest could have been resolved \u201cpeacefully and without endangering anyone\u201d, and went on to accuse the state of prioritising \u201cPML-N\u2019s interests over that of Kashmir\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI understand their pain, whether they are right or wrong [..] I feel for their mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers,\u201d he said, urging that the protestors cannot be punished on the street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf you want to take action, investigate and form a commission, which will then tell you who is the murderer and who is whose agent; this issue cannot be resolved on the street.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On AJK polls
The PPP chairman began his address with a saying by Roman philosopher Tacitus: \u201cTo robbery, butchery and rapine, they give the lying name of \u2018government\u2019; they create a desolation and call it peace.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He said that the saying reminded him of the current situation in AJK. \u201cWhat is happening here, from Mirpur to Poonch, can we call it democracy?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bilawal went on to claim that the PPP was leading the race in Mirpur in the elections despite the count being presented and expressed gratitude to the people of Mirpur.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to preliminary results issued by the AJK Election Commission (Forms-26 and Forms-27), the PML-N has emerged as the winner in nine constituencies, while the PPP could secure only four seats. It should also be mentioned that scuffles, violence and allegations of rigging have marred the polling process in AJK, with the PML-N and PPP accusing each other of electoral malpractice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt is our responsibility to honour their votes; We will neither back down nor bow before anyone. We will reclaim every single one of our votes,\u201d he said, as he levelled rigging allegations at the opposing side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe have a 100 per cent vote in Mirpur, and we are willing to take it back,\u201d Bilawal warned. He questioned how PPP candidate Chaudhry Yasin could have lost his native constituency, terming the outcome \u201cunacceptable\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf they think we will let them steal our mandate in Mirpur and Kotli, then they are gravely mistaken,\u201d he remarked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bilawal accused the PML-N workers of seizing polling stations and \u201cthrowing out polling agents\u201d and complained that despite the alleged violence, relevant authorities chose not to intervene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He also questioned the objective behind holding the election in three phases, stating, \u201cYou did not conduct the election in phases to maintain transparency but to ensure rigging and steal PPP\u2019s mandate\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou seized 30 polling stations in Chaudhry Yasin\u2019s constituency, 10 in Chaudhry Ikhlaq\u2019s, martyred Mukhtar Younis, fired bullets and attempted to spread fear among the AJK public,\u201d Bilawal said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEvery child in Kashmir knows that PPP has the mandate and we will not give up on the stolen votes,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At this, Bilawal called on the state to make a decision: \u201cWhat will be the state\u2019s priority? National interest or PML-N\u2019s interests?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He continued: \u201cIt seems to me that every decision made by the state prioritises the PML-N and not the national interest, which is harming Kashmir, and we can no longer remain silent.\u201d He demanded that the government should \u201copen its eyes\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is Azad Kashmir; we will never let it become maqbooza Kashmir. Do they want that Poonch should look like maqbooza Kashmir, that the conditions in Mirpur be such that 30 polling stations are seized, bullets are fired, workers are martyred, and the internet is shut down. If that is the case, then this will not look azad but maqbooza,\u201d Bilawal said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He called on party workers to work hard to ensure PPP\u2019s win, expressing worry, \u201cI would be very concerned for the future of AJK in case someone else comes into power\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He held that while the PPP was a peaceful party, it would not tolerate workers \u201cbeing killed and polling stations forcibly seized\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe want to stay peaceful, but remember that I am the son of President Zardari, I am also Mir Shahnawaz Bhutto and Mir Murtaza Bhutto\u2019s nephew, and I want to follow Shaheed Benazir Bhutto\u2019s politics but do not tempt me,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
MUZAFFARABAD(National Times)- PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Tuesday demanded that the government and the \u201cprotesters\u201d agree to the formation of a truth and reconciliation commission to resolve ongoing tensions in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK). The PPP has repeatedly called for the establishment of a truth and reconciliation commission amid protests in AJK. Over the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":130249,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-130248","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest_news","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n