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| Farooq's suggestions a bid to woo voters | | | In a bid to woo voters during the next As
sembly election Farooq Abdullah has suggested an Ireland type of solution for resolving the Kashmir issue. Possibly sitting in London he does not realize that despite settlement framed years ago the problem still exists. Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah has proposed an Ireland-style solution of an open border between the UK-governed Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic's adjacent territory as the best option to resolve the Kashmir issue.The National Conference president, who is on a visit to London has , said India and Pakistan must realise that there is no military solution to the problem. Like Ireland, the only roadmap forward is two Kashmirs with an easy border and autonomy," he said, As former Chief Minister he should know that open border was mooted by late Mufti Sayeed who saw to it that two border routes, salamabad and Poonch-Rawalakot, were thrown open for people to people contact and for cross-LoC trade.As far as people to contact was concerned the border did not experience crossing of flood of people.And as far as cross LoC trade is concerned it has not witnessed any major success.
Kashmir can be solved if both these nations, now nuclear powers, realise that whatever solution has to emerge, everybody will not accept it. But at least 70-80 per cent of people of India, Pakistan, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh should accept it," he said. The Ireland-style solution refers to the Common Travel Area shared between the UK and neighbouring Ireland, dating back to the 1920s. Under the arrangement, citizens of either country require minimal identity documents to travel through each other's territories. "Let's stop fooling each other… neither side is going to give up any ground. The only way forward is talks," he said Senior British officials privately conceded last year that the UK's preferred solution for avoiding a hard border with the Republic after Brexit would threaten the EU's single market and that all possible outcomes would be damaging for the province. What guarantee does Abdullah has if Pakistan does not export weapons, ammunition and explosives if the border is opened? Already when the border is open Kashmir may witness a flood of militants from across the LoC.
A series of leaked letters and briefing papers from the Northern Ireland executive - at least one of which was sent to Olly Robbins, the prime minister's most senior Brexit adviser - lay bare the huge difficulties created by Brexit. The political "difficulty" of accepting the EU's backstop solution of keeping Northern Ireland in the customs union and a large bulk of single market legislation was discussed. The documents even raise proposals to follow the Lichtenstein model - a set of agreements that allows that country to be in both the EU and Swiss economic area - only to conclude they are not an ideal fit for Northern Ireland. Most troublingly, however, an internal working paper drawn up by Northern Ireland's economic department, marked "official sensitive", concludes that whatever the option chosen, the economy will suffer. The executive wrote: "There is no quick or simple solution to the land border. "There is likely to be some negative impact on the economy whether border controls are sited at the land or sea border, at least in the short-to-medium term. This way even with open borders the problem of the UK and Ireland is not resolved. Hence expecting open border between POK and Jammu and Kashmir resolves the Kashmir issue is a mistake. And while referring to 1994 Parliament resolution Farooq says that Pakistan does not wear bangles and hence New Delhi cannot incorporate POK with India. It is again a bid to woo voters. |
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