HINDUS URGE EU NOT TO 'WATER DOWN' KASHMIR REPORT
(19 January 2007)

National Hindu organisations in Britain have called on Indians throughout the UK and Europe to write to EU parliamentarians urging them not to bow down to pressure from Pakistan to amend a draft report on Kashmir compiled by UK MEP Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne. Representatives from the Hindu Forum of Britain, the National Council of Hindu Temples and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad claim that the report makes an objective assessment of the poverty and lack of democracy in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and the fate of over 1 million Kashmiri Hindus driven out of their homes by Pakistan-backed militants.

The draft report on" Kashmir: present situation and future prospects" drafted by Emma Nicholson is being discussed in the EU Parliament on 24 January 2007, and was drafted following meetings by the MEP with both sides of the political divide in Jammu and Kashmir. It makes critical observations about Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The UK Hindu organisations are urging the European Parliament to adopt the report in it entirety and without making any of the 400 or so amendments sought by the Pakistani government.

Ramesh Kallidai, Secretary General of the Hindu Forum of Britain, said: "Ever since the report was released in November-end last year, Pakistan has activated its entire network across the globe, particularly in the European countries to ensure that the report is discarded. It would be very unfortunate if a report that presents an objective and unbiased view of the ground reality in Kashmir for the first time is altered due to political pressure from Pakistan. It is too important to be ignored and we urge Indians from all over the world to write to Baroness Nicholson and the European Parliament to ensure that the report's recommendations are adopted."

The report raises questions about the democratic credentials of Pakistani government, and its commitment to the people and institutions in Pakistan occupied Kashmir. It says that the earthquake which killed over 75,000 people, has made "everyday life virtually impossible for millions of people who were already among some of the most disadvantaged in the region.

The draft report credits India for its prompt response to the natural disaster and applauded it handled the emergency and how through an intelligent self-help policy instituted by the government has helped to re-house the 30,000 who lost their homes. However, it was critical of the already minimal basic rights enjoyed by Pakistani Kashmiris before the earthquake which has been compounded by a lack of democracy and oppressive and unjust laws, especially those applicable to women.

Dr Girdhari Bhan, President of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad UK added: "The plight of over a million Kashmiri Hindus displaced and made refugees from their homelands by the brute force of Islamic-militants backed by Pakistan has not been taken note of by the international communities. This report highlights their sorry plight for the first time. Political pressure should not make the European Union turn their face away from the truth. We stand firmly against religious-cultural persecution of Hindus anywhere in the world."

Those wanting write to Baroness Nicholson to support her report should email her at emma.nicholson@europarl.europa.eu

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