[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 151 (Friday, December 8, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2163-E2164]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              A FREE KASHMIR IS IN THE U.S. VITAL INTEREST

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. MAJOR R. OWENS

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, December 8, 2000

  Mr. OWENS. Mr. Speaker, I have just returned from a 1-week visit to 
Pakistan and

[[Page E2164]]

Kashmir. This brief tour of a nation of more than 140 million people 
who were our loyal allies during the critical years of the cold war 
with the Soviet Union was pleasant and tremendously informative. The 
purpose of my trip was twofold. First, I represent the largest 
community of Pakistani and Kashmir-American citizens in our nation. 
Their concerns for their homeland are also my concerns. Secondly, since 
I was a high school student, and for all of my adult life, I have been 
captivated by the problem of Kashmir self-determination which 
mysteriously does not arouse the pity and anger throughout the world 
that it deserves. To raise the national and world level of visibility 
on this issue I have founded the House Pakistan-Kashmir Caucus.
  During our stay in Pakistan and Kashmir as the guest of the Council 
of Pakistan Americans and the government of Azad Kashmir we covered a 
full and productive itinerary:
  We were received by several high level officials of the national 
government including the Head of State, General Parvez Mucharref; whose 
present title is Chief Executive Officer. We also met with the Foreign 
Minister, the Minister of Education, the Prime Minister of Azad 
Kashmir, the Administrator of the City of LaHore, the Governor of the 
province of Punjab.
  We conferred with the American Embassy and Consulate officials in 
both Islamabad and LaHore including Ambassador Milman, Principal 
Officer Sheldon Rappaport, and Counsel General David Donahue along with 
the very helpful members of their staffs.
  As a result of the recent passage of the Brownback amendment which 
exempts education aid from the set of sanctions presently being imposed 
on Pakistan, we met with an unusual number of education officials and 
visited six schools and four higher education institutions. Because of 
my long-term assignment on the Education Committee I applauded the 
Brownback amendment and conveyed my intent to closely work with those 
who are charged with administering it.
  On a one day trip to Azad Kashmir we visited three schools and a 
refugee camp. We met children with high spirits and keen intelligence. 
We also met refugees who were obviously crushed in both spirit and 
body.
  In Islamabad, and LaHore as well as in Azad Kashmir we participated 
in several press conferences and meetings which discussed the Kashmir 
problem at great length. The Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir, Sultan 
Mahmood Chaudary showed particular concern about the present stalemate 
and the decline in American interest as a third party. We assured him 
that, despite the exceptional power and influence of the Indian lobby, 
we would return to achieve a greater balance of thinking and action 
with respect to Pakistan and Kashmir. We also pledged to work with the 
Pakistani and Kashmiri community in America to ``jump-start'' a 
``People's Movement to Free Kashmir''.
  Self determination, democracy and human rights are assigned the 
highest priority in the value scheme of the international community in 
this year 2000. The people of Kashmir have been denied all three of 
these vital social and political components while the nations of the 
world have watched their plight for 53 years. The United Nations has 
reneged on a vital promise to Kashmir for more than five decades. The 
great powers who sit on the Security Council have ignored the pains of 
the Kashmir people.
  For humanitarian reasons Kashmir must be set free. Of equal 
importance is the fact that this long festering problem fuels an 
explosive dispute between Pakistan and India. Because both of these 
powers now have nuclear weapons, Kashmir has become one of the globe's 
most dangerous regions. Justice for the people of Kashmir is now 
inextricably interwoven with freedom from the massive world nuclear 
contamination which would result from any nuclear conflict in South 
Asia.
  The continuing refusal of the United States and its allies to assign 
the highest priority to the Kashmir problem is a dangerous strategic 
blunder. The failure to pursue a vigorous and thorough non-violent 
diplomatic solution in Kashmir will result in tragic future 
consequences.

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