Staff Reporter Islamabad
Former Senator Farhatullah Babar on Wednesday called for renaming the Kashmir Committee of Parliament as the Kashmir & Palestine Committee to highlight the grave issue of Palestine.
The Committee should also be headed by a senior respectable Parliamentarian known for his knowledge of the issues involved as well as deep commitment to human rights.
He was addressing a seminar in the National Press Club Islamabad organized by Majlis Wahdatul Muslimeen (MWM) today to mark Al Quds Day.
Both K ashmir and Palestinian issues are basically human rights issues and should be treated as such.
He said that the Palestine was a case of monumental tragedy and unspeakable betrayal of a people.
Half of Palestinian population was forced to live outside their land as refugees and the other half were living in most deplorable conditions because of Israeli atrocities, he said.
The Palestinian people also felt hugely betrayed when recently UAE, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco also recognized Israel without seeking guarantees for their alienable right to their own sovereign and independent homeland.
Pakistan should not do anything in the Middle East that would exacerbate the crisis there as it would further undermine the Palestine case. Joining the Islamic coalition against Yemen was divisive and should have been avoided.
While demanding human rights for the people of Palestine Pakistan should also improve its own human rights record he said.
Israel does not permit Palestinians to move freely even within their own territory he said and asked how can we question it when we have also barricaded ex tribal districts despite merger, are fencing borders with Iran and Afghanistan and now even fencing inside Gwadar city.
Pakistan should seek to improve ties with Afghanistan and Iran instead of fencing the borders and increasing the distances between the peoples.
The seminar was also addressed by human rights Minister Shireen Mazari, Chairman Council of Islamic Ideology Qibla Ayaz and Liaqat Baloch.
