India and Pakistan (Hansard, 23 June 1999)

§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean)
My Lords, as a longstanding friend of both countries, we are deeply 922 concerned by the fighting in the Kargil area of Jammu and Kashmir following armed infiltration across the Line of Control. We have urged both Pakistan and India to respect the Line of Control and to work to end the fighting. Our role, and that of others who wish them well, is to encourage both countries to resolve, through dialogue, the issues between them.

§ Lord Ahmed
My Lords, I thank my noble friend for that reply. Is she aware that in the past five to six weeks scores of Kashmiri civilians have been killed and injured, and over 30,000 people in the Kargil area and 50,000 in Azad Kashmir have been made refugees due to Indian air strikes, shelling and artillery fire? Does she agree that bilateral talks between India and Pakistan in accordance with the Simla Agreement or the Lahore Declaration have failed, and that to resolve the issue of Kashmir we need a UN-sponsored peace plan which would bring peace and prosperity in the region? Finally, would her Majesty's Government encourage the UN Secretary-General to send a special envoy to broker peace between India and Pakistan and to find a permanent solution to the issue of Kashmir which is acceptable to all the people of Kashmir—Hindu, Moslem, Buddhist and Christian?

§ Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean
My Lords, I am aware that both sides are conducting artillery fire across the Line of Control. I am also aware that a number of allegations have been made by the Kashmiri side and the Pakistanis about Indian activity, which has been denied by the Indian Government; and that, similarly, allegations have been made which Pakistan has denied. The picture is indeed very confusing.
The noble Lord makes a specific suggestion about UN intervention. He makes his case very eloquently. Indeed, some may find it highly persuasive. However, I am sure that my noble friend will realise that if there is to be the involvement of any third party that is to contribute positively to the resolution of this matter it must be acceptable to both sides. That is not the case as regards my noble friend's suggestion. An approach that is acceptable to only one side is not a way forward. Her Majesty's Government believe that the sensible course of action is to pursue the discussions that were begun as part of the Lahore process and which continued last month with the Indian and Pakistani Foreign Ministers meeting in New Delhi on 12th June. We hope that those talks will be resumed.

§ Baroness Knight of Collingtree
My Lords, is it worth pursuing the possibility of setting up a plebiscite or referendum so that the people of Kashmir themselves, whether they are in that area or in refugee camps in Pakistan or elsewhere, would have an opportunity to express their view about how they wish their country to be governed in the future? This dispute has been going on since 1947. Is it not high time that it was settled?

§ Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean
Yes, my Lords, the noble Baroness is right. This has been a long-running dispute; it has continued for over 50 years. Her Majesty's Government believe that any solution, if 923 it is to be permanent and acceptable, must reflect the views of the population of Kashmir. However, I would point out to the noble Baroness that Kashmir is not a country as such. The suggestion that the noble Baroness makes has been made previously. I am afraid that it does not find support on both sides of this very troubled argument. At present, our best course of action, as a true friend of both countries, is to urge them to settle their differences between them. A great deal can be done through quiet diplomacy rather than through public statements, which only serve to inflame the situation.

§ Viscount Waverley
My Lords, does the United Nations believe that this is a bilateral situation and should be resolved under Simla?

§ Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean
My Lords, the United Nations and everyone else who wishes India and Pakistan well, including the EU and the G8 Foreign Ministers, have urged India and Pakistan to do everything in their power to resume the discussions that took place on 12th June. We were hopeful about those discussions. We hope that the invitation that has been issued to resume them in Islamabad will be taken up.