It took time coming , here is the by now trade mark U Turn. The General is well on his way to becoming a politician...

Kashmir issue 'tough nut' to crack: Mush | Pakistan | News | Newspaper | Daily | English | Online


IN a volte-face, former military ruler Pervez Musharraf has said that all Kashmiri groups in Pakistan came into existence on their own, days after admitting that Islamabad had trained these underground groups to fight in Kashmir.

“All these ‘Mujahideen’ groups got created on their own. I’ve never said that and there was a little misunderstanding in what I was saying, that got politicised in Pakistan and then people writing in India. But that’s not the case,” Musharraf told an Indian TV channel.

His remarks came in response to a question on his interview to German magazine Der Spiegel during which he said that Pakistan had created the underground groups to fight against India in Kashmir. “I’m not that naive to pass such a comment. There is no question of the army, intelligence or the ISI creating ‘Mujahideen’ groups, training them and sending them in. That’s not the case and it does not require to be done. There is a huge public sympathy in Pakistan and there are thousands of people who are volunteers to go to Kashmir and to fight for their Kashmiri brothers. I would say the Indian government should realise that they must stop atrocities in Kashmir,” he told the TV channel.

The former President, who has been living in London in self-imposed exile for nearly two years, said all the ‘Mujahideen’ groups get strengthened because “people want to go to Kashmir themselves.”
“It does not require the army or the intelligence to do anything. Therefore what I said was that happening in the past and I did not at all said about the army and ISI. Hizbul Mujahideen group was created in your part of (Occupied) Kashmir and then they ran away from there,” he said.

To a question on the Kashmir issue, Musharraf said it was a “tough nut” to crack because it needs courage on both sides.

“I’ve been saying it needs sincerity on both sides by leaders and government on both sides. It needs flexibility by both sides, because never neither of sides can think of giving everything or taking everything. It has to be give and take,” he said, adding “boldness” is required to settle the issue.

“They will have obviously to give something to the other side. Both the sides should give something to the other to meet in the middle somewhere,” Musharraf said

In a separate interview to Indian publication ‘The Week’, Musharraf dubbed his political detractors as “cowards”, saying that the greatest threat his country is facing today is “failure” of governance than India or Taliban.“I would say, failure of governance is the greatest threat today,” he said.

He said the immediate necessity on the ground in Pakistan is a “functional governance structure free of corruption”.
He said the current PPP-led government has failed to effectively govern the country.

“The PPP government has failed to do so. Nawaz Sharif came to power twice but could not do anything productive because he is actually brainless,” he said.

Asked if he planned to return to Pakistan, he said he would as soon as election is announced.

Musharraf also said he was not perturbed by reports that he will be facing trouble if he returned to Pakistan.

“Let them do whatever they want to. As far as I am concerned, there are no hindrances for my return when I want to. All those opposing me are cowards and are scared of my return,” he said.