Brighter Kashmir - Brighter Kashmir -jkupdate

Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai said that Buch Sahib was a real freedom fighter, true legend, an iconic personality, an intellectual par excellence, a thinker and a scholar. He was a captivating personality, a person with farsightedness, judgment and judiciousness. An eminent diplomat and truly a living encyclopedia on Kashmir who rendered his services for upholding the human and political rights of the people of Kashmir. He was certainly one of the most recognizable experts on the subject of Kashmir.
The nation of Kashmir honors his illustrious life of courage and salutes his commitment and dedication. We all pay tribute to his inspirational spirit and pay homage to his life in exile for he dedicated his energies for the freedom of his homeland, Kashmir. His message to the people of Kashmir in general and to the youth in particular, Fai recalled, was to hold on to the cause, despite the oppression of the occupying forces. The repression cannot be the reason for apathy towards Kashmir cause. Participation in the freedom struggle should become the second nature of the Kashmiri youth.
Dr. Fai was always impressed to see a self-less, highly educated diplomat of Kashmiri origin in the Cabinet of the United Nations Secretary General who was informed, statesmanlike, poised, and engaging. He remembered Buch Sahib saying: “Yes, we have made errors, we have miscalculated, we have not organized our campaign with the care it should have been. We can correct our mistakes. But we cannot forsake our goals. Those have been sanctified by the blood of our martyrs and the tears of the bereaved among us have put them beyond compromise.”
Fai emphasized that Buch Sahib never compromised on the basic principles of the Kashmir dispute. When he was laid to rest at the compound of the mausoleums of Mirwaiz Yusuf Shah and K.H. Khurshid, former presidents of Azad Kashmir, in the Capitol City of Muzaffarabad, his headstone reads: “Ambassador Muhammad Yusuf Buch resisted the Indian occupation of Kashmir till his very last breath and never compromised.”
“The people of Kashmir will never forget the selfless contribution and the tireless efforts of Ambassador Yusuf Buch. His efforts will remain forever a milestone in the history of the freedom struggle of Kashmir. With the passing of such a noble soul, who was a symbol of humanity and a champion of human rights, it is the end of an era. We will miss him a lot!” Fai said.
Ambassador Nabeel Munir, deputy permanent representative of Pakistan to the United Nations said: Ambassador Buch was not only a true son of Kashmir, but also a true son of Pakistan. He called him a "great advocate" for Kashmiri people's self-determination, and added that Buch was an inspiration to the younger generation. Ambassador Munir added that the right of self-determination that was guaranteed to the people of Kashmir by the United Nations need the advocates like Yusuf Buch to highlight it in the corridors of power. Buch Sahib was truly one of the best-known expert in that regard.
Pakistan's Ambassador to the UN, Dr. Maleeha Lodhi, expressed her deep sadness over Buch's death, saying that he participated in the resistance and his writings and pronouncements on Kashmir provided intellectual stimulus to the freedom movement. "Few could match his knowledge of Kashmir. its history, culture and evolution of the freedom movement. "I had often encouraged him to write his memoirs but he felt his age did not give him the strength to do so," she added.
Sardar Sawar Khan Sahib said that Buch Sahib was a giant of scholars who was always interested in finding the ways to alleviate the suffering of the people of Kashmir and release them from the occupation of India. Sawar Sahib told the mourners that he had already met with Raja Farooq Haider Sahib and Sardar Masood Khan Sahib, the Prime Minister and President of Azad Kashmir respectively to secure the grave space for Buch Sahib adjacent to the grave of Mirwaiz Yusuf Shah or K. H. Khursheed. Sardar Sawar spent days between Muzaffarabad and Islamabad and ultimately the permission was granted by the Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider not only to make the grave space available but also to provide the full state honor during the transfer of body from Islamabad International airport to Muzaffarabad.
Once the funeral ceremony was concluded, then came the issue of Pakistani visas. It was resolved when Sardar Sawar Khan Sahib called Naeem Iqbal Cheema Sahib, Consul General of Pakistan. Although, it was long weekend but Cheema Sahib was kind enough to come to the Consulate to expedite our visas to visit Pakistan. So, we were ready to embark along with Buch Sahib a journey from Manhattan to Muzaffarabad.
The body was flown to Islamabad on May 27 via Emirates Airlines and those who accompanied the body included: Akhtar Husain, Dr. Manejeh Yaqub, Sardar Sawar Khan and Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai. The body was received at Islamabad International airport by the senior officials of the Azad Kashmir government, including Idrees Abbasi Sahib, Secretary Presidential Affairs, Mansoor Qadir Dar, Secretary Kashmir Liberation Cell and Choudahry Imtiaz Ahmed, Divisional commissioner, Azad Kashmir.
Akhtar Husain, his nephew narrates this journey from Manhattan to Muzaffarabad in these words:
“It was a short but very memorable trip. We arrived in Islamabad in the early morning time of May 29th, around 1.15 am. There were arrangements made to escort us through customs, etc. and it was clear that everything had been arranged well in advance. There were a number of important high ranking people in Pakistan government, both at the Federal level and the State level who have helped out, and I could not remember all the names, but suffice it to say that had it not been for Sardar Sawar Khan Sahib and Ghulam Nabi Fai Sahib to inform and arrange everything from before, things would have been far more difficult. The stay at Islamabad was at the Kashmir House, where each of us had a room.
On the same day, Jun 29, we left by car for Muzaffarabad, which took about four hours. Islamabad has rolling hills, and once the drive starts, the road goes through much higher regions, passing Murree and other resorts along the way, probably reaching altitudes of 10,000 to 12,000 feet. We reached Muzaffarabad around 4 pm, and rested for a while at the Azad Kashmir State Guest House. Around 4:30 pm, we went to the President's House, where we were first introduced to Raja Farooq Haider Sahib and Syed Fakhar Imam Sahib, and later to Mushahid Hussain Sahib, all high-ranking officials in the Pakistan and Azad Kashmir governments. They all knew Yusuf Mamoo and talked a little of him, and of course asked us some questions, which we answered respectfully.
Akhtar added: “Around 6:30 pm, we were taken in a convoy to the College Grounds where the body had been brought directly from Islamabad airport. The casket was draped in Pakistan and Azad Kashmir flags. There was a crowd of hundreds of people in the grounds. I spoke first, followed by several others, including Fai sahib. Then the Janaza prayer was held, followed by a salute by the Honor Guard. It was with a heavy heart that I said my last goodbye to Mamoo in this world, but at the same time I was very much at peace that Mamoo's body had been brought all the way here, so close to Srinagar (it is about four hours away by road), and there were no difficult situations encountered anywhere. The burial ground is right next to the College, and we took the casket there. It was buried in the compound of Mirwaiz Maulvi Yusuf Shah Sahib, which is right next to the burial site of K.H. Khurshid sahib, both of whom Mamoo knew very well.”(To Be Continued)


Email:---- gnfai2003@yahoo.com



(This story has not been edited by jkupdate staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)


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