The The Hurriyat conference(APHC) is an umbrella organization of over 20 political, social and religious groups founded in 1993, which is the political face of the Kashmiri separatist movement with good support in the Valley, as attested by the compliance of the Valley in response to APHC's calls for strikes and protests; [Kashmir Times, 25 March 2003 Nadimarg Protest] Present Chairman: Mohammad Abbas Ansari.
The Hurriyat is committed to self-determination for Kashmiris and fighting Indian rule by peaceful means
It is deeply divided in whether the ultimate objective is independence or accession to Pakistan. Suffers from lack of internal cohesion and lack of a solid united front.
The hardliners insist that talks with India must include Pakistan, an option India completely rejects.
It has refused to participate in Jammu & Kashmir's elections, argues elections are not a substitute forplebiscite.
The Hurriyat claims to represent the whole State, however it has refused to indicate the future status of various regions and communities within the proposed state; The Hurriyat does not have good support outside the Kashmir Valley and parts of Azad Kashmir and hence needs to accomodate regional solutions.
Yasin Malik:
1) Chairman of the JKLF and a pro-independence Hurriyat leader;
2) He was a military commander of the JKLF before becoming a politician with the JKLF cease-fire in 1994, which he largely brokered.
3) Says in an interview in Time Asia in 2000 that India has offered talks with Kashmiris subject to condition that Kashmir is a part of India, which he has refused. Consistently spoken for minorities.
4) Recently, he had launched a signature campaign to secure the signature of citizens in support of self-determination, which received very good response from the public and the signature campaign was interrupted by the State when they were arrested.[Kashmir Times, June 22]
Umar Farooq:
1) Seen as one of the more liberal Kashmiri opposition leaders, Farooq is one of the few who has consistently raised questions about Kashmiri minority communities as well as the majority Muslims.