ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has reiterated Pakistan’s complete solidarity with the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IIOJK) and assured the Kashmiris that the government and the people of Pakistan stood united with them.
“Pakistan will not relent in its support until the Kashmiris realize their legitimate right to self-determination in accordance with the United Nations Security Council resolutions,” the foreign minister said in a message for August 5 to mark Youm-e-Istehsal.
Foreign Minister Qureshi said Pakistan called upon the international community to hold India accountable for its crimes against the Kashmiris and demanded that India reversed its illegal and unilateral actions of August 5, 2019, revoke draconian laws, cease all human rights violations, and stop its state-terrorism against the people of occupied Kashmir.
“On this day today, marking twenty-four months since India’s illegal and unilateral actions of 5 August 2019, we honour sacrifices of Kashmiris and salute their indomitable spirit in their just struggle for inalienable right to self-determination,” he said.
The foreign minister said India tried to obliterate the distinct identity of the Kashmiri people in violation of the United Nations Security Council resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir and of international law,
“India hoped that by attempting to alter demographic structure of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IIOJK), it could dampen the spirit of the Kashmiri people or at the very least, make them compromise on their legitimate right to self-determination. On both counts, India has abjectly failed. These steps were forcefully rejected by Pakistan, the Kashmiris, and the international community,” he further added.
Qureshi said the unabated Indian repression, including extra-judicial killings, unprecedented restrictions on freedom of speech, fake encounters, cordon-and-search operations, custodial torture and deaths, enforced disappearances, incarceration of the Kashmiri leadership and youth, use of pellet guns, destruction and burning of houses, and other methods of subjugation had miserably failed to shake the resolve of the Kashmiri people.
He said the solution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute was firmly anchored in the relevant UN Security Council resolutions in accordance with the UN Charter and the wishes of the people of Kashmir. The foreign minister said regrettably, India had not fulfilled its commitments to the UN Security Council, Pakistan, international community and the Kashmiri people.
“The international community, human rights organisations, international media, and the civil society have called India out on its tyranny in the region. World leaders and parliamentarians have expressed concern and shown their support for the Kashmiris,” he added.
Qureshi further said more than 1.5 billion people of the region deserved to see the dawn of peace and prosperity which had been held hostage to the gross and systematic violations of human rights in IIOJK.
