The two-day International Parliamentary Seminar on Kashmir organized by Young Parliamentarians’ Forum of Pakistan’s National Assembly here in a declaration urged the UN to fulfill its responsibility of holding plebiscite in Jammu and Kashmir to enable the Kashmiri people decide their political future by themselves.The declaration demanded of India to immediately stop human rights violations in occupied Kashmir and allow the UN to conduct independent investigations into the human rights abuses to punish the perpetrators of such crimes, which were against International Humanitarian Law and International Human Rights Law.It also called upon India to withdraw its troops from occupied Kashmir to enable resumption of normal life and create conducive environment for holding of plebiscite under the auspices of the UN as enshrined in the resolutions of the World Body on Kashmir.The declaration appealed to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Secretary General to compile a report on human rights violations in occupied Kashmir and conduct constant monitoring of the human rights situation in the territory. It urged the UN and other relevant forums to investigate all massacres, gang-rapes, fake encounters, forced disappearances, willful blinding of people through use of pellet guns, etc. committed by Indian forces and Hindu terrorist organizations and bring the perpetrators to book.Earlier, the speakers in their addresses strongly condemned the use of pellet guns by Indian forces to willfully blind the people, mostly youth, in thousands. They said that the UN had a responsibility towards stopping Kashmiris’ systematic genocide by the Indian forces. The speakers reminded India of the repeated pledges made by its leaders at the UN and the Indian Parliament to allow the Kashmiris to decide their future through a plebiscite.The speakers also expressed concern over the escalating tensions between Pakistan and India on the Line of Control and killing of Kashmiri civilians. They requested the international media to fulfill its obligations by highlighting the continued suffering of the people of occupied Kashmir and urged all international organizations to play a meaningful and effective role in the settlement of the Kashmir dispute. They reiterated the resolve to keep on highlighting the plight of the Kashmiri people at all possible forums.Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq deserves appreciation for arranging such fruitful activity. Pakistan and India are nuclear states and cannot afford any more war. The peaceful resolution all outstanding issues particularly Kashmir dispute is the only viable option for peace and stability of the region. Instead of fulfilling the pledges it made before the world community to allow right of self-determination to Kashmiris through a UN-supervised plebiscite, India is perpetrating atrocities on people struggling for their just right and is trying to hoodwink international public opinion by equating the freedom struggle of Kashmiris with terrorism. There is dire need to sensitize the world public opinion about gross human rights violations in Occupied Kashmir and the need for peaceful resolution of the conflict in accordance with the will of the Kashmiris. The government should continue its efforts to highlight Kashmir issue at every forum until Kashmir liberation movement reaches to its logical conclusion.
