New York, (PR): While terming Kashmir as the oldest unresolved issue still pending on the UN agenda, the President Azad Jammu and Kashmir Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry has said that the key to peace in South Asia lies in the solution of the Kashmir problem.
The AJK president said this while addressing a protest demonstration held outside the UN headquarter here on Saturday.
Speaking on the occasion, the president while referring to UNHRC’s 2018 and 2019 report on human rights situation in Kashmir said that these reports were sufficient enough to stir the conscience of those who chose to stay silent despite knowing the New Delhi dodgy and destructive role in the region.
He said that it was high time that the international community should come forward in a big way help-stop the ongoing Indian atrocities in Occupied Kashmir and play its proactive role to resolve the dispute once and for all.“
We have gathered here today in this demonstration to show solidarity with the people of Occupied Kashmir and we assure them our Kashmiri brethren that they are not alone in their struggle”, he said adding that Kashmiris living all over the world will continue to raise their voice for their right to self-determination.
The president voiced his grave concern over the massive troops’ concentration in the region. He said that the political and human rights situation in Kashmir had deteriorated to an alarming level after the Indian government took the unilateral decision to revoke the article 370 and 35-A of the Indian constitution that had guaranteed special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
Denouncing the Indian government’s abominable act of changing the demographic character of the region, the president said that under the guise of this unconstitutional move Modi government had issued fake domiciles to two million non-state subjects with a malicious intent to alter the region’s demography. He said that the people of Occupied Kashmir were fighting against the 900,000 Indian army. Despite its ruthless policy of oppression and suppression, he said that India could not break the political will of the Kashmiris. “The sacrifices of the martyrs in Occupied Kashmir will pay off soon and God willing, Kashmir will be free from Indian rule soon”, he said.
Barrister Sultan appealed to the UN and OIC to take serious note of these reprehensible activities and take measures so that these actions are halted. Barrister Sultan warned that if the Kashmir problem was left unattended it can have dangerous consequences.
He also assured the protesters that he would continue his efforts to bring world attention to this issue and will travel to every nook and corner of the world to accomplish his goal. He appealed to diaspora community to redouble their efforts and become a voice of their voiceless brethren in the occupied Kashmir to help them realize their cherished goal of freedom the Indian occupation.
Prominent Kashmiri intellectual and Chairman, World Forum for Peace & Justice Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai while addressing the gathering asked the United Nations that the application of international law should not be selective in resolving the international conflicts. He warned the world powers that the status quo in Kashmir, if left unchanged, will only result in a growing spiral of death and even greater regional instability. “The UN must take an active role in finding a peaceful and permanent solution to the crisis”, Dr. Fai said.On this occasion, a detailed memorandum was also presented to the Secretary General of the United Nations on the Kashmir issue and the violation of human rights in Occupied Kashmir.
The memorandum sought a just and equitable solution of the dispute in accordance with the UNSC resolutions. The communique said that regular discussions on the situation in Kashmir issue must be held in the United Nations Security Council. “The United Nations should appoint its special representative on Jammu and Kashmir and play its role to stop the ongoing bloodshed and violence in Occupied Kashmir and repeal black laws prevalent in the region”, the memorandum further said adding that United Nations Human Rights Commissioner should be instructed to form a commission of inquiry on human rights atrocities in Occupied Kashmir and submit the report to the Secretary General of the United Nations.
It worth to mention here that the protest demonstration was attended by a large number of Kashmiri and Pakistani American citizens and friends of Kashmir who gathered in front of the United Nations office in New York on the occasion of Indian Foreign Minister’s speech to the UN general assembly to register their protest against the India’s illegal occupation of Kashmir, human rights violation in the Indian occupied Kashmir and to remind the United Nations of its moral and legal obligations vis-à-vis the settlement of Kashmir dispute.
On this occasion, the protestors raising banners and placards that read “Modi: face of Indian terrorism, Kashmiri lives matter too, end occupation free Kashmir. While raising slogans in favour of Kashmiris’ right to self-determination the protesters demanded the United Nations to play its role to resolve the lingering dispute in line with the UNSC resolutions.
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