ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said that Pakistan will not relent in its support until the Kashmiris realize their legitimate right to self-determination in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions.
In his message on the Kashmir Black Day, the foreign minister said that we express complete solidarity with the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IIOJK) and assure our Kashmiri brothers and sisters that the government and people of Pakistan remain shoulder-to-shoulder with them.
The minister said that on this day 73 years ago, Indian occupation forces entered Jammu & Kashmir in an attempt to subjugate the Kashmiri people.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that to this day, the brave people of IIOJK have remained steadfast in their resolve to defy India and stand firm in their quest for the right to self-determination.
The foreign minister said that on August 5 last year, India took further illegal and unilateral steps to change the internationally recognized disputed status of IIOJK and alter the demographic structure of the occupied territory. He added that Pakistan and the Kashmiris have categorically rejected this blatant travesty of law and justice.
Qureshi said that for over one year, the scale and impunity of the Indian government’s human rights violations have increased manifold. He said that through the deployment of additional troops and an unprecedented media and communication blackout, occupied Jammu & Kashmir has been turned into the largest open prison in the world.
The minister said that the world community is calling India out on its tyranny and its façade as one of the world’s so-called largest ‘democracies’ has been undeniably exposed.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that Pakistan calls for the urgent lifting of the military siege and media blackout, immediate stop to the violations of human rights of Kashmiri people, release of Kashmiri leaders, and youth, and an end to impunity granted to Indian occupation forces under draconian laws.
“We urge the International Community to play its role in putting pressure on India to reverse its illegal course in IIOJK and restore the Kashmiris’ fundamental human rights,” the minister concluded.
