ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: An 18-member delegation of ASEAN Parliamentarians led by the President of Malaysian Consultative Council of Islamic Organization (MAPIM) Haji Mohd Azmi Hamid met President Dr Arif Alvi at Aiwan-e-Sadr in Islamabad on Thursday.
The ASEAN Parliamentary delegation comprised of the Parliamentarians and Civil Society Members from Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia and Thailand.
Talking to the delegation, the president said that India is blatantly violating the human rights of the people of Indian Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IOJ&K) through its illegal clampdown since August 5, which has led to a humanitarian crisis, marked by shortage of food and lifesaving medicines and communication blackout.
The president said that Pakistan has consistently raised the issue of increased human rights violations by India in IOJ&K at all international fora. He emphasized that the international community has the responsibility to take urgent steps to address this unacceptable situation in IOJ&K.
Furthermore, he earnestly condemned the political maps of India issued by the Indian Home Ministry on November 2, displaying Jammu and Kashmir region and seeking to depict parts of Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir within the territorial jurisdiction of India.
Dr Arif Alvi stressed that these maps were incorrect, legally untenable, void and in complete violation of the UN Security Council Resolutions. He emphatically said that Pakistan rejected these political maps, which were incompatible with the United Nations’ maps.
The president MAPIM termed the Indian actions of August 5 and November 2 highly condemnable and assured that ASEAN Countries were fully supportive of highlighting Indian human rights violations before the world.
Haji Mohd Azmi Hamid further said that various plans of action had been devised, under which media from ASEAN Countries would visit to assess the human rights situation in IOJ&K. Additionally, the platform of mosque across ASEAN countries would be utilized to highlight and disseminate information about the Indian brutalities in IOJ&K, he added.
The ASEAN parliamentarians and MAPIM officials condemned the Indian oppression against Kashmiris and violation of their human rights and identity.
The parliamentarians announced establishment of ASEAN Kashmir Advocacy Group for highlighting the issue on international level.
The ASEAN Parliamentary delegation arrived on a four-day visit to Pakistan on November 5, 2019.
The visit has been arranged by the Malaysian Consultative Council of Islamic Organization (MAPIM) for evaluation of situation in the region after Indian government’s recent unilateral and illegal decision to change the status of IOJ&K.
The delegation would also hold meetings with the leadership and people of Kashmir.
