Secretary Gen OIC Madani reaffirms support towards Kashmiris in securing their right to self determination. PHOTO: FILE
UNITED NATIONS: Ahead of Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif’s address to the UN General Assembly on Wednesday, members of the Organisation of the Islamic Cooperation’s Contact Group on Kashmir reaffirmed their solidarity with the Kashmiri people and demanded an end to the repression in Indian-occupied part of the disputed state.
Meeting on the sidelines of the 71th session of UN General Assembly, they stressed the need for a peaceful settlement of the decades-old Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan.
The Contact Group members also reaffirmed their resolve to remain the voice of the Kashmiri people at the international stage.
Secretary General of the OIC, Iyad Ameen Madani, in his statement, expressed deep concern over the grave situation in the Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir and called for an immediate cessation of Indian oppression and atrocities.
He urged the government of India for a peaceful settlement of the dispute, in accordance with wishes of Kashmiri people and the United Nations Security Council resolutions.
“Though Indian occupation forces can physically blind the Kashmiri people by their pellet guns, they cannot block their vision for the realization of their right to self-determination,” the secretary general said.
In his statement, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz stated that the Indian brutalities in Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir had showed its most horrendous face in the wake of the cold-blooded murder of the Kashmiri youth leader, Burhan Muzaffar Wani.
“As a result of the deliberate and inhuman use of pellet guns by Indian Occupation Forces against the peaceful Kashmiri protestors, over 100 innocent civilians have lost their lives, while more than 8000 are injured,” he said.
The adviser stressed that these repressive measures cannot break the spirit of the Kashmiri people and their legitimate struggle for self-determination.
Underscoring that the Kashmir dispute remains central to lasting peace and stability in South Asia, Sartaj regretted that India had failed to reciprocate Pakistan’s proposal of meaningful engagement for the resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute.
The foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Turkey expressed grave concern at the deteriorating situation in the Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir. They also expressed serious concern at the serious human rights violations perpetrated by India against the innocent Kashmiris.
The Foreign Minister of Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu said that the resolution of the Kashmir dispute was important to bring regional peace in South Asia. The Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Elmar Mammadyarov stated that OIC should think of innovative means to highlight the human rights violations happening in the Indian occupied Kashmir.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 21st, 2016.
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