Ready to play our role for Kashmir plebiscite: PM

Imran Khan says India has been abusing human rights of innocent people with impunity since August 5

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Sunday that Pakistan, being a party to the Jammu and Kashmir dispute, stood ready to play its role to ensure a free and impartial plebiscite in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions.

In a message on ‘Right to Self-Determination Day’ annually observed on January 5, the prime minister said, “Every year, the 5th of January reinforces our commitment to uphold the fundamental human rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.”

On this day in 1949, the UN made a commitment for the realisation of the right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people through a free and impartial plebiscite.

The prime minister vowed to continue “strong and steadfast moral, political and diplomatic support for the Kashmiri people till the realisation of their inalienable right to self-determination”.

He said the day also reminded the international community, especially the UN, of the imperative of honouring its commitment towards the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

He said the importance of the inalienable right to self-determination has been acknowledged in all important human rights covenants and decisions of the UN General Assembly and Security Council.

“Due to Indian intransigence, the UNSC has failed to fulfill its pledge to the Kashmiri people,” said the prime minister, adding that over 72 years of illegal occupation of Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJK) were a saga of brutalisation of the Kashmiris.

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"Around 900,000 occupation forces have converted the region into the largest prison in the world. Post August 5, 2019, India has unleashed a new reign of terror in IOJK, locking the region down and abusing human rights of the innocent people, especially women, children and the elderly, with impunity.”

He said the Kashmiri people had been deprived of their rights to life, food, health, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, freedom of religion and above all, the right to self-determination for over 150 days.

The recent wave of unprecedented Indian state-sponsored terrorism in IOJK and discriminatory steps against minorities, especially Muslims, were a clear manifestation of the Hindutva ideology espoused by the RSS-inspired Indian government, he added.

Premier Imran urged the world to ensure human rights abuses did not go unpunished and that the perpetrators of these heinous crimes against humanity were held accountable.

In his message, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has reaffirmed Pakistan's political, diplomatic and moral support to the valiant Kashmiri people in their just struggle for human dignity and their inalienable right to self-determination in accordance with the UNSC resolutions.

India's unrestrained oppression in IOK is unprecedented, says FM Qureshi

“Today, Kashmiris around the world are observing the 71^st anniversary of the UN commitment that the Jammu and Kashmir dispute would be decided through a democratic method of a free and impartial plebiscite under the UN auspices.”

The minister regretted that the right to self-determination had not yet been realised because of the unabated repression and state terrorism by India in IOJK. “For over seven decades, human dignity of Kashmiris is being violated on a daily basis in occupied Kashmir.”

Qureshi urged the UN, especially the Security Council, to fulfill its promise of granting the right to self-determination to the Kashmiris.

“India's illegal and unilateral actions of August 5 aimed at altering the disputed status of IOJK and bringing about demographic change to undermine the right to self-determination of Kashmiris have been widely rejected,” said Qureshi,adding that India's unrestrained oppression had reached unprecedented levels with the inhuman lockdown now in place for over 150 days.

(With additional input from app)