AJK Bar body hails role of diaspora community for raising Kashmir issue

MUZAFFARABAD: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir Supreme Court Bar Association (AJ&KSCBA) appreciated the role of Kashmiri and Pakistani diaspora settled in the United Kingdom and Europe for highlighting atrocities being committed by India in the disputed territory.

The AJ&KSCBA hosted a reception in honour of Tehreek-e-Kashmir TeK (UK) Raja Fahim Kayani who was on his two-day visit to AJK to express the solidarity with the people of Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

Lauding the TeK UK efforts in highlighting the plight of Kashmiris, AJ&KSCBA President Khawaja Manzoor Qadir said the TeK UK is doing a tremendous job for raising awareness about the Kashmir dispute across Europe.

"We welcome you and your team working round the clock in UK but it is also necessary to provide the printed material to the world human rights organisations and other institutions to update them about the mass human rights violations in IOJ&K.”

The TeK UK president also said that he felt immense honour while visiting AJ&KSCBA – which is biggest forum of AJK senior lawyers.

While sharing the contribution of overseas Kashmiris and Pakistanis with the lawyer community he said that as people in Occupied Kashmir lost their statehood on August 5 last year, "we were in shock across the UK and Europe".

PHOTO: EXPRESS

“Our party in the UK and Europe chapter decided to stage anti-India protests and in this connection we approached the diaspora aimed to motivate them to come out on roads in London and in different countries of Europe.”

Kayani went on to say that besides the anti-India protests "we approached members of the British Parliament to speak on the issue and we succeeded" in it. "Dozens of MPs wrote to the British government to take notice of the human rights violations in IOK."

Nation stands shoulder to shoulder with army to liberate IOK: AJK president

“For the first time more than 50 MPs attended the Kashmir conference on February 4 in British parliament, which was also attended by AJK President Sardar Masood Khan, where both Conservatives and Labour lawmakers jointly supported Kashmiris right to self-determination movement and condemned the lockdown of the disputed valley,” Kayani said, adding that both the Muzaffarabad and Islamabad governments must evolve a joint strategy about the more than 1.5 million diaspora utilisation for the Kashmir cause.

“The diaspora is even ready to spend their own money for the Kashmir freedom struggle and that must be encouraged.”

Jammu and Kashmir Salvation Movement (JKSM) Chairman and senior Hurriyat leader Altaf Ahmad Bhat referred the TeK UK as the only voice of voiceless Kashmiris at the international level by saying: “We are indebted to TeK UK and its President Kayani who devoted his whole life for the Kashmir cause is the real hero of Kashmiris' right to self-determination movement at the international level.”

Urging the government of AJK to come forward and utilise more than one million diaspora of UK to highlight the Kashmiris political struggle in IOK, Bhat said that it is now the duty of both federal and AJK governments to get the services of huge diaspora to expose India at global level.

PHOTO: EXPRESS

“Kashmiris freedom movement is in decisive phase that must be highlighted on time in the main capitals of European countries.”

AJ&KSCBA Joint Secretary Rahat Farooq also spoke on the occasion and hailed the services of TeK UK for the promotion of Kashmir cause.

Later the AJ&KSCBA Khawaja Manzoor Qadir President along with senior lawyers gave away the shields to honour the visiting guests.