Pakistan tells India it has no locus standi on G-B

Spokesperson rubbishes fake news about diaspora in France

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan categorically rejects Indian Ministry of External Affairs’ irresponsible and unwarranted statement regarding Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B), saying that India has no locus standi whatsoever on the issue — legal, moral or historical.

Foreign Office spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said in a statement on Sunday that for more than 73 years, India had been in illegal and forcible occupation of parts of Jammu and Kashmir.

“Regurgitation of false and fabricated claims by India can neither change the facts nor divert attention from India’s illegal actions and continuing humanitarian crisis resulting from the perpetration of the worst human rights violations in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK),” it said.

“Pakistan’s position on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute remains firmly anchored in the relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions. The final resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute is only possible through the exercise of the Kashmiris’ right to self-determination by holding a free and impartial plebiscite under the auspices of the United Nations.”

The statement came hours after the Indian external affairs ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said that India opposed any “material changes” in Gilgit-Baltistan, claiming it to be a part of Indian territory.

Chaudhri said that administrative, political and economic reforms were a long-standing demand of the people of Gilgit-Baltistan, adding that the envisaged provisional reforms reflected the aspirations of the indigenous populace of the region.

“Pakistan calls upon India to immediately end its illegal and forcible occupation of pans of Jammu and Kashmir and comply with its international obligations by allowing the Kashmiris to exercise their inalienable right to self-determination through a free and impartial plebiscite under the auspices of the United Nations as enshrined in the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.

Diaspora in France

In a separate statement earlier, Chaudhri denounced the fake news being spread by a section of Indian media and dummy Twitter accounts about the Pakistani diaspora in France, misreporting difficulties being faced by them following the recent developments there.

“The baseless and misleading information is patently a handiwork of Indian anti-Pakistan propaganda machine working overtime. The Pakistani diaspora in France is law-abiding and contributing positively to the French economy,” he said.

The spokesperson said that there were no complaints from them of difficulties in the aftermath of the recent developments. He said the official Twitter account of the Embassy of Pakistan in Paris was “@PakinFrance” which should be followed for correct information.

The statement comes days alter Pakistan condemned the republication of blasphemous caricatures in France and the Islamophobic remarks of French President Emmanuel Macron, with the strong protest being lodged with the French ambassador, followed by the passage of two resolutions in parliament.

Pakistan said that freedom of expression should not be misused as a means to attack or hurt public sentiments or religious beliefs and fan Inter-religious hatred. At a time of rising racism, in-tolerance and populism, it added. There was a need for promoting harmony among peoples and communities.

On October 16, French middle school teacher Samuel Paty was beheaded in Paris by a Chechen-origin teenager for showing blasphemous caricatures to his students in the name of "freedom of expression". After the incident, French President Macron had targeted Islam in his comments.

That has prompted an outpouring of anger in the Muslim world, with some governments accusing the French president of pursuing an anti-Islam agenda.

WITH INPUT FROM APP

Published in The Express Tribune, November 2^nd, 2020.