In solidarity: Protest rallies urge Kashmir solution

Participants call for end to Indian occupation of Kashmir.

ISLAMABAD/ LAHORE/ KARACHI:

Fiery speeches, rallies and human chains marked Kashmir Solidarity Day across the country on Wednesday, as participants stood alongside political parties and organisations to call for a solution to the Kashmir issue.

In Karachi, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Secretary General Liaquat Baloch addressed a gathering of thousands that marched from Jail Chowrangi to Quaid’s mausoleum. “More than 10 million Kashmiri people have been fighting for their right to self-determination for the last 66 years and will continue to do so despite the brutality and repression until they will be allowed to exercise this right in the light of United Nations’ resolutions,” he said, in support of the people of Kashmir.



Rally participants commemorated the day – a national holiday since 1990 – to protest Indian control of part of Kashmir by chanting slogans against the Indian government. In Lahore, the JI and JuD marched to express solidarity with Kashmiris, with JuD chief Hafiz Saeed addressing a large crowd.

He urged the prime minister to cut off diplomatic ties with India and opposed the MFN status for India, adding that there should be no Pak-India trade.

The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Vice-Chairman Shah Mehmood Quershi addressed a seminar organised by the Kashmir Youth Forum at the Lahore Press Club. “The Indian government should realise that Kashmir is a core issue. The MFN status depends on the peaceful resolution of the Kashmir dispute,” he said. In Faisalabad, the district administration arranged several events to express solidarity with people of Indian-administered Kashmir.

Islamabad’s think-tank Muslim Institute also organised a rally in the capital to show solidarity. Participants carrying banners and placards in support of Kashmiri people started from China Chowk on Jinnah Avenue and stopped at the National Press Club.

Speakers at a seminar at the National Press Club said peace cannot be ensured in the region unless the Kashmir and Afghanistan issues are given equal importance and resolved peacefully.

The people of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) also expressed solidarity with their brethren fighting against the tyranny of Indian forces. Prayers were offered for the liberation of Jammu and Kashmir. Rallies were held in almost all cities and towns including the capital city of Muzaffarabad, Mirpur, Rawalakot, Kotli and Bhimber, with participants demanding an end to Indian occupation of the valley. A one-minute silence was observed at 10am to pay homage to the fallen soldiers of Kashmir, as all road traffic came to a standstill throughout the AJK.

Human chains were formed on all five bridges, including Mangla, Kohala, Dhalkot, Azad Pattan, Bhimber and Holar, besides Bararkot, the entry points connecting AJK with Pakistan.

In Peshawar, the JI, JuD and other political organisations assembled in the provincial capital to observe Kashmir Day. JI marched on GT Road, from Hashtnagri Chowk, and concluded at Chowk Yadgaar where party leaders addressed participants.  On the occasion, K-P senior minister Sirajul Haq asked the federal government to take a firm stand on the issue of Kashmir.

In a separate protest, over 200 JuD activists were part of a motorcycle rally from Fawara Chowk to Hashtnagri.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 6^th, 2014.