Resolution of J&K dispute crucial for regional peace
Diplomatic Correspondent :
The resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute is essential for lasting peace in South Asia, speakers said at a Kashmir Solidarity Day event held at the Pakistan High Commission in Dhaka on Thursday.
The programme was attended by members of the Pakistani community, Bangladeshi students, human rights activists, lawyers, journalists, and academics.
The event highlighted ongoing concerns over the human rights situation in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) and called for renewed international engagement on the long-standing dispute.
In messages issued on the occasion, Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, and Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar reiterated that Jammu and Kashmir remains the core dispute between Pakistan and India.
They said that Indian actions in the disputed territory had evolved from sporadic violations into what they described as systematic and entrenched oppression.
Referring to the unilateral measures taken on 5 August 2019, the leaders said those actions dismantled legal safeguards, weakened local institutions, and imposed extraordinary restrictions aimed at consolidating permanent control over the territory.
They reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to continue moral, political, and diplomatic support for the Kashmiri people until the realization of their internationally recognized right to self-determination.
Local students, human rights activists, and members of the legal fraternity also addressed the gathering.
Paying tribute to the resilience of the people of IIOJK, speakers praised what they termed a sustained freedom movement against Indian occupation.
They warned that the military escalation initiated by India in May last year underscored how fragile peace in South Asia remains, arguing that durable stability is impossible without resolving the Kashmir dispute.
The speakers urged India to halt alleged human rights violations in the region and called on the international community to facilitate a free and fair plebiscite under United Nations auspices, in line with relevant UN Security Council resolutions.
Pakistan’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Imran Haider, thanked the participants for expressing solidarity with the Kashmiri people.
A photo exhibition highlighting atrocities of the Indian occupation forces in IIOJK was also organised on this occasion.