Reminding th
e world that it cannot abandon its moral and legal responsibilities towards Ka
shmiris, Prime Minister Imran Khan Tuesday stated durable peace in South Asia was contingent upon peaceful resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with international legitimacy.
“The importance of the inalienable right to self-determination has been acknowledged in all important human rights covenants, decisions of the United N
ations General Assembly and Security Council,” Imran Khan said in his message on the occasion of Right to Self-Determination Day (Jan 5, 2022).
On this day in 1949, the United N
ations Commission on India and Pakistan (UNCIP) adopted a resolution which guaranteed Ka
shmiri people their inherent right to self-determination through a free and impartial plebiscite in Jammu and Kashmir.
The prime minister said, “While observing 5th of January as Right to Self-Determination Day for the Ka
shmiris, we reiterate our commitment to uphold the fundamental human rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and pay homage to Ka
shmiris’ just struggle spanning more than seven decades.”
“We are commemorating this day to remind th
e world community that it cannot abandon its moral and legal responsibilities towards the Ka
shmiri people,” he added.
The prime minister pointed that the right to self-determination was granted to the Ka
shmiris by the United N
ations and cannot be unilaterally denied by India.
“Three gener
ations of Ka
shmiris have waited for th
e world community and the United N
ations to honor their solemn commitments made to Ka
shmiris,” he said and added that Indian atrocities in the Indian Illegal
ly Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJ&K) continue unabated but the courage and spirit of Ka
shmiris remain strong.
The prime minister said that with the presence of 900,000 troops, India has turned the occupied territory into the largest open-air prison and the most militarized zone in th
e world.
“The recent surge in oppression of Ka
shmiris through arbitrary detentions, coercion, harassment and humiliation, and extra-judicial killings in staged encounters and cordon-and-search-oper
ations is a matter of grave concern for the international community,” he added.
The prime minister said that India’s illegal and unilateral actions of 5 August, 2019, and subsequent measures, particularly pertaining to domicile rules and land ownership laws, were aimed at changing the demographic structure of IIOJ&K and converting the Ka
shmiris into a minority in their own land.
“These Indian actions are a blatant violation of the international law especially the UN Charter, UN Security Council Resolutions, and the 4th Geneva Convention. Ka
shmiris have 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-determinati
on,221; he added.
The prime minister said Pakistan calls upon the international community to demand from India and immediate end to its state-terrorism against Ka
shmiris and allow access to international human rights and humanitarian organiz
ations to the occupied territory. “Pakistan will continue to extent all possible support to the Ka
shmiris till realization of their inalienable right to self-determination and a just resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the relevant UNSC resolutions and the wishes of the Ka
shmiri people,” he stressed.