ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have called on the international community to take concrete steps toward resolving the longstanding Jammu and Kashmir dispute, in accordance with the United Nations Security Council resolutions and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people.
Both leaders issued separate messages on the occasion of Kashmir Black Day, which is being observed today (Monday) to mark the day Indian forces entered Srinagar in 1947.
President Zardari urged the United Nations, global human rights organisations, and the international community to hold India accountable for its grave and systematic human rights violations in Indian-held Kashmir.
The president said that lasting peace and stability in South Asia are contingent upon a just and durable resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute.
On its part, Pakistan will continue its unwavering moral, diplomatic, and political support to the people of Indian-held Kashmir, who continue to endure oppression on a daily basis. We stand united with our Kashmiri brethren in their struggle for justice, peace, and self-determination, the president said in his message.
Echoing similar views, PM Shehbaz emphasised that lasting peace and stability in South Asia would remain elusive without a just and peaceful settlement of the Kashmir issue.
“Every year, Oct 27 marks the darkest day in the history of Kashmir… Ever since that fateful day, India has continued to deny the Kashmiri people their inalienable right to self-determination, as enshrined in numerous resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.”
For nearly eight decades, the people of Indian-held Jammu and Kashmir have endured enormous hardship and oppression. We salute their indomitable spirit, courage, and resilience in the face of fear and persecution, he added.
Since August 5, 2019, India has further intensified its illegal and unilateral actions aimed at altering the demography and political status of held-Kashmir, the PM said.
‘Dark chapter in history’
Meanwhile, Senate Chairman Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani said that Oct 27 marked a dark chapter in history when India forcibly occupied Jammu and Kashmir, violating international law and human rights.
In his message on Kashmir Black Day, he said the 1947 landing of Indian forces in Srinagar defied the will of the Kashmiri people and began a long era of oppression.
Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs Amir Muqam condemned Indian atrocities in held Kashmir and reaffirmed Pakistan’s unwavering support for Kashmiris’ right to self-determination.
PPP Senator Sherry Rehman also said that October 27, 1947, remains one of the darkest chapters in the history of South Asia.
