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| Yet, the story of this magnificent land for the last 60 years has been written in blood and tears and the immense sacrifices of the valiant Kashmiri people made for the cause of freedom. The Kashmir dispute has its genesis in the illegitimate usurpation of popular will by the Indian occupation of Kashmir in 1947, an open contravention of the partition plan of June 1947 that was based on “demographic realities and geographical proximity.” UN Security Council Resolutions No. 47 (1948), 51 (1948) and 80 (1950) and the United Nations Commission for India and Pakistan resolutions of Aug. 13, 1948, and Jan. 5, 1949, calling for the holding of a plebiscite to determine the final status, represent a solemn commitment by the international community to the Kashmiri people and to their inalienable right to self-determination. Repeatedly, the leaders of India -- especially Prime Minister Nehru -- gave assurances that the accession of Kashmir to either India or Pakistan would be decided by the people of Kashmir. Regrettably, those UN resolutions, despite representing international legality, have remained unimplemented, and the promises of the Indian leadership have remained unfulfilled to this day. As a result, generations of Kashmiris have been forced to live under inhuman conditions, deprived of liberty, but not devoid of hope. The valiant struggle of the Kashmiri people has become a tragic narrative of the worst human rights violations by the Indian military. The blood of over 90,000 innocent Kashmiris is a potent testimony to the singular brutality employed by the occupation forces. International human rights groups such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International continue to raise the issue of human rights violations in Indian-occupied Kashmir. According to Human Rights Watch’s Annual Report 2010: “Impunity for abusive policing remains a pressing concern in India, with continuing allegations of police brutality, extrajudicial killings and torture. In Jammu and Kashmir, several children were among those killed or injured during anti-government demonstrations.” Resolution of the Kashmir dispute remains central to lasting peace and stability in South Asia. Pakistan is committed to a broad-based dialogue process with India. Placing preconditions on the process is, however, self-defeating to the cause. At the same time, we believe that the people of Jammu and Kashmir are the principal party to the dispute and must therefore be the principal beneficiaries of the dialogue process. For this reason, Pakistan has reiterated, time and again, that a final settlement of the Kashmir dispute must reflect the wishes and aspirations of the people of Kashmir. The people and government of Pakistan reiterate unwavering political, moral and diplomatic support to the just struggle of Kashmiri people to safeguard their fundamental rights. It is time for the international community and the United Nations to exert their pressure upon India to fulfill its long-standing promise made with the people of Kashmir to end their misery and grant them basic human rights and the right to self-determination. To pay homage to the sacrifices of our Kashmiri brethren, the people of Pakistan commemorate Feb. 5 as Kashmir Solidarity Day, a day of renewal of moral and diplomatic support for the Kashmiris in keeping alive the cause of freedom and dignity. I thank the proud Turkish nation and Turkish leadership for standing by the side of the oppressed people of Kashmir. *Sardar Tariq Azizuddin is Pakistan’s ambassador to Turkey. (This article was originally published by Turkey's leading English language newspaper Today's Zaman) |
Kashmir Solidarity Day by Ambassador Tariq Azizuddin
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