The nation is observing Kashmir Solidarity Day today with a renewed pledge to support the just struggle of the Kashmiri people for their inalienable right to self-determination.
The day will feature rallies, demonstrations and seminars throughout the country. Human chains will also be formed at all entry points of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).
One-minute silence will be observed across the country at 10am to pay homage to the martyrs of the Kashmir freedom movement, state-run Radio Pakistan reported.
In his message to mark the occasion, President Asif Ali Zardari reiterated Pakistan’s steadfast moral, diplomatic and political support for the Kashmiri people, reaffirming their “inalienable right to self-determination” as enshrined in the relevant resolutions of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
The president said the people of Pakistan across the globe stand united with their Kashmiri brothers and sisters in their just struggle.
He recalled that the observance of Kashmir Solidarity Day was initiated 36 years ago by ex-premier Benazir Bhutto following the historic Kashmiri uprising of 1989, a movement that continues to this day.
President Zardari urged the international community to press India to end human rights violations in held Kashmir.
He said India had intensified efforts to entrench its control through “administrative and legislative measures, curbing media freedoms, incarcerating Kashmiri leadership and attempting to alter the demographic composition of the territory”.
The president also highlighted what he described as grave human rights violations by Indian occupation forces, citing international reports that point to a rise in arbitrary detentions, collective punishment and punitive house demolitions.
He added that the “suppression of digital freedoms, including the blocking of thousands of social media accounts, reflected attempts to conceal the realities on the ground”.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in his message, called for the dispute’s resolution in accordance with UNSC resolutions.
He urged the international community to play an effective role in getting the Kashmiri people their “inalienable right through a free and impartial plebiscite under the auspices of the United Nations”.
He also announced that the government has increased the monthly per capita subsistence allowance of Kashmiri refugees to Rs5,000.
“The government of Pakistan is conducting a pilot project to construct 750 residential houses at a cost of Rs3 billion,” PM Shehbaz said.
The premier said the AJK government has provided land for the construction of these houses, exclusively meant for Jammu Kashmir refugees settled in the territory.
He said complete rehabilitation of the refugees of Jammu and Kashmir is a national duty, and Pakistan will stand with the Kashmiris until they achieve their right to self-determination.
Concrete action needed to alleviate Kashmiris’ suffering: armed forces
On behalf of the armed forces, Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and Chief of the Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf, and Air Chief Marshal (ACM) Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu reaffirmed their unwavering support for the “resilient people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) in their epic struggle for self-determination”.
In their message, issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the services chiefs strongly condemned “grave violations of human rights in IIOJK, including extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, arbitrary detentions, and attempts to alter the demographic and political landscape of the region, with blatant disregard for international law”.
They reiterated that a “just and peaceful resolution” of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute, in accordance with the UNSC resolutions and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people, “remains essential for lasting peace and stability in South Asia”.
“The international community must take concrete and meaningful action to alleviate the suffering of the Kashmiri people,” the services chiefs added.
They reaffirmed that the armed forces remain “steadfast in their duty to safeguard Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and unwavering in their solidarity with their Kashmiri brothers and sisters in their rightful quest for freedom and dignity”.
“Long live Pakistan! Long live Kashmir!”
‘Fundamental dispute’
In his message, National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq noted that the Kashmir issue remained one of the fundamental disputes stemming from the incomplete promises of the partition of the subcontinent.
He stressed that sustainable peace in South Asia cannot be achieved without granting the Kashmiri people their internationally recognised right to self-determination.
Minister for Kashmir Affairs Amir Muqam also addressed a press conference along with All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) leaders on Wednesday to pay tribute to the Kashmiris who had endured imprisonment, destruction of homes and the loss of family members.
He said the traditional human chain would be formed at Kohala Bridge to symbolise unity between Pakistanis and Kashmiris.
