MESSAGE BY THE PRESIDENT OF PAKISTAN TO MARK YOUM-E-ISTEHSAL (5 AUGUST 2021)

On 5th August 2019, India, yet again, in violation of international law and norms undertook illegal and unilateral actions in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IIOJK) to further perpetuate its occupation. Through these actions, India tried to change the demographic structure of the occupied territory and eliminate the distinct identity of the Kashmiri people in violation of UN Charter and International law, including the 4th Geneva Convention. These Indian actions were also aimed at denying the right to self-determination to the Kashmiri people that was promised to them in numerous resolutions of the UN Security Council. Through continuous illegal steps, the racially motivated BJP Government of India has created an environment of fear and chaos in IIOJK. The people of IIOJK are being subjected to collective punishment by the Indian Occupation Forces, which have turned the territory into the largest militarized zone in the world. For the past twenty-four months, Kashmiris have suffered the worst human rights violations at the hands of the Indian Occupation Forces which include military sieges and unprecedented restrictions on fundamental freedoms of Kashmiris. To this day, the senior Kashmiri leadership remains imprisoned under trumped-up charges. Extra-judicial killings and arbitrary arrests and detentions also continue unabated. These illegal Indian actions in IIOJK are a manifestation of the rising Hindu Fascism in India and are aimed at breaking the spirit of the Kashmiri people. These steps were also forcefully rejected by Pakistan, the Kashmiris, and the international community. These Indian actions have also been denounced by international media and human rights organizations as a means to continue its illegal and brutal occupation of the region. The day also serves as a reminder to the international community to hold India accountable for its war crimes against the civilian population of IIOJK and deliver on its promise to the Kashmiris. A just and peaceful settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute, in accordance with relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people, is indispensible for durable peace and stability in South Asia. The international community must call upon India to end its campaign of repression and human rights abuses in IIOJK and reverse all its illegal actions, including those initiated on and after 5 August 2019, and to cease and desist from imposing any additional unilateral changes in the occupied territory. The people of Pakistan stand firmly by their Kashmiri brethren in their just struggle and will continue to highlight the Jammu and Kashmir dispute to the international community. Our ultimate objective remains the peaceful resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute as per relevant UN Security Council Resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people.

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