Our Correspondent
ISLAMABAD: Kashmir Committee and Institute of Regional Studies (IRS) signed a Cooperation Agreement to help develop an institutional network in building a strong narrative on Kashmir cause. President IRS Ambassador Nadeem Riyaz and Director-General Kashmir Committee Mirza Salman Baig signed the cooperation agreement.
On this occasion, Chairman Kashmir Committee Shehryar Afridi said that the cooperation agreement aims at provision of professional and institutional support to the Kashmir Committee to help its narrative building on Kashmir cause. “Kashmir Committee and IRS will work on research, narrative building and expanding of our outreach to major stakeholders and youth. We also want to engage professionals in building our case on Kashmir.” He said that the IRS has command on regional studies and we would love to work with them to further our narrative on Kashmir.
“We will engage those countries who have been ignored in the past. Pakistan’s dynamic youth can do wonders in our narrative building. With its 220 million dynamic people, Pakistan is bound to rise and shine,” he added. Ambassador Nadeem Riyaz, President IRS said that Kashmir Committee Chairman Shehryar Khan Afridi had played a key role in making the cooperation agreement signed. “double-speak on Kashmir narrative confuses the people at large. We have been a bit shy to reach out to the parliamentarians. Chairman Kashmir Committee Shehryar Afridi gave some proposals and we drafted the Cooperation Agreement,” he said. He said that the IRS will be conducting research methodology workshops together to help develop a narrative on Kashmir to counter Indian negative propaganda on Kashmir. “As a diplomat, my biggest challenge was to put our narrative abroad. For building a counter-narrative to Indian propaganda on Kashmir, we need to develop material which should be spoken by all. We will train youth Ambassadors. We will continue to work with the Kashmir Committee, ” he concluded.