Barrister terms Aug 5th black day in history of Kashmir’s movement

Muzaffarabad: President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry, has said that August 5th holds the status of a dark day in the history of the Kashmiri freedom movement.
While talking to the journalists during a press conference at his office , the President AJK said that on 5th Aug 2019 Modi attempted to abolish the special status of occupied Kashmir revoking the Article 370 and 35A, but India should understand that its oppression and tyranny will never diminish the Kashmiri people’s yearning for freedom.
He said that the blood and sacrifices of Kashmiri martyrs will eventually bear fruit, and occupied Kashmir will soon break free from Indian domination, witnessing the dawn of freedom.
“I have called upon Kashmiris residing across the world to organize protest demonstrations on August 5, and as part of this series, protests will take place in front of Times Square in New York, in front of the Indian High Commission in London, in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, in front of the International Court of Justice in The Hague, in front of the Indian High Commission in Brussels, and in various cities including Atalanta, Italy and Dublin, Ireland, to draw global attention towards the issue of Kashmir and the ongoing Indian oppression and brutality in occupied Kashmir”, he added.

Reply to the questions by the media men he said that India is approaching general elections, and Modi will resort to various tactics to secure victory. Similarly, India aims to convert the life imprisonment sentence of Yasin Malik into a death penalty, with a hearing scheduled for August 8.
He told the journalists that he has also established a defense committee in the UK comprised of barristers, which is independently working against the sentence of Yasin Malik.
President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry, further stated that since the abrogation of the special status of occupied Kashmir through Article 370 and 35A on August 5, 2019, India has continuously escalated its human rights abuses in occupied Kashmir, pushing the Kashmiri people into a suffocating environment.
He said that The Kashmiri people are enduring a dire situation. Hence, the international community must play its role in ending India’s tyrannical rule in occupied Kashmir and ensure the Kashmiri people’s right to self-determination.

The President said that India has initiated significant changes in occupied Kashmir, issuing over 4.2 million domicile certificates to non-state subjects while rendering local residents homeless. These actions are aimed at altering the demographic structure to pave the way for a Hindu Chief Minister and ultimately erasing the Kashmir issue. However, we condemn India’s unconstitutional measures and assure that India cannot suppress the Kashmiri people’s aspiration for freedom with its guns and repression. Occupied Kashmir will soon break free from India’s illegal and oppressive grasp.

The President AJK said that the resolutions of the United Nations on the Kashmir issue are still relevant and effective, therefore, the international community must push for the right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people and hold India accountable for its malicious intentions.
He said that India has not only oppressed occupied Kashmir but also unleashed atrocities upon minorities within its own borders, targeting Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists, Dalits, and now even Christians in the state of Manipur. This has led to international demands for a separate state of Manipur. Even former US President Obama has warned that if India does not change its course, its façade of being the world’s largest democracy will crumble.

Barrister Sultan was of the view that the United Nations’ Commission on Human Rights has presented a detailed report on human rights violations in occupied Kashmir for 2018 and 2019, demanding the establishment of an investigative commission to probe the ongoing oppression in occupied Kashmir, to present its report to the United Nations Secretary-General.
“We appeal to the global fraternity to exert pressure on India to end its oppressive policies in occupied Kashmir and to let the world play its role in ensuring the right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people”, the President concluded.