Kashmir Solidarity Day

By: Sardar Hameed
Since 1990, the 5th of February is being observed by the Kashmiris on both side of the Line of Control (LoC) and worldwide, including their Pakistani brethren as Kashmir Solidarity Day to pay homage to Kahsmiri martyrs and to show solidarity with the freedom fighters who are demanding their legitimate right of self-determination, as recognized by the UN resolution. Indian Parliament revoked articles 35A and 370 of the Constitution on August 5, 2019, which gave a special status to the IIOJK. The act split the IIOJK into two territories to be ruled directly by New Delhi. Thus, implementing the Hindutva ideology, the leader of the extremist ruling party BJP-the fanatic Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government unilaterally annexed the IIOJK to turn Muslim majority into minority.
Now, more than 18 months have been passed. But, Indian strict military lockdown in the IIOJK continues. In order to conceal India’s state terrorism, Kashmir has been cut off from rest of the world. Despite the deployment of more than 900,000 military troops in the IIOJK, who have martyred thousands of the innocent Kashmiris through brutal tactics-fake encounters—closure of mosques, shortage of foods, medicines for the patients and coronavirus-affected persons, the use of pellet guns and phosphorus bombs, Kashmiris’ struggle continues. Since 1989, Kashmiris have already been enduring various forms of state terrorism; no Indian soldier has ever been taken to task. Hence, since the military clampdown started, Indian armed forces have accelerated the employment of cruel tactics. Almost, 100,000 Kashmiris have died in the past 30 years.
In this regard, UN human rights experts on August 4, 2020 called on India and the international community to take urgent action to address the “alarming” human rights situation in Jammu and Kashmir—“to investigate all cases of human rights violations, including extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, torture and arbitrary detentions.” Amnesty International said last year that it is “stopping its work in India because the government has frozen its bank accounts for highlighting rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir…the government had sought to punish it for that”.
In the recent past, the UNSC in its meetings has thrice reiterated that the Kashmir issue requires to be settled in accordance with the related Security Council resolutions. Recently, several British parliamentarians strongly agreed with Pakistan’s positions on the Modi government’s brutal treatment of the residents of the Indian occupied territory and gross human rights violations. The European Parliament has repeatedly indicated that the people of Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir had been subject to intolerable suppression of their freedom and fundamental rights.
Notably, in a latest statement, the UN Charter, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the resolution of Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN resolutions warned that any military confrontation between two nuclear powers-Pakistan and India would be a disaster for both countries and the whole world. He added: “his good offices are always available for mediation.” And Indian prejudiced rulers are escalating tensions with Pakistan to divert attention from the drastic situation of the IIOJK and Indian internal issues. Therefore, Indian forces have also accelerated shelling inside Pakistani side of Kashmir.
In the recent revelations, the EU DisinfoLab disclosed the leaked WhatsApp chats between an anchorperson of Indian Channel Republic TV Arnab Goswami and Partho Dasgupta, the former CEO of the Broadcast Audience Research Council, exposing the sinister designs hatched by Modi’s government to blame Pakistan for the false Pulwama attack, followed by a botched air strike on Balakot in 2019. Goswami was aware of the Indian government’s plans well in advance.
Atrocities, brutalities, suppressive and oppressive measures of all sorts continuously being unleashed by occupying Indian security forces, whose number is more than six lakhs, as well as the great sacrifices being offered by Kashmiri men, women and children in their struggle for freedom cannot be mentioned in just one or more articles. Long history of Kashmiris struggle in the face of forced Indian occupation in fact needs volumes of books to do justice with their endless sacrifices for freedom. But for want of adequate space, the long history of Kashmiris struggle for freedom is being mentioned only briefly. Over the years, Indian government has been forcibly migrating Hindus into occupied Kashmir to turn the predominantly majority Muslim population into minority but even after resorting to such tactics, India is not letting the Kashmiris to exercise their right of self-determination which is universally recognised .
Pakistan has all along been supporting just indigenous, unarmed struggle of the Kashmiris at all international forums. It has been and will continue to extend political, diplomatic and moral support to the Kashmiris. Resolution of Kashmir dispute is key to stable peace, prosperity and prosperity in South Asia. Continued denial of right of self-determination to Kashmiris and even not holding bilateral talks for resolving linger Kashmir dispute peacefully has exposed the so-called democratic face of India.
It is not comprehensible as to why the world body as well as the international community remains unmoved by the sacrifices of Kashmiris. Perhaps, there are some invisible forces which are playing the dirtiest game by letting the Kashmir dispute remain unresolved on the UN agenda .The history of the world body is replete with its achievements of resolving the disputes within months or even in weeks and needless to mention that all this has been possible only when these some invisible forces wanted that to happen. Whenever these invisible forces want to resolve something, they simply give signal to the international community and all UN members including its five permanent members, and it happens straightway.
By observance of Kashmir Solidarity Day yet again the freedom loving Pakistanis want to reiterate their unstinted support which the government and people of Pakistan have for the Kashmiris in their determined fight against Indian occupation and for their securing birth right of self-determination and acknowledgement of their great sacrifices for the noble supreme cause of freedom from Indian occupation. Kashmiris are bound to be free from forced Indian occupation sooner or later, world conscience may suddenly wake up some day, come up in open support of struggling Kashmiris and put its whole weight on India to let the Kashmiris have what is their birth right to decide their future themselves. The day is not far off when not only people of Pakistan but also the international community at large will be supporting the Kashmiris ongoing freedom struggle.

• The writer is Senior Journalist, Editor-in-Chief Daily Country News.