Daily Times

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Monday called for the respect of the internationally recognized status of Jammu and Kashmir and the reversal of all illegal and unilateral measures India took on or after August 5, 2019.

The OIC General Secretariat, in a statement issued on the fifth anniversary of the unilateral revocation of the special status of the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), the Muslim world body reiterated the decisions of the OIC Summit and resolutions of the Council of Foreign Ministers on Jammu and Kashmir.

The OIC expressed its full solidarity with the Kashmiri people in their quest for their right to self-determination.

It also called upon the international community to increase efforts for the settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute on the basis of relevant UN Security Council resolutions.

Separately, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has stated that the eternal sacrifices of Kashmiris against the illegal and usurping rule of India will bear fruit.

In her message, she honored every martyr in Occupied Kashmir, extending her deepest respects to all oppressed and besieged Kashmiris. She also conveyed her heartfelt greetings to the mothers, sisters, and sons of Occupied Kashmir.

The chief minister said on August 5, 2019, India set a new example of oppression and tyranny by turning occupied Jammu and Kashmir into an open prison, adding that how long will the world sit with its eyes closed, how long will Kashmiris continue to suffer oppression and brutality?

Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif said Pakistan will continue to raise voice of Kashmiris at all forums of the world. She added that sustainable peace, stability, development and prosperity are possible in South Asia only with a peaceful solution to the Kashmir issue. She said that every Pakistani’s heart beats with Kashmiri brothers. “We are and will remain with our Kashmiri brothers,” she added.

Meanwhile, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) head Maulana Fazlur Rehman said on Monday that India by terminating the special status of Kashmir made a wrong decision and the rulers of Pakistan remained silent.

He said the people of Pakistan were with the Kashmiris and victory in the Kashmir movement would be the fate of the freedom fighters.

The JUI chief said the Kashmiris had a history. “Freedom movements do not reach their destination in months and years,” he said.

Maulana Fazl said “nations having perseverance and high determination reach their destination. Kashmiris are courageous as well as an oppressed nation.”

The war of independence was fought in the subcontinent for more than 200 years, Fazl said. “The idea of freedom reaches from one generation to another.”

He said the land of the Palestinians could not be bought. The British allowed the Jews to build settlements there under a fabricated agreement in 1917.

He said the resolution for the establishment of Pakistan was approved in Lahore in 1940. In the same resolution, it was also said that the Jewish settlements on the land of Palestine were illegal.

Chairman of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has said that New Delhi has exhausted all tactics of oppression and brutality in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), and has utterly failed to suppress the Kashmiri people’s struggle for their right to self-determination.

The Chairman of PPP, in his message on Kashmir Exploitation Day, remarked that India’s revocation of Articles 370 and 35A of its constitution sends a clear message to the world that it believes in state-sponsored oppression and tyranny.

He noted that the objective behind India’s actions is to transform the demographic majority of Kashmiris into a minority in their own land. He further stated that the steps taken by India on August 5, 2019, are a blatant violation of United Nations resolutions and international laws.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari reiterated that the PPP remains steadfast in its commitment to advocating for the rights of the Kashmiri people on all international platforms.

He called upon the global community to take immediate and effective measures to address the severe human rights violations in IIOJK and to support the Kashmiri people’s right to self-determination as enshrined in numerous United Nations resolutions.

The PPP Chairman also paid tribute to the determination and bravery of the Kashmiri people, stating that their struggle is one for justice, dignity, and freedom. “Let us join hands to support them in their quest for a brighter future, free from oppression and exploitation,” he added.