Daily Times

President Dr Arif Alvi Monday paid tribute to 22 Kashmiris who had laid down their lives during a protest against the Dogra forces in 1931.

The president on 89th anniversary of the Youm-e-Shuhada-e-Kashmir to mark the historic Kashmiri struggle against then Dogra Rule and against the current repressive fascist Indian regime, posted on his twitter account that they paid homage to those Kashmiris who embraced martyrdom on that day.

“This day is a reminder that Kashmiris have been resisting oppression for a century,” he added.

The president reiterating Pakistan’s complete moral, political and diplomatic support to the people of Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir further observed that sacrifices of the Kashmiri people in IOJ&K would not go in vain as they were sacrificing for their just right to self-determination.

The day was not far away when they would get liberation from the illegal Indian occupation, he added.

Meanwhile, President Dr Arif Alvi Monday said that Pakistan attached utmost importance to its ties with Syria and wanted to further expand and promote bilateral relations in areas of mutual interest.

He was talking to Pakistan’s Ambassador-designate to Syria Air Marshal (Retd) Saeed Muhammad Khan who called on him at the Aiwan-i-Sadr, a press release said.

The President asked the ambassador-designate to work for promotion of trade and economic relations between the two brotherly countries as well as focus on highlighting the Kashmir issue and the atrocities being committed by India in the occupied Jammu and Kashmir, in the wake of imposition of lockdown since August last year, during his stay in the host country.

The President felicitated the ambassador-designate on his appointment as Pakistan’s Ambassador to Syria and expressed the hope that he would make concerted efforts to further improve bilateral relations.

He also emphasized upon the need for increasing bilateral engagements at the senior level and asked the ambassador-designate to play his role in this regard.

The president advised him to take steps for the welfare of Pakistani community and also facilitate the Zaireen during their visit to Syria.

Separately, Pakistan Charge d’ Affaires to Indonesia Sajjad Haider Khan on the Youm-e-Shuhada-e-Kashmir highlighted the plight of innocent people of Indian occupied Jammu & Kashmir where the Indian occupation forces have unleashed a reign of terror and brutalities since 1947. He was speaking at a webinar arranged by the Embassy of Pakistan in Jakarta in collaboration with “Dyplo Corps”, a Youth Forum of the Sharif Hidayatullah State University Jakarta, to commemorate 89th anniversary of the day under the topic ‘Foreign Policy of Pakistan & Regional Challenges’, a press release on Monday said.

Referring to the recent illegal attempts by the Indian government to change the demography of Jammu & Kashmir, Khan strongly condemned and rejected these steps, and expressed resolve of the Government of Pakistan to raise the Jammu & Kashmir dispute at all forums. He also described in detail, the ongoing wave of intolerance and state sponsored repression against minorities (especially Muslims) in India. He underlined the targeted hatred and discrimination against Muslims in India by the Modi’s government such as the Babri mosque verdict, the discriminatory Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), the controversial National Register of Citizens (NRC), and the lynching of Muslims by the cow vigilantes.

The envoy also addressed various other aspects of the Jammu & Kashmir dispute including gross human rights violations, sexual abuse and violence against women and children, Indian illegal actions of doing away with Articles 370 and 35-A of the constitution to bring demographic changes in the region, Hindutva ideology of the RSS inspired Modi’s government, the implementation of the UNSC resolutions, and Pakistan’s desire to resolve all issues with India including the Jammu and Kashmir dispute through dialogue and in accordance with the UNSC resolutions.

Sajjad Haider Khan also highlighted various contours and highlights of the foreign policy of Pakistan and gave a detailed description of Pakistan’s history, geography, strategic location, and regional dynamics.

He discussed various issues faced by the world including the rising wave of Islamophobia, US-China trade issues, COVID-19 crisis and India’s hegemonic posture in the South Asian region with special reference to the recent problems created by India with its neighbours, including Pakistan, China, Bangladesh and Nepal. The webinar was attended by a large number of youth, scholars, and intellectuals. At the end of the webinar, Khan responded to the various queries of the participants.