Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Thursday passed a unanimous resolution calling upon the international community to ensure accountability of India’s grave and persistent violations of human rights, war crimes being committed in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu Kashmir (IIOJK).

The resolution was moved by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari that urged India to immediately halt and reverse unilateral and all illegal actions it had taken in IIOJK and fulfill its obligations under the relevant UNSC resolutions.

The House recalled the resolution of 6 August 2019 adopted unanimously by the Parliament of Pakistan and subsequent resolutions rejecting India’s illegal, unilateral, reckless and coercive actions aimed at altering the internationally recognized disputed status of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

AN Alarming situation in IIOJK is arising out of continued Indian occupation in violation of international law and UN Security Council resolutions.

The House expressed grave concern over the series of illegal measures that the Indian occupation forces had been taking to change the demographic composition of the occupied territories in stark violation of international law, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention and the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council.

It denounced the latest attempt at demographic engineering in IIOJK through a so-called ‘Delimitation Commission’ constituted in March 2020 in the occupied territory aimed at artificially altering the electoral strength of the Muslim majority in IIOJK.

Noting that the Commission’s recommendations had been rejected by a cross-section of political parties in IIOJK, the House reaffirmed Pakistan’s complete support and solidarity with the Kashmiri people.

It rejected categorically the report of the so-called ‘Delimitation Commission’ that sought to convert the Muslim majority of IIOJK into minority, and further marginalize, disenfranchise and disempower the Kashmiri population in IIOJK, and advance the political and electoral objectives of the BJP.

The House expressed grave concern that through the ‘delimitation’ exercise, India was making attempts to further its illegal actions of 5 August 2019 and subsequent measures all of which had been categorically rejected by Pakistan and the Kashmiri people.

The National Assembly recalled and reaffirmed that “the Jammu and Kashmir is an internationally recognized dispute and a long-standing item on the agenda of the UN Security Council.”

It declared that no facade of ‘elections’ based on a sham ‘delimitation’ exercise could substitute the legitimacy and indispensability of a free and impartial plebiscite held under the auspices of the United Nations to enable the Kashmiri people exercise their right to self-determination in accordance with the relevant UNSC Resolutions.

It demanded that India must honor and fulfill its obligations under international law, UNSC Resolutions and the Fourth Geneva Convention to refrain from bringing about any illegal demographic changes in the occupied territory.

The House urged the Indian Government “to forthwith end its oppression and widespread violations of human rights and international humanitarian law in IIOJK, and enable the Kashmiri people to exercise their inalienable right to self-determination as enshrined in the relevant UNSC resolutions.”

The resolution reiterated the unflinching commitment and solidarity of Pakistan and the Pakistani people with Kashmiri brothers and sisters and reaffirmed that Pakistan would continue to extend all possible support in their just struggle for freedom and self-determination.

The House asked the coalition government to continue exposing and countering the Indian moves before the international community, and to highlight and forcefully project the Kashmir cause at all bilateral and multilateral fora including the United Nations and the OIC.

Earlier, the foreign minister in a policy statement in the house,  said the whole exercise of delimitation in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir is illegal and in contravention of relevant UN Security Council Resolutions.

The Minister said that he has also addressed a letter to the President of the UN Security Council and the Secretary-General of the UN in which he has highlighted the unlawful steps taken by India to change the demographic structure of IIOJK.

He said that he, in his letter, has also underlined that the delimitation exercise was designed to further marginalize the Kashmiri people and pave the way for another puppet government in the occupied territory.

Bilawal Bhutto said Pakistan will continue to reach out to the world to raise international awareness about Indian illegal steps in IIOJK.