Web Desk (LTN NEWS): Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif criticized India on Friday for its continued “use of unbridled force” in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu Kashmir (IIOJK). The country was marking the three-year anniversary of when New Delhi took away the valley’s special autonomy.
In a series of tweets, the prime minister said, “Today marks the third sad anniversary of India’s illegal and unilateral actions on August 5, 2019, to change the internationally recognized disputed status of occupied Jammu and Kashmir and change the demographic structure of the occupied territory.”
He praised the brave Kashmiris for staying strong in the face of fear, intimidation, torture, and other terrible violations of human rights. “India’s oppression hasn’t made them give up,” said PM Shehbaz.
“The Jammu and Kashmir dispute has been a battle of hope against impossible odds, of courage against fear, and of sacrifice against tyranny. “Today, we honor all the IIOJK martyrs for giving their lives and their families for being strong and brave,” the prime minister said.
In a statement from the President House, President Dr. Arif Alvi said that the only way to keep peace and stability in the region for a long time was to solve the Kashmir dispute.
“India’s actions on August 5, 2019, go against several United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions,” he said. “These resolutions say that the final decision about the State of Jammu and Kashmir will be made based on what the people want through a free and fair plebiscite held under the supervision of the United Nations.”
The president also said that Pakistan would “continue to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our Kashmiri brothers and sisters in their just struggle.”
Imran Khan, the leader of the PTI, said on August 5, 2019, that the Modi government “violated UNSC resolutions and international law by taking away IIOJK’s special status in a way that was against the law.
Also, India “moved to change the population of IIOJK, which is a war crime under the Fourth Geneva Convention,” he said.
India thought that the move would break the will of the Kashmiris to fight back, but instead, he said, it made them stronger.
The former prime minister called the silence of the rest of the world “selective morality.”
“We are asked to agree with the strength in the international community when they say bad things about human rights. But when it comes to India and its massive violations of human rights in IIOJK, these same powers keep quiet because India’s market or strategic military partnerships are so important to them,” he said.
