ISLAMABAD: An all parties' conference (APC) of the ruling coalition and opposition parties on Tuesday threw their weight behind the government to effectively highlight the continued Indian atrocities in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJ&K), urging the UN Security Council to implement its resolutions with regards to the disputed territory.
Chaired by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, the APC was attended by National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser, Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjarani, Minister for Information Senator Shibli Faraz, Federal Minister for Law Barrister Farogh Naseem, Minister for Kashmir Affairs Ali Amin Gandapur, Kashmir Committee Chairman Shehryar Afridi, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan, Special Assistant on National Security Moeed Yusuf, and the Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination Dr Fehmida Mirza.
From the opposition side, the APC was attended by Khawaja Asif, Raja Zafarul Haq, Mushahid Hussain Sayed and Senator Murtaza Javed Abbasi from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N); Raja Pervez Ashraf, Syed Naveed Qamar and Senator Sherry Rehman from the Pakistan People's Party (PPP), Senator Mushtaq Ahmed and Maulana Abdul Akbar Chitrali from Jamaat-e-Islami, Aimal Wali Khan and Senator Sitara Ayaz from the Awami National Party (ANP).
Senator Anwarul Haq Kakar from the Balochistan Awami Party was also among the participants, while Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) did not attend the APC. Director General Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt-Gen Faiz Hameed also attended the APC.
The foreign minister gave a detailed briefing to the leaders of the political parties and the participants on the grave human rights violations in the IIOJ&K, and the overall security situation in the region. Qureshi said all Kashmiris had categorically rejected the unconstitutional and unilateral measures undertaken by India in occupied Kashmir on Aug 5 last year.
He said Pakistan exposed the ongoing human rights violations in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir at every international forum, adding that the Indian government's Hindutva policy had not only threatened peace in the occupied valley but also in the entire region.
"India seeks to change the demographic proportion in occupied Kashmir by changing the domicile laws, which is a clear violation of international law," the foreign minister said. Following in the footsteps of the RSS, he added that the BJP government through its Hindutva ideology was not only spreading hatred among the Kashmiris but also in other minority groups in India.
Qureshi said the entire nation, all political parties of the country and the armed forces were united on the Kashmir issue. The foreign minister further stated that Pakistan would continue to support its Kashmiri brothers until they got their due right to self-determination.
Later, while talking to the media, the foreign minister appreciated the opposition parties for giving valuable input in the APC, adding that the parties were also appreciative of the briefing given to them on the lingering dispute.
The foreign minister said the approval of a new political map of Pakistan in the cabinet meeting is a major step. He said that the new political map reflects the aspirations of the entire Pakistani nation.
He said the administrative maps have been introduced before, but this was the first time that a map reflected the aspirations of the people. He said that the map clearly showed occupied Kashmir as a disputed territory and the only solution to the issue would be through the UNSC resolutions and as per the aspirations of the Kashmiri people. In the map, he added that it had also been made clear that Siachen is a part of Pakistan, adding that through the map, 'we are challenging their illegal occupation and claiming our right to the area'.
Qureshi said Pakistan had also rejected Indian claims about Sir Creek in the map. "We have said that our border is towards the eastern bank. India had claimed that it goes towards the west," he said, adding that by doing so, India was trying to capture several acres of the country's exclusive economic zone.
He further said the erstwhile Fata has also been shown as part of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in the new map. In a statement, PPP vice president Sherry Rehman said Kashmir had been under Indian siege for the past one year.
She urged the UN Security Council to implement its resolutions on Kashmir, adding that it was the moral responsibility of the international community and the world leaders to speak up for the human and political rights of besieged Kashmiris.
"Pakistan has always stood by the Kashmiri people in solidarity and for their right to self-determination," Sherry Rehman said, adding the United Nations should play its due role to end the brutal military occupation of the Indian Armed forces.
She further said the United Nations should respect the political aspirations of the Kashmiri people, and ensure their right to plebiscite to determine the future status of the disputed territory. Earlier, a high-level meeting chaired by Foreign Minister Qureshi discussed the situation in the Indian occupied Kashmir for the last one year following the illegal and unilateral steps by the BJP government on Aug 5, 2019.
The meeting was attended by Special Assistant on National Security Moeed Yusuf, Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood, Federal Secretary Information Akbar Hussain Durrani, DG ISI Lt-Gen Faiz Hameed and other senior military officials.
The foreign minister briefed the participants regarding his visit to the Line of Control, Cheri Kot Sector, and Muzaffarabad on Monday. He said the Indian army was deliberately targeting the civilian population along the LoC by violating the ceasefire agreement. The meeting also held a detailed deliberation on the preparations for the programmes related to the 'Exploitation Day'.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
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