Islamabad: President Asif Ali Zardari stated that India’s actions since August 5, 2019, demonstrate a complete disregard for international law, the aspirations of the Kashmiri people, and United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).
According to Kashmir Media Service, in a message on the occasion of Youm-e-Istehsal on August 5, 2024, President Zardari remarked, “Today marks the completion of five years of India’s latest campaign to consolidate its illegal occupation of Jammu and Kashmir. On this day, five years ago, India took a number of unilateral and unlawful steps in IIOJK to undermine its internationally recognized disputed status.”
He noted that since August 5, 2019, India has been engaged in an ongoing effort to change the demographic structure and political landscape of IIOJK. This includes issuing domicile certificates to outsiders, registering temporary residents in voter lists, gerrymandering assembly constituencies, and altering land and property ownership laws. Zardari asserted that these actions are blatant violations of United Nations Security Council resolutions and international law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention.
“The continued presence of hundreds of thousands of Indian troops has turned IIOJK into one of the most heavily militarized zones in the world,” Zardari said. “The gross human rights violations in IIOJK have been documented extensively and condemned globally. The mistreatment of Kashmiri journalists and human rights defenders has further revealed India’s willingness to go to any lengths to silence dissenting voices. India will not succeed in suppressing the just struggle of the people of IIOJK through domestic legislation and judicial verdicts.”
For the past seven decades, Zardari emphasized, the Kashmiri people have waited for the United Nations to fulfill its commitments. He urged the international community to pressure India to end its human rights violations in IIOJK and to implement the relevant UN Security Council resolutions. “Pakistan, for its part, will continue to extend full moral, diplomatic, and political support to the just struggle of the people of Jammu and Kashmir for the realization of their inalienable right to self-determination, as enshrined in the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions,” he added.