ANKARA, 7 September 2019: Speaking at a talk organized by Asma Kopru International Student Association in Ankara on the Jammu & Kashmir dispute, Ambassador of Pakistan, Syrus Sajjad Qazi underscored the need for upholding the inalienable right to self-determination of the Kashmiris as guaranteed by the relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions. The event was attended by a large number of international students currently studying at various Turkish universities.
Ambassador Qazi expressed deep concern at the ongoing lockdown and curfew in the Indian Occupied Jammu & Kashmir, which has now entered into 34thconsecutive day. He said that millions of Kashmiri men, women and children remained prisoners in their very own homes, facing collective punishment, aimed at imposing India’s illegal, immoral and arbitrary occupation against the will of the Kashmiris.
He emphasized that attempts to force Kashmiris into submission would neither change the status of Jammu & Kashmir as an internationally recognized disputed territory nor would the Kashmiris give up their inalienable right to self-determination as result of these inhuman tactics. Ambassador Qazi said that Indian’s highly provocative and irresponsible steps would further destabilize a region, which has already seen several conflicts over Jammu & Kashmir dispute. Inhuman and degrading treatment of the Kashmiris, moreover, would only strengthen the legitimate and peaceful Kashmiri struggle against the Indian occupation, he added.
Ambassador Syrus Sajjad Qazi expressed the hope that the international community would respond to the plight of the Kashmiris by calling on India to end its gross violations of human rights and to resolve the Jammu & Kashmir dispute in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions and wishes and aspirations of the Kashmiri people.