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Peace can’t be achieved without resolving

By our correspondents
September 21, 2016

Kashmir issue: Sartaj

Addresses NAM Summit; opposes equating self-determination struggle with terrorism

MARGARITA VENEZUELA: Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz on Monday raised the worsening situation in Indian Held Kashmir at the NAM summit saying the 120-nations group should be outraged by the situation there.

In his address as the Pakistan delegation head Sartaj Aziz said peace in South Asia cannot be achieved without the settlement of the issue of Jammu and Kashmir in accordance with the resolutions of the UN Security Council.

It is tragic that 60 years after being promised the people of Jammu and Kashmir are still waiting to exercise their inalienable right to self-determination and Kashmir along with Palestine has become one of the longstanding items on the UN agenda, Aziz said. We should also be outraged by the horrific images of innocent Kashmiris being killed, maimed and blinded by the use of boot force in Kashmir in the last two months, he said.

Aziz also stated that Pakistan strongly endorses the agreement of heads of state and government in Venezuela to undertake measures to oppose attempts to equate legitimate struggle for self-determination and national liberation with terrorism. Aziz asserted that Pakistan fully endorses the NAM position on terrorism and violent extremism.

We condemn terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Pakistan has lost tens of thousands of lives in this fight yet our resolve is firm, our commitment unflinching and our actions tougher and more wide-ranging than ever, Aziz said.

Pakistan has acquired valuable experience in successfully tackling the menace of terrorism in the past three years and therefore is ready to share this experience with other members of NAM, he said.

My government’s focus has been on building a peaceful neighbourhood and regional connectivity and ensuring an environment that fosters cooperation and development. However in our view peace in South Asia cannot be achieved without the settlement of the issue of Jammu and Kahmir in accordance with the resolutions of the UN Security Council, he said.

 The 17th Non Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit concluded in Margarita Island Venezuela with the adoption of the NAM Declaration on important issues such as terrorism, self-determination, situation in Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan and Iraq and a range of social and economic issues.

In line with Pakistan’s stance the outcome document clearly opposes attempts to equate legitimate struggle for the right to self-determination with terrorism. 

Sartaj Aziz also proposed to set up a high-level Panel to undertake a thorough review of the priorities of NAM with a view to making it a Movement of Solidarity that safeguards the interests of developing countries.

A number of heads of state and government attended the Summit. They urged the revitalization of NAM and adherence to its core principles. They condemned the unilateralist policies of intervention regime change through use of force and imposition of arbitrary sanctions. 

Venezuela will preside over the NAM process for the next three years to be replaced by Azerbaijan in 2019. --Agencies

Muhammad Saleh Zaafir from New York adds: The Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz said that the situation in Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) is not created by Pakistan but a direct consequence of illegal Indian occupation and a long history of atrocities. More than 100 people have died and thousands injured during the recent episode of protest and ongoing curfew in the occupied territory over the past 73 days.

A large number of youth have been blinded by the indiscriminate firing of pellet guns.

In a statement soon after his arrival in New York from Venezuela Sartaj Aziz categorically rejected India’s baseless and irresponsible accusations against Pakistan following Sunday’s attack on Indian troops in Indian Occupied Kashmir calling it a blatant attempt to divert attention from the deteriorating situation there.

The adviser said Pakistan has noted with serious concern the recent spate of vitriolic and unsubstantiated statements emanating from Indian civil and military leadership in the aftermath of yesterday’s attack on Indian occupation forces in the Uri sector of the Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK).

Pakistan categorically rejects the baseless and irresponsible accusations being levelled by senior officials in Prime Minister Modi’s government. It is a blatant attempt on India’s part to deflect attention from the fast deteriorating humanitarian and human rights situation in the Indian occupied Kashmir since the death of Burhan Wani.

Nobody has been spared the brute state force including the elderly wounded patients in hospitals as women and children. This should awaken international conscience.

It was particularly deplorable that (an) Indian minister chose to blame Pakistan for the incident even prior to conducting proper investigation.

The statement is part of a pattern to mislead world opinion and cover up India’s reign of terror in IOK.