‘World to feel impact if war imposed on us’

ISLAMABAD: President Dr. Arif Alvi on Wednesday said Pakistan did not wish a war with India but if it broke out, it would not remain limited to the two countries and the whole world would feel its impact.

He was addressing an impressive flag-hoisting ceremony as the chief guest at the Jinnah Convention Center here in connection with the 73rd Independence Day of Pakistan. The president asked India to stop its brutal treatment of Kashmiris, grant them communication access and restore their civic and social liberties. He emphasised that India could not change the disputed status of Kashmir through illegal actions.

He noted that India had been violating the ceasefire agreement by targeting the civilian populations along the Line of Control (LoC). He said Pakistan was a peace-loving country and wanted to resolve the issue of Kashmir through negotiations but India should not ‘misunderstand our policy of peace as our weakness.’

He asked India to be reasonable and shun state terrorism and coercion, which had already smashed its secular face and claim of democracy, as it unleashed atrocities on the minorities.

He asked the nation to fully utilise the social media to expose the heinous crimes being committed by India against the Kashmiris. He also demanded the human rights body of the UN and OIC to constitute an inquiry commission to probe the human rights violations being committed in the Indian Held Kashmir.

He said Pakistan would always stand with its Kashmiri brethren in their just right to self-determination. “We are for Kashmiris and they are for us. Their plight and affliction affects us. Pakistan will continue political, diplomatic and moral support to Kashmiris and will never step back from it,” he said.

Dr. Alvi pointed out that immediately after India's unilateral actions in the IHK, the Government of Pakistan suspended trade with India, downgraded diplomatic relations and decided to take the issue of Kashmir to the UNSC.

The president said the unanimous resolution adopted at the joint sitting of parliament’s two chambers strongly condemned the unilateral and illegal steps taken by India to change the disputed status of Kashmir.

“Pakistan does not accept the efforts to change the demographic composition of occupied territory,” he made it clear. Dr Alvi said India had not only violated the UN resolutions on Kashmir, but also threw the Simla agreement to dustbin while the Indian act of changing the status quocontravened the Shimla Agreement too.

He said the presence of 0.9 million Indian troops had made Kashmir the highest militarised zone in the world. He said the blocking of communication and freedom of expression was a serious violation of human rights of Kashmiris.

Dr Alvi urged the youth to value the country as a blessing and never forget the sacrifices of our great leaders. He urged them to devote themselves to the development and reconstruction of the country and be proud of their social values.

He paid rich tribute to the sacrifices and dedication of the armed forces and said they never let any damage done to the country by displaying their courage and professionalism. Earlier, the president hoisted the national flag at the ceremony. Chairman Senate Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani, Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser, MNAs, senior military and civilian officials, diplomats and a large number of people, including students from various walks of life, attended the ceremony, besides Special Assistant to PM on Information and Broadcasting Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan.

Mishal Malik, wife of incarcerated Hurriyat leader Yasin Malik, also spoke on the occasion. APP adds: He said the Indian armed forces were blatantly violating the fundamental human rights of Kashmiris by resorting to murder and plunder, violence, illegal imprisonment, use of pellet guns, and rape of Kashmiri women.

The president said Pakistan strongly supported the right to self-determination of the people of IHK as provided for in the United Nations Security Council's resolutions and international law. “India should not forget that there are three parties to the Kashmir dispute: Pakistan, India, and the people of Kashmir.

The people of Kashmir have a right to plebiscite to determine their future, but obstinate India has never allowed them to exercise it,” he added. Reminding India of its commitments to the Kashmir issue, the president also quoted a significant part of a speech of Indian Prime Minister Nehru in the Indian Parliament on August 7, 1952, “Let me say clearly that we accept the basic proposition that the future of Kashmir is going to be decided finally by the goodwill and pleasure of her people. The goodwill and pleasure of this Parliament is of no importance in this matter, not because this Parliament does not have the strength to decide the question of Kashmir but because any kind of imposition would be against the principles that this Parliament holds.”

Nehru further said, “I want to stress that it is only the people of Kashmir who can decide the future of Kashmir.” He said the persecution of minorities by the so-called largest democracy of the world, India, was known to everyone.

“Religious extremism has tarnished the face of a secular India and the reports of international human rights watchdogs are enough to clear all delusions,” he added. President Alvi said today the Muslims and other minorities in India had realised the political vision and Two-Nation Theory of Quaid-i-Azam and were openly acknowledging that their ancestors had made a historic and political mistake by not joining Quaid-i-Azam at the time of Partition.

He said India was continuously violating the ceasefire agreement through unprovoked firing and bombing of people across the Line of Control. “India’s irresponsible and belligerent actions pose a grave danger to peace and stability in South Asia. Pakistan is a peace-loving country and is desirous of peace in the region. We want to resolve the Kashmir issue through dialogue and diplomacy in accordance with the international law.”

The president said Pakistan also wanted to clarify that India should not take its desire for peace as a sign of weakness. He also warned the Indian leaders to come to their senses and avoid creating an irreversibly dangerous situation.

He urged the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the United Nations to constitute an inquiry commission to investigate the human rights violation in the IHK. He also thanked those friendly countries which stand by the oppressed Kashmiris in this difficult time.