Firdous asksFazl to hold march for freedom of Kashmiris

ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan on Friday urged Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman to march for the freedom of Kashmiris and not for those who have looted national wealth.

In a series of tweets, Dr. Awan pointed out that Fazl considered the present democratic system as bogus because he was not part of it. She added Fazl claimed to be a champion of democracy but now he was trying to topple the system. "Where all his principles have gone?," she questioned.

Dr Awan alleged the JUI-F chief was more interested in the chairmanship of Kashmir committee than to highlight the plight of Kashmiris. She urged JUI-F not to lock down Islamabad for the sake of a house in the Ministers' Enclave.

Dr. Firdous Awan added that instead of giving advice to others, he should ask his son to tender resignation from National Assembly's membership. "It is strange that Maulana Fazlur Rehman considered the Parliament as bogus but the salary and perks of his son as MNA were justified for him," she added.

She threw a challenge to JUI-F supremo to ask his own son to tender resignation as legislator. She remarked, “for his own son, the Parliament is halal, his salary and perks and privileges are also halal and so is his seat”.

Meanwhile, Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan said that Pakistan would continue to raise voice for the legitimate and principled stance of Kashmiri people for their right to self-determination. Speaking here at the Kashmir Solidarity Youth Convention she said the world must listen to the sobs and cries of Kashmiri children, who were facing the worst form of Indian state terrorism and brutalities.

She again said that Prime Minister Imran Khan had become the ambassador and advocate of Kashmir to heal the wounds of Kashmiri children. She said that the prime minister was contacting important capitals to apprise them of the ground situation in Indian Occupied Kashmir.

The human rights champions, she emphasised, should also come forward and extend their support to the oppressed Kashmiri people, regretting that Occupied Kashmir had been turned into the world's biggest prison, where people had been detained to their homes, whereas human rights organisations, the media and the UN bodies had no access to the held valley.

Dr. Awan maintained that people of Pakistan stood firm with their Kashmiri brothers and sisters and asserted that the Kashmir freedom struggle was not a T-20 match.

She also spoke during a rally organised by women employees of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and said women of Pakistan were with their Kashmiri mothers, daughters and sisters in raising their voice against Indian oppression continuing in Occupied Kashmir. The rally was taken out to express solidarity with the people of Occupied Kashmir.

Dr Ashiq Awan said the people of Occupied Kashmir were writing a new chapter through their determination, struggle and blood to get rid of Indian oppression and that the day was not far off when Kashmiris' struggle would bear fruit and they would soon come out of the Indian slavery.

“Kashmiri people are not being allowed to offer Friday prayers and other religious activities for the last one and a half month. There is acute shortage of medicines and food,” she lamented.

Prime Minister Imran Khan, she noted, was vociferously raising the issue of Kashmir to the world. She continued the Prime Minister would certainly highlight this matter in his address at the UN General Assembly and during his interactions with the world leaders, rights organisations, and the international media. She joined her voice with the participants and raised slogans in favour of Kashmiris and condemned Indian atrocities on them.