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20.02.2011
Deputy Secretary General of the UNIW gave a speech at the International Kashmir Conference
Bismillahirrahmanirrahim,
His Excellency,
President and Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir,
Valuable NGOs representatives,
Dear Pakistani
and Kashmiri brothers,
I greet all of you with respect and love.
Esteemed participants,
I am enormously grateful for the opportunity to address this International Conference on Jammu & Kashmir. I need not to repeat the historical background of the Kashmir issue, as you know that the Kashmir question is one of the oldest unresolved international problems in the world. The United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution # 47 on April 21, 1948 which states that the future of Jammu and Kashmir must be ascertained in accordance with the wishes and the will of the land.
But unfortunately, these resolutions of the Security Council were never implemented, nor were the promises made by India kept until today, resulting into the suffering and pain of the people of the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
The demand of the people of Kashmir is very simple. They want to be free of military occupation and to decide their future by a democratic vote, impartially supervised. A mechanism for the exercise of this right has already been defined by the United Nations Security Council. This mechanism needs to be activated and implemented. Once the international community takes the civilized course of ascertaining the wishes of the Kashmiri people, we are confident that peace and security can be restored to the troubled land of Jammu & Kashmir and the ground prepared for the enjoyment of human rights of the people of Jammu & Kashmir.
Let me at the outset remind the audience here about the commitment of Turkish Government towards Kashmir. Addressing a press conference here in Islamabad, H.E Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Prime Minister of Turkey said that Turkey supports Pakistani stance on Kashmir problem. This issue has to be resolved. The dialogue process initiated by Pakistan and India for resolution of contentious issues is a welcome movement. There should be no more bloodletting on Kashmir dispute. The Prime Minister further said that we want both India and Pakistan find solution to Kashmir issue through meaningful dialogue.
Turkish foreign minister, H.E Ahmet Davutoglu spoke during the OIC
Kashmir Contact Group Meeting in New York in September 2010. He pleaded for lasting settlement of the Kashmir problem and he hoped that India – Pakistan engagement would need fruitfully to a just and lasting solution in accordance with international legitimacy. In this context, he extended his complete support to the talks taking place between India and Pakistan and hoped that it will lead to fulfilling the aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, thus opening the channels for wellbeing and prosperity in the region. He reminded the group that his government supports implementation of the United Nations Security Council resolutions and respect for human rights in Jammu and Kashmir. He expressed his great concern for the human rights violations taking place in Indian Occupied Kashmir.
Valuable friends,
Today, unfortunately, the people of Jammu & Kashmir are experiencing the horrors of state-sponsored terrorism on daily basis: extrajudicial killings that have been responsible for the killings of more than 100,000 innocent people of Kashmir in the last two decades, rape, torture, arbitrary detentions, and ruthless suppression of political expression.
In order to silence the peaceful assertion thousands of Kashmiri activists and leaders have been put behind the bars and illegally detained in different detention centers. Some of them are booked under the notorious Public Safety Act without any trial for a period of two years.
But despite these atrocities, over the past three years, we had experienced some unprecedented massive peaceful, indigenous and non-violent protests against the Indian occupation. At times the number of people in these processions exceeded more than one million. They have sent a loud and clear message to the international community that the people of Kashmir will not accept anything short of total freedom from Indian occupation.
Pakistani government has shown great courage and statesmanship by putting forward a number of innovative proposals to help in resolving the Jammu and Kashmir dispute. I believe measures like demilitarization and withdrawal of troops from urban areas will have a very positive effect in easing the everyday lives of Kashmiris.
Regrettably, the Indian government has not shown any flexibility or desire to engage in any constructive dialogue on these issues. We can only hope that Indian government will not allow this historical opportunity to lapse.
All those who believe in an inclusive, pluralistic global village that recognizes spaces for individual expression must seize the moment and call for the settlement of the dispute to the satisfaction of India, Pakistan and the people of Kashmir. They should let both India and Pakistan know that they cannot settle the Kashmir dispute by themselves. The All‑Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) in Indian Occupied Kashmir should be included in the talks. APHC is dedicated to a peaceful resolution of the Kashmir conflict through negotiations between genuine representatives of Kashmiris, India, and Pakistan.
To conclude, I would once again re-assure our brothers and sisters in Occupied Kashmir that we stand with you shoulder to shoulder for peaceful resolution of Kashmir dispute in accordance with the aspirations of the people in line with international agreements and commitments by both India and Pakistan at the United Nations.
Let us hope and pray that the people of Jammu and Kashmir are free from the occupation of India.
My dear brothers,
The Unity of Non-governmental Organizations of Islamic World (UNIW) is the greatest umbrella civil organization of Islamic world which was established in 2005 and has 200 members
from 50 countries.
We are going to keep watching more closely and continuously the troubles of Kashmiri brothers and sisters.
We have never overlooked the Kashmir dispute in our Council meetings that we have held so far. We discussed that issue once again in our 11. Council meeting that we held yesterday in Islamabad.
I appreciate all our friends who work consciously for resolution of that issue Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai, respected member of our council, being in the first place.
I submit my grateful feelings to the President and prime minister of Kashmir and Kashmiri friends who did not spare their support to organize that meeting and to the government of Pakistan and Pakistani brothers and the speakers and all participants.
Ali Kurt