Former Top Pakistani Official Urges US To Hold India To Account For Atrocities In Kashmir

NEW YORK, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 4th Aug, 2020 ) :Salman Bashir, a former Pakistan foreign secretary, Monday urged the United States to assert its moral authority to hold India to account for its oppression in occupied Kashmir at a webinar marking one year since New Delhi revoked the disputed state's special status that heightened tensions in the region.

Bashir, who also served as the ambassador to India, warned that if left unchecked the Kashmiri cauldron could trigger explosions, destroying peace in the region, and sparking wider conflagrations of global magnitude.

Speakers at the Webinar, which was organized by the Pakistani Consulate General in New York, also included Pakistan's Ambassador to the US, Asad Majeed Khan, Ejaz Haider, Executive Editor at Indus news, Muzzammil Ayyub Thakur, President of World Kashmir Freedom Movement, Todd Shea, CEO and founder of Comprehensive Disaster Response Services (CDRS) and Dr. Asif Rehman, Chairman of the Kashmir Humanitarian Task Force 2020.

The webinar, "Kashmir's Continuing Ordeal: A Year After August 5, 2019", was watched by a large number of people through live broadcast on Facebook and Twitter.

In his remarks, Ambassador Salman Bashir said the Kashmiri people had been incarcerated in their homes in a year-long captivity by a million Indian troops and being subjected to the worse kind of oppression.

He urged the US and people to speak up against tyranny and the folly of India's brutal colonial conduct.

At the outset, Consul General Ayesha Ali highlighted the plight of the Kashmiris since India annexed Jummu and Kashmir, one year ago. The siege of the Kashmiris and the violations of their human rights continued unabated even during COVID-19.

Ms. Ali called on international community to prevail upon India to lift the military siege in Indian occupied Kashmir and to hold India accountable for its illegal actions.

Ejaz Haider spoke at length about the illegal Indian actions and India's attempt at the settler � colonial project of India which claims to be a democracy but whose defining feature is a Hindutva � driven exclusionary state.

He said the international community must be made aware that Indian action of 5th August 2019 was illegal as a disputed territory could not be annexed.

Other speakers also called out the Indian extremist government for denying the people of Indian occupied Kashmir their basic human rights.

Muzzammil Ayyub Thakur said India's long and cruel occupation had brought unimaginable suffering to the people. He said Indian illegal action of 5th August 2019,accompanied by a huge security clampdown in the occupied territory, a communications blackout, and an excruciating curfew and deployment of additional troops had turned Indian occupied Kashmir into world's biggest open-air prison.

Dr. Asif Rehman said the road to peace in South Asia goes through Kashmir and the issue must be resolved to avoid conflict between two nuclear armed neighbours.

In his concluding remarks, Ambassador Asad Majeed Khan gave an overview of the egregious violations of the human rights of the Kashmiri since 5th August 2019 by the Indian regime.

Stressing the need to further educate the people on the ongoing situation in Kashmir, he said the consistent efforts of Kashmiri and Pakistani community in the US had resulted in congressional hearings on Kashmir.

The Ambassador drew attention to the extremist Hindu government's decision to demolish the Babri Mosque and inaugurate Ram Temple on the first anniversary of 5th August 2019.

He reaffirmed Pakistan's position to seek peaceful resolution of Kashmir dispute and reiterated the strong resolve of the government and people of Pakistan to continue extending moral, political and diplomatic support to the Kashmiri brethren.