ISLAMABAD, Oct 27 (APP): The embassies and high commissions of Pakistan across the world observed the Kashmir Black Day on Thursday to condemn Indian human rights abuses in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) and reiterate a resolve to keep supporting the oppressed Kashmiri people.
In this connection, Pakistan’s diplomatic missions held a variety of events including seminars and photo exhibitions, attended by notables from the respective countries, members of the Pakistani community as well as the Kashmiris living there.
The Kashmir Black Day is observed to commemorate the forcible landing of Indian troops in Srinagar on October 27, 1947 which continues to forcibly and illegally occupy this territory ever since.
At the ceremonies, the Pakistani envoys read out the messages of the president, prime minister and foreign minister of Pakistan at their respective ceremonies.
At a Kashmir Black Day ceremony held at Pakistan’s embassy in Ankara, Deputy Head of Mission Abbas Sarwar Qureshi said India had been trying to silence the Kashmiri struggle for freedom and peace through armed aggression.
He reiterated that Pakistan would continue its political, moral and diplomatic support to Kashmiris and thanked the Turkish government and people for their principled stance and support to Kashmir cause.
At a similar event in Tokyo, Charge d’Affaires Ismat Hassan Sial highlighted the continuous atrocities being committed by Indian occupation forces in the IIOJK and reiterated Pakistan’s resolve to keep up supporting the Kashmiri people.
Convener APHC Islamabad Syed Faiz Naqshbandi and President of Kashmir Forum-Japan Shahid Majeed expressed their views on the ongoing repression and grave human rights violations by the Narendra Modi-led Hindutva government.
Besides a photo exhibition held at the embassy, the Pakistani community and Kashmiri diaspora held a protest in front of the Indian Embassy in Tokyo, while holding banners and placards, and also marched towards the UN Representative Office in Tokyo and submitted a demarche.
In Ottawa, Pakistan High Commissioner Zaheer Janjua has called on the international community to come together and demand India’s compliance with its international obligations in line with UN Security Council resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir.
A pictorial exhibition was also arranged to highlight the Indian atrocities in the IIOJK.
Meanwhile, various Pakistani and Kashmiri organisations also planned to hold different Kashmir-related events in major cities of Canada, including capital Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver.
At an event held in Kabul, Charge d’Affairs, Sarfraz Ahmed Khan said that the Kashmiri people were awaiting the international community to fulfill its promise of holding a plebiscite according to UN Security Council’s resolution.
He also condemned the illegal unilateral Indian action of August 5, 2019 including the abolition of special status of the valley in order to marginalise the Kashmiris.
A documentary and a special song on Kashmir prepared by the foreign ministry were run on this occasion.
Ambassador of Pakistan to Russia Shafqat Ali Khan, at a Kashmir Black Day event in Moscow, said, “Pakistan’s only objective is the fulfilment of the legitimate aspirations of our Kashmiri brethren.”
He expressed the hope that the difficult days of Kashmiri people are numbered and light can be seen at the end of the long dark tunnel.
A documentary about the 75-year-long resistance to the Indian occupation and brutality in Jammu and Kashmir was screened on the occasion. A photographic exhibition depicting the Indian atrocities and the freedom struggle was also held.
The Kashmir Black Day event held in Kazakhstan highlighted, through a documentary, the brutal Indian ways of suppressing Kashmiri voices.
An exhibition of posters and pamphlets depicting human rights violations in IIOJK was also displayed on the sidelines of the event.
The Embassy of Pakistan in Bahrain observed Kashmir Black Day at an event held at the Chancery building to commemorate the act of aggression against innocent Kashmiris by the Indian security forces.
The embassies of Pakistan in Maldives and Belarus organized events to observe Kashmir Black Day and express solidarity with the oppressed people in the IIOJK.
The embassy in Greece held a photo exhibition, webinar and presentation highlighting the plight of Kashmiris. “Friends of Kashmir” protested outside the Indian embassy reminding India of its international obligations.
At a seminar organized by Pakistan’s high commission in London, High Commissioner Moazzam Ahmad Khan said on August 5, 2019, the Hindutva-inspired BJP government gave shape to a long-standing design to extinguish Kashmiri freedom struggle through illegal and unilateral steps and the Kashmiris’ rights began to be usurped with ever greater barbarity.
The seminar was addressed, virtually and in-person, by cross-party British parliamentarians including Lord Qurban Hussain, Paul Bristow MP, Khalid Mehmood MP, Yasmine Qureshi MP, Naz Shah MP, Afzal Khan MP and Muhammad Yasin MP. Besides, renowned historian Victoria Schofield, Shaffaq Mohammad former MEP, and Kashmiri Leader Raja Najabat Hussain also addressed the seminar.
The British MPs called upon the UK government to play its due role to protect the rights of the Kashmiri people.
Earlier, the high commission organized a day-long photo exhibition to highlight human rights violations in IIOJK.
