Karachi: The Arts Council of Pakistan Karachi organized a ‘Youm-e-Istehsal-e-Kashmir Conference’, bringing together prominent speakers including senior Hurriyat leader and former Secretary of the Hurriyat Conference Sheikh Abdul Mateen, Dr. Khalida Ghaus, Pakistan’s first PhD in Human Rights and an international human rights expert, Jamshed Hussain, Chairman of the Human Rights Council of Pakistan, and Shakeel Khan, Administrative Director of the Arts Council of Pakistan Karachi.
The speakers discussed the prevailing situation in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), the consequences of India’s actions of August 5, 2019, ongoing human rights violations, the Kashmiri people’s struggle for freedom, and the responsibilities of the international community.
Addressing the conference, Sheikh Abdul Mateen thanked Jamshed Hussain, Chairman of the Human Rights Council of Pakistan, his team, and Arts Council President Mohammad Ahmed Shah for consistently highlighting the Kashmir issue and amplifying the voice of the Kashmiri people on international platforms.
He said the Kashmiri struggle for freedom would continue until the right to self-determination is achieved and that the people of Kashmir would never abandon their cause despite continued oppression. He stated that by revoking Articles 370 and 35-A on August 5, 2019, India had stripped Jammu and Kashmir of its special constitutional status, violating not only its own Constitution but also United Nations resolutions. He further alleged that efforts were being made to alter the region’s demographic composition by settling non-residents in the occupied territory.
Sheikh Abdul Mateen said he belonged to Srinagar and that his entire family still lived in occupied Kashmir, where they had made immense sacrifices for the freedom movement. Referring to the prolonged imprisonment of Hurriyat leader Masarat Alam Bhat, he said the Kashmiri leadership had made tremendous sacrifices over the decades and that the struggle would continue until its objective was achieved.
At the conclusion of the conference, the speakers urged the international community to take serious notice of the alleged human rights violations in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir, ensure the implementation of United Nations resolutions, and play an effective role in enabling the Kashmiri people to exercise their internationally recognized right to self-determination.