Pakistan committed to have meaningful, constructive & result-oriented dialogue with India: FO Spokesperson
ISLAMABAD, Jan 21 (SABAH): Foreign Office Spokesperson Asim Iftikhar Ahmed says Pakistan wants to establish peaceful and friendly relations with all its neighbouring countries, including India.
Responding to questions during his weekly news briefing in Islamabad on Friday, Asim Iftikhar Ahmed said Pakistan is committed to have meaningful, constructive and result-oriented dialogue with India, but the onus is on New Delhi to take necessary steps to create an enabling environment.
Talking about Pak-India relations, he said ties are not good since the unilateral and illegal actions taken by the Indian regime on August 5, 2019 in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).
Responding to another question regarding continued oppression by the Indian forces in the held territory, the FO spokesperson said the international community needs to do more in checking atrocities against the innocent people of Kashmir.
Answering a query regarding return of Pakistani students to China, Asim Iftikhar Ahmed said Pakistani authorities are taking up this issue with the relevant Chinese quarters so that Pakistani students can go back to China to pursue their education.
FO spokesperson stated the press brifing while strongly condemning the heinous terrorist attack on civilian areas carried out by the Houthis in Abu Dhabi on 17 January 2022 that claimed several lives, including one Pakistani National. He said that the mortal remains of Shaheed Moomor Khan were repatriated to Pakistan on Thursday with dignity and were received at Bacha Khan International Airport by senior OPF officials. We offer our condolences to the families of the victims and wish speedy recovery to the injured, he said.
He said that Prime Minister Imran Khan had a telephone conversation with His Highness Mohamed Bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces. Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi also received a telephone call from his Emirati counterpart. Both the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister strongly condemned the terrorist attack and expressed solidarity with the brotherly people and government of the United Arab Emirates in the face of this wanton act of terrorism. They called for the immediate cessation of these attacks and underlined that such attacks not only violate the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the UAE but also pose a grave threat to regional peace and security.
FO spokesperson said that today, the Kashmiris in IIOJK and around the world joined by Pakistanis and others are marking the grim anniversary of the “Gaw Kadal” massacre. On 21 January 1990, Indian occupation forces had brutally martyred at least 52 innocent and peaceful protesters in Srinagar for demanding freedom from Indian oppression.
He said that Pakistan stands in solidarity with the victims of this unspeakable crime and reiterates the call for bringing the perpetrators to justice. It is appalling as it is condemnable that even after more than three decades, there is no accountability for this cold-blooded killing, he said.
Asim Iftikhar Ahmed said this travesty of justice is basically a stark remainder of the culture of impunity and rule of NO law that is deeply entrenched and continues to fester in IIOJK – in which the oppressed are punished and persecuted while the perpetrators are encouraged and protected.
He said that for past more than seven decades, Kashmiris are the victims of India’s state-sponsored terrorism, including gross and systematic violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, which have further intensified under the BJP-RSS combine’s “Hindu Rashtra” project, under which sinister anti-Kashmiri policies are also being pursued to change the demographic composition of the occupied territory.
He said that Pakistan condemns the increasing harassment, illegal arrests and registration of fake criminal cases against journalists and civil society activists in IIOJK. The attack and ban on Kashmir Press Club manifestly reflects India’s entrenched use of brute force and coercion to forcibly silence all those raising voices against its horrendous crimes and genocidal acts in IIOJK.
FO spokesperson said that it is encouraging that the international community is increasingly realizing the gravity of the situation in IIOJK towards which Pakistan has been drawing attention all these years. You would have followed for example the Russel Tribunal on Kashmir held in Sarajevo last month, and the filing earlier this week of an application by a London-based law firm (Stoke White) with the British Police seeking arrest of Indian officials over their alleged role in war crimes in IIOJK. Reportedly, the Law firm has submitted report based on over 2,000 testimonies taken between 2020 and 2021, providing extensive evidence to the Metropolitan Police’s War Crimes Unit documenting how Indian military and civil leadership were responsible for the torture, kidnapping and killing of activists, journalists and civilians.
He said that it is self-evident that India can no longer escape international and legal censure for its rampant human rights violations in IIOJK, and we call upon the international community, particularly the United Nations and international human rights and humanitarian organizations to hold India accountable.
“Let India also be reminded that its reign of terror and oppression can never weaken the resolve of the Kashmiris for their right to self-determination. Pakistan will continue to extend all possible support to our valiant brothers and sisters in Kashmir for the rightful pursuit of their legitimate struggle” he said.