PM Imran Khan expresses concern over violations of human rights in IIOJK

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – A delegation of the OIC Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission (IPHRC), led by its Chair Dr Saeed Al-Ghufli, called on Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday.

The prime minister expressed grave concern on the egregious violations of human rights in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), which have assumed alarming proportions during the last two years.

He shared his deep anguish over the hardships and suffering being endured by the people of the occupied territory, especially since August 5, 2019 when Indian took illegal and unilateral measures in IIOJK.

The prime minister added that the people of IIOJK, demanding their inalienable right to self-determination promised to them under numerous UN Security Council resolutions, were being brazenly brutalized, extra-judicially killed, injured, maimed, tortured and arbitrarily detained. "The indiscriminate use of pallet guns had resulted in mass blindings of Kashmiri youth. However, despite using every single tool of oppression, India had failed to break the will of the Kashmiri people."

He added that the situation in Jammu & Kashmir and in Palestine was a 'huge injustice of history' and it was important for the OIC and the world to take steps to correct it. Dilating upon the Indian regime’s 'Hindutva' ideology, the prime minister emphasized that Kashmiri Muslims were being targeted in order to suppress their demand for freedom from Indian occupation and repression.

He underscored that Muslims in IIOJK were being denied their fundamental right to self-determination as well as freedom of religion or belief. "The Kashmiri Muslims risked losing their majority and distinct identity due to the demographic changes being effected in the occupied territory, which was in violation of the 4th Geneva Convention and tantamount to war crimes."

The prime minister appreciated the work of IPHRC in highlighting India’s gross, systematic and widespread human rights abuses in IIOJK. He recalled that, as an independent expert body, IPHRC’s views were based on facts and the grim realities existing on the ground. "The people of IIOJK were thankful to the Commission for understanding their plight and bringing it to the attention of OIC and the international community."

He reiterated the urgent need for the reversal of all illegal and unilateral steps taken by India on and after August 5, 2019 along with an immediate end to the human rights violations in IIOJK. He also spoke about rising Islamophobia and stressed the need for the Muslim Ummah to make collective endeavours to counter this scourge.