MUZAFFARABAD: The All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) on Saturday announced a public rally in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) capital on July 13 (Monday) to mark Kashmir Martyrs’ Day, urging people to participate in large numbers to counter India’s propaganda that the people of the liberated territory had become detached from the Kashmir freedom movement.
The announcement was made by APHC Convener Ghulam Mohammad Safi while addressing a press conference.
He was accompanied by Muzaffarabad Mayor Sikandar Nisar Gilani, Refugees Representative Forum leader Ghulam Hassan Butt, Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Cell Director Dr Raja Sajjad Latif, APHC General Secretary Advocate Pervez Ahmed Shah and several other leaders.
Mr Safi said July 13, 1931, marked the beginning of the present-day Kashmir freedom movement, when 22 Kashmiris embraced martyrdom outside Srinagar Central Jail while completing the call to prayer (Azaan), demonstrating their resolve not to live under slavery.
He said the public gathering at Upper Adda in Muzaffarabad would reaffirm that the Kashmir freedom movement remained the “red line” for Kashmiris.
He added that it would also reaffirm that irrespective of internal political differences, people on both sides of the Line of Control were united in their commitment to securing freedom from India’s illegal occupation.
AJK issues
Responding to a question about the prevailing situation in AJK, Mr Safi said the APHC had played its fullest possible role, within its limitations, to help resolve the crisis through peaceful means.
“At the very outset, the APHC issued a statement urging the governments in Muzaffarabad and Islamabad, as well as the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), to engage in dialogue and resolve the issue through negotiations. We anticipated that the longer the matter continued, the greater the loss of human lives. More importantly, there was a serious danger that the international focus, which until then had remained on India-held Kashmir, would shift towards Azad Kashmir,” he said.
Referring to the Kashmiri diaspora, he said: “Our people abroad, who until recently stood outside Indian missions condemning India for its actions in occupied Kashmir, are now standing outside Pakistan’s embassies criticising Pakistan. As a result, India’s actions have faded into the background, while attention has shifted to Azad Kashmir and Pakistan. Since this development is potentially fatal to our freedom movement, we strongly insisted that the issue be resolved through reconciliation.”
Mr Safi said some individuals had also urged the APHC to mediate between the parties.
“I told them that Pakistan was able to mediate between Iran and the United States only because both countries expressed confidence in it. Unless both parties repose confidence in a mediator, no meaningful mediation is possible.”
He said the APHC had nevertheless held discussions with the PML-N, the PPP and the Jamaat-i-Islami, and that all sides had agreed the issue should be addressed through dialogue.
Mr Safi said the APHC had made it clear from the outset that while it agreed with many of the JAAC’s demands, there were some constitutional and legal issues that could not be resolved through street protests.
“If both sides [the JAAC and the government] seek to settle the matter through the use of force, it will inevitably result in the loss of lives. Therefore, we said that the committee’s legitimate demands deserved full support, and we urged the government to accept and resolve all such demands,” he said.
Returning to the core issue of Kashmir, Mr Safi vowed that the freedom movement would continue until the people of occupied Jammu and Kashmir were granted their right to self-determination in accordance with United Nations resolutions.
He urged the international community to take notice of the unrelenting human rights violations in occupied Kashmir and play an effective role in securing the Kashmiri people’s inalienable rights, usurped by India through the strength of its military might.
Dr Latif, Mayor Gilani and refugee leader Butt also spoke on the occasion, expressing confidence that the people of AJK and Kashmiri refugees would jointly play their full role in countering Indian propaganda and boosting the morale of their oppressed brethren across the divide.
Earlier, Advocate Shah said the public meeting would be held at 5pm at Lal Chowk, Upper Adda, and would be preceded by a rally from outside the Combined Military Hospital gate to the venue.
He said an APHC delegation had visited Karachi on July 8, where hundreds of Kashmiri refugees attended its programme and reaffirmed their commitment to the Kashmir freedom movement. He added that, for the first time, an APHC delegation would visit Gilgit-Baltistan on July 19, observed as Accession to Pakistan Day, where another public meeting would be held.
