Kashmir Black Day: President, PM reaffirm solidarity, say no lasting South Asia peace without just settlement

Messages: Separate Black Day messages from President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif

Occasion: October 27 — 79 years since Indian troops landed in Srinagar

Position: A just settlement in line with UN Security Council resolutions and Kashmiri aspirations

ISLAMABAD — The messages issued from Islamabad on Tuesday to mark Jammu and Kashmir Black Day carried the same point in two voices: Pakistan stands with the Kashmiri people, and there can be no lasting peace in South Asia without a just settlement of the Kashmir dispute. President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif both reaffirmed Pakistan’s moral, diplomatic and political support for the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

The prime minister said Pakistan’s position on Jammu and Kashmir remained clear, consistent and principled. Lasting peace and stability in South Asia, he said, cannot be achieved without a just and peaceful resolution of the dispute, in accordance with the relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people. “On this Jammu and Kashmir Black Day, the Government and people of Pakistan reaffirm their unwavering solidarity with the people of IIOJK,” he said.

A wound 79 years old

Shehbaz Sharif recalled that 79 years ago, on this very day, Indian forces landed in Srinagar — the start of what he called a tragic chapter in the history of Jammu and Kashmir, one whose shadow endures to this day. Since then, he said, the Kashmiri people have been denied their inalienable right to self-determination, even though that right is affirmed in the relevant Security Council resolutions. The people of IIOJK, he added, have endured immense hardship, suffering and repression, yet their courage, resilience and determination to secure their fundamental rights remain undiminished.

Concern over detained leaders and the August 5, 2019 measures

The prime minister expressed deep concern over restrictions on fundamental freedoms and the prolonged incarceration of Kashmiri political leaders, activists and human rights defenders, saying the situation called for due process, respect for basic liberties and greater international attention. He also said India’s unilateral measures since August 5, 2019, had affected the political, legal and demographic character of the territory, and that those developments needed to be addressed in accordance with international law and applicable UN resolutions.

The president’s message: their voice will be raised at every forum

President Zardari paid tribute to the sacrifices and resilience of the Kashmiri people and reaffirmed that Pakistan would continue to raise their voice at every appropriate international forum and advocate the realisation of their legitimate aspirations. He too highlighted the August 5, 2019 actions, saying they sought to alter the constitutional and legal status of Jammu and Kashmir. Both leaders paid tribute to the countless Kashmiri men, women and children who have sacrificed for justice, dignity and freedom, and said Pakistan would stand with them in that pursuit.