Srinagar (Jammu Kashmir): All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) sought a peaceful resolution to the long-standing Kashmir issue.
The All Parties Hurriyat Conference in a statement said that the people of Jammu & Kashmir have for the past 74 years been incessantly demanding the resolution of the Kashmir conflict that arose in 1947 when India and Pakistan, the two newly formed states, divided J&K between them. Both claimed Kashmir in its entirety as an “integral part “ without ascertaining the will of the people.
Commitments made to the people of J&K by the Governments of both the states at that time, that their fundamental right to decide their future will be honoured, stands unfulfilled to this day.
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Instead, a policy of repression and intimidation in varying degrees has been pursued by the Government of India resulting in severe human rights abuses of the people of Kashmir.
All attempts by APHC seeking dialogue between India, Pakistan and people of J&K as a means of peaceful resolution of the issue stand snubbed. Instead, leadership is jailed and harassed.
Meanwhile, efforts are on to change the demographic composition of the state to undermine its disputed nature, after it was downgraded to a union territory of India and brought under its direct rule.
All forms of peaceful protest or dissent by the people to this unilateral authoritarian move and its resultant effects is curbed by force as the number of armed troops in the valley is highest anywhere in the world.
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In such situations a curated tour of foreign dignitaries to showcase “normalcy “ in the valley to the outside world is misleading. Peoples spontaneous strike, the only means of protest left to them, speaks volumes to the world of what people feel and want.
APHC appealed to the delegation that for the sake of peace in this highly volatile region to use its good offices and help in facilitating dialogue among India Pakistan and people of J&K for the resolution of this long-standing dispute and bring an end to decades of uncertainty and suffering of the people of J&K.
