ISLAMABAD: Parliamentary Committee on Kashmir chairman Shehryar Afridi on Monday urged the opposition political leaders to stand united behind Prime Minister Imran Khan as the premier was going to address the upcoming session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) later this week.
Talking to the media following a seminar on World Peace Day, Shehryar Afridi criticised the timing of the opposition's APC, and announcement of anti-government campaign, saying this would send a very negative message to the Kashmiris fighting the Indian occupational forces and the world.
"Last year after Prime Minister Imran Khan made a historic speech at the UNGA, Maulana Fazlur Rehman and other opposition parties took out a long march and distracted world attention from Kashmir," said Shehryar Afridi. He argued that again when PM Imran Khan was going to address the UNGA, the opposition was again trying to send a wrong message to the world.
He said the entire nation needed to stand by Imran Khan, so a message of unity on Kashmir should be sent as those Kashmiris who were burying their dead wrapped in Pakistani flags might be strengthened.
Earlier, while addressing the seminar, Afridi said the movement of Kashmiri people for self-determination had entered into its logical point, and soon the world would recognise the legitimate struggle of the Kashmiri people.
The seminar titled 'Piecing Peace Together for a shared future for humanity' was organised by the Kashmir Committee in collaboration with the Islamabad Institute for Conflict Resolution (IICR) to mark the International Peace Day.
Afridi said the world had realised the violation of the basic human rights in the IIOJK and nothing could suppress the freedom movement of the Kashmiri people. He said Pakistan was endeavoring to maintain peace in South Asia and it had fought the biggest war on land against terrorism and defeated enemies of humanity. Asad Qaiser appreciated the initiatives taken by chairman Parliamentary Kashmir Committee Shehryar Khan Afridi, and expressed confidence that he had all the capabilities to highlight Kashmir issue at every forum.
Minister for Food Security Syed Fakhar Imam reiterated that Pakistan was incomplete without Kashmir, highlighting the importance of concrete measures for the resolution of Kashmir dispute.
He lauded the prime minister's address to the United Nations General Assembly, last year, and asserted that the political maturity and determination would help decide the fate of Kashmir.
President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Sardar Masood Khan highlighted the Indian brutalities on the Kashmiri people in the IIOJK. He expressed the resolve that the freedom struggle of the Kashmiris could not be suppressed by the brutalities and atrocities of the Indian armed forces. He mentioned that Kashmir and Palestine issues needed to be resolved through peaceful means in order to bring peace and tranquility in the region.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020