A special Cabinet meeting in the provincial capital has decided to mark July 19 as a 'black day' against the killings in the Indian-administered Kashmir. It also decided to convene a joint session of the Parliament to discuss the current situation there. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif chaired Friday's meeting.
A declaration, issued after the meeting held at the Governor's House, said Pakistan would continue to provide moral and diplomatic support to the Kashmiris and rued the Indian attempts to suppress them. In his address, Nawaz Sharif urged the United Nations to fulfil its "incomplete agenda" on Kashmir and ensure the Kashmiris' right of self-determination. "The entire Pakistani nation and I steadfastly stand by the Kashmiris against the Indian oppression." he said.
He made it clear that the country would continue to provide moral and diplomatic support and warned that Indian hostility would only strengthen the Kashmiris' resolve, saying, "baseless propaganda cannot demoralise the Kashmiris' movement, or misguide the international community. If Indian forces continue with the horrendous practice of killing the innocent, it will be a bad omen for the peace of the region."
"The 700,000 Indian security forces in the disputed region cannot repress the Kashmiri's movement for their right of self-determination. Pakistan will play its role towards awakening the conscience of the international community," he added. Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry earlier briefed the Cabinet on the situation in the Indian-held Kashmir.
The Cabinet then urged the Indian government to engage the Kashmiri youth who, it said, had for the past three years, instead of picking up arms, taken to the platform of the social media to campaign for their message, in dialogue and accept their demands. It is understood that the permanent representative in the United Nations, Maleeha Lodhi, in a meeting with the United Nations Under-Secretary General, Edmond Mulet, in New York, had warned that the situation in Kashmir could threaten the regional peace.
APP adds: "I and entire Pakistan nation steadfastly stand by Kashmiris against Indian oppression," prime minister said, according to details of the meeting as given here by the PM's Office. Nawaz Sharif said the Kashmiris were fighting for their freedom and emphasised that Indian hostilities would further strengthen their resolve. He stressed that calling the freedom movement as terrorism, was a sheer dishonest on part of India.
It was the golden opportunity for the Indian government to engage the Kashmiri youth in dialogue and accept their just demands, the Cabinet stressed. The declaration said it was regretful that India once again tried to suppress the voice of Kashmiris, considering them as slaves and martyred the representative of new generation Burhan Wani. India has to understand that hearts cannot be won with the use of force. Pakistan and Kashmir are linked with a relationship of history and tradition, and the people of Pakistan consider the pains and pleasures of the Kashmiris of their own, it said.
The Federal Cabinet asked India to hold dialogue with Pakistan on Kashmir issue and also include Kashmiri leaders in it. The Federal Cabinet directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to highlight through their envoys abroad the plight of Kashmiris at the hands of Indian security forces. Earlier, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry briefed the Cabinet about the situation in Indian-Held Kashmir.
The meeting condemned the terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and France and expressed grief over the loss of precious lives. The Cabinet also offered Fateha for late social worker Abdul Sattar Edhi, Qawwal Amjad Sabri and the Kashmiri martyrs.