Sushma Swaraj on Saturday said Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif must understand that “Kashmir can never become a part of Pakistan”. What Ms. Swaraj must understand is that it is not for her, neither for Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to decide whom Kashmir will become a part of. The people of Kashmir have the right to self-determination and Pakistan will always stand by this integral right. Adviser to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz reiterated this stance and stated on Sunday that the right to self-determination has been given to the people of Kashmir by the United Nations Security Council, not by any state and if given that right to a plebiscite, the world must respect the decision of the people.
Burhan Muzzaffar Wani, the 22-year-old commander of Kashmir’s largest pro-independence militant group Hizbul Mujahideen (HM), the brave young martyr who Swaraj branded a “wanted terrorist”, drew huge crowds of over 200,000 Kashmiris in the funeral prayers in 50 different locations throughout Indian-occupied Kashmir, despite a strict curfew. The will of the Kashmiri people is more than apparent. Indian troops are occupiers who have subjected the people to brutality and oppression. The whole world views Kashmir in the light of the truth whereas the Indian government, their media and Miss Sushma continue to view Kashmir through a warped lens, branding indigenous people who fight for their rights, terrorists and militants.
The government and the people of Pakistan only demand that a plebiscite be held in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions on Kashmir. We will continue to remain firmly committed in our moral and political support to the Kashmiris’ indigenous movement for self-determination, regardless of the number of protests lodged by our belligerent neighbour, and appeal to the international community to step in and help end the long standing Kashmir dispute.