Amendments to IOK land laws aimed at converting Kashmiris into minority: FO
PAKISTAN has categorically rejected the Indian government's illegal amendments to the land ownership laws in Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) to convert Kashmiris into a minority in their own land.
The Foreign Office (FO), in a statement on Wednesday, said that these laws were promulgated under "J-K Re-organisation (Adaptation of Central Laws) Third Order, 2020". It said that this highly condemnable Indian action is yet another clear violation of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions, bilateral agreements between Pakistan and India, and international law.
The IOK is an internationally recognised dispute under the relevant UNSC resolutions and international law. India’s illegal and unilateral actions of 5 August last year, and subsequent measures, particularly the domicile law and now the land ownership laws, are aimed at changing the demographic structure of IOK to convert the Kashmiris into a minority in their own land.
The FO said that changing the demographic structure of the occupied territory is a violation of the 4th Geneva Convention and constitutes war crime.
All these measures and laws, lacking legal and moral legitimacy, are forced upon the oppressed people of IOK through the barrel of the gun with an unprecedented military siege in the most militarised zone in the world.
It is reiterated that such steps can neither change the disputed nature of IOK, recognised as such by the UN and the international community, nor can they prejudice the inalienable right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people.
The FO urged the UN and the international community to take immediate action to stop India from changing the demography and distinct identity of IOK and facilitate resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute as per the relevant UNSC resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people. UNWARRANTED REFERENCE REJECTED: The FO also rejected unwarranted reference of Pakistan in the joint statement issued by India and the US after their "2+2 Ministerial Dialogue" held in New Delhi a day earlier.
FO Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said, “We take strong exception to Pakistan-related assertions made in the selective and one-sided Joint Statement, devoid of meeting the objectivity criteria."
He said that failing to take cognisance of the grave humanitarian and human rights situation in the IOK, further aggravated by India's unilateral and illegal measures of August 5 last year, is tantamount to abdication of international responsibility.
The spokesperson said that gratuitous and self-serving references in joint statements cannot mask the fact that it is India that continues to be the nerve centre of State-terrorism in the region including IOK, besides being a safe haven for the perpetrators of hate crimes against Muslims and Islamophobia.
He said that India cannot divert attention from the gross human rights violations being perpetrated by Indian occupation forces and the resulting humanitarian crisis in IOK by seeking to project itself as 'victim' of terrorism.
Chaudhri said that international community recognises Pakistan's efforts, sacrifices and success in the fight against terrorism. As a country that has suffered the most from cross-border terrorism, Pakistan would continue to contribute constructively to regional and global efforts to promote peace and stability in the region. He said that it is important that partner countries take an objective view of the issues of peace and security in South Asia and refrain from endorsing positions that are one-sided and divorced from ground realities.
Earlier on Tuesday, the US and India signed a pact to share sensitive satellite and map data, prompting quick warning from Pakistan that the agreement will have serious repercussions for peace and stability in South Asia.
In a joint statement issued after the talks held in New Delhi, Indian ministers – Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh – “called on Pakistan to take immediate, sustained and irreversible action to ensure that no territory under its control is used for terrorist attacks, and to expeditiously bring to justice the perpetrators and planners of all such attacks, including 26/11 Mumbai, Uri, and Pathankot”.