Pakistan's Ambassador to the United Nations Maleeha Lodhi on Friday said that the people of Jammu and Kashmir may be locked up and their voices not heard in their own homes and their own land, but their voices were heard today at the meeting of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
Pakistan’s permanent envoy to the United Nations Dr Maleeha Lodhi has said the Security Council’s meeting is testament that Kashmir issue is not an internal matter of India but an international issue.
Briefing the media along with the Chinese envoy to the United Nations after the UNSC meeting convened on Friday to discuss New Delhi’s illegal move of depriving Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir of its special status, she said there was an effort to cancel this meeting and we are grateful to all member states for having it.
Dr Lodhi said that all the 15 permanent and non-permanent member states attended the consultative session today, adding that the meeting was briefed on the latest developments and the dismal human rights situation in Occupied Kashmir.
“This is the first but not the last step we have taken on aspirations of people of Jammu and Kashmir. We’ll continue our efforts to peacefully resolve this issue,” she remarked.
Dr Lodhi said the voice of the people of Occupied Kashmir has been heard today in the highest diplomatic forum.
“They are not alone… their voices have been heard, and their plight, their hardship, their pain, their suffering, occupation of their land and the consequences of that occupation has been heard in the UN Security Council today,” she added.
‘Internationally recognised dispute’
Speaking on the occasion, the Chinese ambassador to the United Nations, Zhang Jun, said the Kashmir issue has become an internationally recognised dispute, which should be resolved according to the UN charter.
He said India’s unilateral step has aggravated the situation in the region.
The Chinese ambassador said members of the Security Council generally feel India and Pakistan should both refrain from unilateral action over Kashmir. Zhang told reporters that the situation in Kashmir is “already very tense and very dangerous”.
The meeting was called amid the heightened tensions between Pakistan and India following the abrogation of Occupied Kashmir’s special status in the first week of August.
New Delhi ended the autonomous status of the Muslim-majority territory on August 5, stepping up movement restrictions and cutting off phone and internet access to head off civil unrest, and igniting calls from Pakistan for the international community to intervene.
Kashmiris protested against the Modi government’s highly provocative move after Friday prayers earlier in the day. Police fired tear gas and pellet-firing shotguns to disperse residents who tried to march down the main road in Srinagar.
Protesters hurled stones and used shop hoardings and tin sheets as improvised shields, as police shot dozens of rounds into the crowd.
Moreover, four Pakistan Army soldiers have also been martyred in unprovoked Indian fire along the LoC since Thursday which was retaliated effectively resulting in the killing of five Indian troops, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Imran Khan held a telephonic conversation with United States President Donald Trump and took him into confidence over United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on India’s illegal Kashmir move.
In a televised statement, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said the premier also reached out to four out of five heads of permanent member states of the Security Council over the issue. “We are also trying to contact the French president so that his country understands our position,” he added.The UNSC held a consultative meeting on Friday to discuss the Kashmir issue as Pakistan urged the world body to implement its own resolutions on this 70-year-old dispute.
Briefing the media along with the Chinese envoy to the United Nations after the UNSC meeting convened on Friday to discuss New Delhi’s illegal move of depriving Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir of its special status, she said there was an effort to cancel this meeting and we are grateful to all member states for having it.
Dr Lodhi said that all the 15 permanent and non-permanent member states attended the consultative session today, adding that the meeting was briefed on the latest developments and the dismal human rights situation in Occupied Kashmir.
“This is the first but not the last step we have taken on aspirations of people of Jammu and Kashmir. We’ll continue our efforts to peacefully resolve this issue,” she remarked.
Dr Lodhi said the voice of the people of Occupied Kashmir has been heard today in the highest diplomatic forum.
“They are not alone… their voices have been heard, and their plight, their hardship, their pain, their suffering, occupation of their land and the consequences of that occupation has been heard in the UN Security Council today,” she added.
‘Internationally recognised dispute’
Speaking on the occasion, the Chinese ambassador to the United Nations, Zhang Jun, said the Kashmir issue has become an internationally recognised dispute, which should be resolved according to the UN charter.
He said India’s unilateral step has aggravated the situation in the region.
The Chinese ambassador said members of the Security Council generally feel India and Pakistan should both refrain from unilateral action over Kashmir. Zhang told reporters that the situation in Kashmir is “already very tense and very dangerous”.
The meeting was called amid the heightened tensions between Pakistan and India following the abrogation of Occupied Kashmir’s special status in the first week of August.
New Delhi ended the autonomous status of the Muslim-majority territory on August 5, stepping up movement restrictions and cutting off phone and internet access to head off civil unrest, and igniting calls from Pakistan for the international community to intervene.
Kashmiris protested against the Modi government’s highly provocative move after Friday prayers earlier in the day. Police fired tear gas and pellet-firing shotguns to disperse residents who tried to march down the main road in Srinagar.
Protesters hurled stones and used shop hoardings and tin sheets as improvised shields, as police shot dozens of rounds into the crowd.
Moreover, four Pakistan Army soldiers have also been martyred in unprovoked Indian fire along the LoC since Thursday which was retaliated effectively resulting in the killing of five Indian troops, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Imran Khan held a telephonic conversation with United States President Donald Trump and took him into confidence over United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on India’s illegal Kashmir move.
In a televised statement, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said the premier also reached out to four out of five heads of permanent member states of the Security Council over the issue. “We are also trying to contact the French president so that his country understands our position,” he added.The UNSC held a consultative meeting on Friday to discuss the Kashmir issue as Pakistan urged the world body to implement its own resolutions on this 70-year-old dispute.
The meeting had been called by China on Pakistan’s request to discuss the prevailing situation in occupied Kashmir. In the closed door meeting, briefings were given on the situation and consultations will take place to decide how to proceed further.
In a media briefing following the conclusion of the meeting, Ambassador Lodhi said that the meeting had been called within 72 hours after Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi had written a letter requesting the same.
"We are grateful to China in also joining us in calling this meeting," she added.
"The voice of the Kashmiri people, the voice of the people of occupied Kashmir has been heard today in the highest diplomatic forum of the world.
"They are not alone, their voices have been heard, their plight, their hardship, their pain, their suffering, their occupation and the consequences of that occupation have been heard in the UNSC," she said.
Lodhi said that the very fact this meeting had taken place is "testimony to the fact that this is an internationally recognised dispute".
The UN Ambassador said that there was "an effort to stop this meeting from convening" but thanked all 15 members for agreeing to hold it.
"This meeting has reaffirmed the validity of the UNSC resolutions on the occupied state of Jammu and Kashmir," she said.
Lodhi underscored the fact that Pakistan "stands ready for a peaceful settlement of the dispute of Jammu and Kashmir".
She further emphasised that India's claim that the issue was an "internal matter" stood nullified following today's meeting.
"Today the whole world is discussing the occupied state and the situation there," she said, also referring to the Chinese ambassador's remarks on the human rights situation in Kashmir.
"It is an abysmal situation, with violence carried out with impunity by India. That, too, has been discussed by the Security Council today," she disclosed.
She said she had contacted FM Qureshi who had conveyed that this is the first step that Pakistan has taken on behalf of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
"This is the first and not the last step. It will not end here. It will only end when justice is done to the people of Jammu and Kashmir," she stressed.
She went on to reiterate that the voices of the people of Kashmir will always be heard. "Pakistan will always stand by them, extending full diplomatic and political support."
The UN ambassador concluded by thanking the Security Council for taking up the issue for the first time in 50 years.
Prior to Lodhi's briefing, Chinese Ambassador to the United Nations Zhang Jun held a conference to discuss with the media China's stance on the issue.
He said that the Security Council members "have expressed their serious concern" regarding the current situation in occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
"They are also concerned about the human rights situation there and also, it is the general view of the members that parties concerned should refrain from taking any unilateral action which might further aggravate the tension there," he said.
Presenting China's standpoint, the ambassador said, "China holds the view that the issue of Kashmir is an issue that is left from history between India and Pakistan. According to the relevant Security Council resolutions, the status of Kashmir is undecided and it is an internationally recognised dispute."
"The Kashmir issue should be resolved properly through peaceful means in accordance with the UN charter, the relevant Security Council resolutions, and bilateral agreements. This represents the international community's consensus," he emphasised.
"It's obvious that the constitutional amendment by India has changed the status quo in Kashmir causing tensions in the region.
"China is deeply concerned about the current situation and opposes any unilateral action that complicates the situation and we call upon the relevant parties to exercise restraint and act prudently and in particular, [we oppose] actions that will aggravate the tensions," said the Chinese ambassador.
'Interest renewed'
The foreign minister, in a parallel briefing in Islamabad, underscored the big diplomatic victory for Pakistan as for the first time after 1965, the issue of Kashmir had been brought to the Security Council. He congratulated the nation as new life had been breathed into an issue which was "thought of as dead".
FM Qureshi said that the participants of the meeting discussed the human rights violations in Indian-occupied Kashmir and expressed serious concern over the situation of human rights in the region.
The foreign minister said that the meeting itself was an achievement for Pakistan as it negated the Indian claim that Kashmir was its internal matter. He said that once again the global community had recognised Kashmir as a disputed region.
The minister said that the Foreign Office would further assess the achievement in a meeting tomorrow and deliberate the next steps to take.
He vowed that Pakistan will continue to stand by the Kashmiri people "to every extent". He also thanked various human rights organisations for continuing to highlight the issue as well as the UNSC.
PM Imran takes Trump into confidence
Ahead of the meeting, Prime Minister Imran Khan had a telephonic conversation with US President Donald Trump to brief him about Pakistan's stance on the issue.
"The prime minister conveyed Pakistan's position to him [President Trump] and took him into confidence," Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi had said in a video statement broadcast on television moments before the meeting started.
"Pakistan, like always, is committed to the peace process. The role we have played is for the betterment of the region and the steps we have taken are for the mutual benefit of Pakistan and Afghanistan and for peace and stability. We will continue to take such steps," he had said.
He had also said that direct contact had been established with four out of five permanent members of the Security Council and they were "aware of Pakistan's viewpoint".
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