Pakistan draws UN attention towards India’s attempt to change Kashmir’s demography

As part of Pakistan’s consistent political and diplomatic efforts, Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi has addressed another comprehensive communication to the UN Security Council President and the UN Secretary General, apprising them of the latest situation in Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJ&K).

In his letter of 21 May, the Foreign Minister has drawn attention towards the newly-notified “Jammu & Kashmir Reorganization Order 2020” and “Jammu & Kashmir Grant of Domicile Certificate Rules 2020” aimed at changing the demographic structure of IOJ&K.

It has been underscored that these actions are illegal and in violation of the UN Security Council (UNSC) Resolutions and international law, in particular the 4th Geneva Convention. The Foreign Minister has highlighted India’s opportunistic exploitation of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic to further intensify its military crackdown in IOJ&K.

While conveying serious concerns over India’s state-terrorism in IOJ&K, the Foreign Minister has rejected Indian efforts to undermine the indigenous struggle of the Kashmiri people against illegal Indian occupation and brutalization of Kashmiris by terming it as “terrorism.”

The Foreign Minister has also conveyed Pakistan’s concern over the continued ceasefire violations at the Line of Control (LoC) and the Working Boundary (WB) and deliberate targeting of innocent civilians by the Indian occupation forces.

Rejecting the baseless Indian allegations of so-called “launch pads” of “infiltrators”, the Foreign Minister has reiterated Pakistan’s offer to the UN Military Observer Group in India & Pakistan (UNMOGIP) to visit the alleged sites to confirm the veracity of unfounded Indian allegations.

The FM has underlined that the real Indian motive behind blaming Pakistan is to create a pretext for a “false flag” operation, about which Pakistan has been forewarning the international community.

Reminding the UN Security Council President of the Council’s primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, the Foreign Minister has called for urging India to refrain from: committing serious crimes against Kashmiri people; extra-judicial killings, arbitrary detentions and incarcerations; use of pellet guns and live ammunition; changing the demographic structure of IOJ&K; burning and looting of Kashmiris’ houses to inflict “collective punishment,” and end continuing military crackdown and unprecedented restrictions.

As part of Pakistan’s active diplomatic outreach and taking up the Jammu & Kashmir dispute at all international fora, the Foreign Minister has kept the UN Security Council fully apprised of the evolving situation in IOJ&K and urged the Council to play its role in the maintenance of peace and security.

Since India’s illegal and unilateral actions of 5 August 2019, the Jammu & Kashmir dispute has been taken up in the Security Council on three different occasions.

The Foreign Minister separately spoke to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on 22 May 2020 and briefed him in detail on the worsening situation in IOJ&K as well as regional peace and security, urging him and the United Nations to play their role in preventing any escalation and facilitating peaceful resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute.