Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has reaffirmed Pakistan’s unwavering commitment to the peaceful resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions, stressing that it is in the shared interest of all regional states and the international community to end the long-standing conflict.
In a statement issued on the occasion of Kashmir Black Day, Dar recalled the tragic events of October 27, 1947, when Indian troops landed in Srinagar to enforce what he termed India’s “illegal occupation” of Jammu and Kashmir.
“For seventy-eight years, the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) have endured a relentless campaign of tyranny, oppression, and subjugation at the hands of Indian occupation forces,” he said.
He underscored that the UN Security Council had, through a series of landmark resolutions, clearly affirmed that the final disposition of Jammu and Kashmir must be determined through a free and impartial plebiscite conducted under UN auspices. “India has blatantly defied these binding resolutions, choosing instead to tighten its grip on the occupied territory through sheer force and repression,” the foreign minister stated.
Dar reaffirmed that Pakistan has consistently upheld the sanctity and centrality of the UN resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir and has called on the international community to play its role in ensuring a just and lasting solution to this “long-festering dispute.”
Highlighting the worsening situation in IIOJK, he said that India’s illegal and unilateral actions of August 5, 2019 — including the revocation of the region’s special status — had further aggravated the human rights situation. He pointed to the imposition of “draconian laws,” demographic changes through mass issuance of domiciles to non-residents, and the imprisonment of Kashmiri leaders as violations of the UN Charter and the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Dar also condemned the recent crackdown by Indian authorities in the aftermath of the Pahalgam Attack, which saw mass detentions, interrogations, and the demolition of civilian homes. “These actions add to India’s long record of human rights violations, well documented by UN bodies and global human rights organizations,” he said.
Despite decades of repression, Dar noted, the people of Kashmir have continued their “remarkable struggle for freedom with courage, dignity, and perseverance.” He said the ongoing hostilities between Pakistan and India underscore how “India’s intransigence on the Kashmir dispute and defiance of international law pose a grave threat to peace and stability in South Asia.”
“On this solemn day, Pakistan calls upon the international community to act meaningfully to end the suffering of the Kashmiri people,” he said. “Pakistan will continue to extend political, moral, and diplomatic support to the just struggle of the Kashmiri people and will raise its voice at every international forum until the realization of their legitimate right to self-determination.”
