Staff Reporter
Islamabad
OIC Secretary General’s Special Envoy for Jammu and Kashmir, Ambassador Yousef M. Al Dobeay, along with a high level delegation, called on Prime Minister Imran Khan, today.
The Prime Minister welcomed the timely visit of the OIC delegation to Pakistan and AJK. He lauded OIC for extending unwavering support to the people of Jammu and Kashmir, particularly in the aftermath of India’s unilateral and illegal actions of 5 August 2019.
He stated that since 5 August 2019, 8 million Kashmiris continued to suffer under the lockdown and communications blackout, turning the entire IOJ&K as the world’s largest open prison. The Prime Minister emphasized that the people of Pakistan as well as Kashmiris looked towards the OIC and Muslim Ummah for active support in the resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the relevant UNSC resolutions.
The Prime Minister also apprised of the grave implications of extremist “Hindutva” ideology of the RSS-BJP dispensation, manifest in discriminatory policies against minorities in India especially Muslims. Drawing a parallel between the recent anti-Muslim Delhi riots and the 2002 Gujarat pogrom, the Prime Minister warned that under the rising wave of “Hindutva” the situation could worsen even further. He underlined the need for the international community to take cognizance of the situation and work to effectively address it.
Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has said that an inclusive government in Afghanistan is the only way forward for achieving peace in the war-torn country and hoped that the future would be inclusive.
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)’s Special Envoy for Jammu and Kashmir Ambassador Yousef M. Al Dobeay said on Tuesday that the “OIC has always strongly supported the resolution of the Kashmir issue and the resolution of both Kashmir and Palestine issues stand at the top of OIC’s agenda.”
He made these remarks during a press conference with Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi in Islamabad on Tuesday.
The special envoy is part of a six-member delegation that reached Pakistan on Monday for a five-day visit to witness the destruction and sufferings caused by ceasefire violations by Indian troops along the Line of Control (LoC).
“The issue of Kashmir is very close to our heart and all members are on the same page regarding its resolution”. He added that a detailed report on Indian-occupied Kashmir will be presented to the office of the secretary general on his return. Qureshi said that Pakistanis have certain expectations from the OIC and expressed the hope that it will not disappoint them.
The foreign minister also expressed the hope that Al Dobeay will “make [the organisation] more aware [about Kashmir] and tell them the expectations of the Pakistani people” after his tour of the country. Qureshi said that during his meeting with Al Dobeay, he made him “aware of the expectations the people of Pakistan have from the OIC and the importance they give to it.”
