APHC Asserts: No Lasting Peace in Region Without Kashmir Settlement

The All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) has emphasized that achieving lasting peace in the region hinges upon the resolution of the longstanding Kashmir dispute in alignment with the aspirations of the Kashmiri people. According to a statement by APHC spokesman, Advocate Abdul Rashid Minhas, issued in Srinagar, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) regime’s attempts to camouflage the reality of occupied Jammu and Kashmir through propaganda during the Lok Sabha election process are futile.

Minhas contends that India’s efforts to portray a semblance of peace returning to Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) are deceptive. He highlights that since August 5, 2019, the BJP government, with the assistance of the Indian army, police, and National Investigation Agency, has escalated its endeavors to oppress Kashmiris and assert control over Kashmir. This has instilled an atmosphere of fear and terror in the region, contradicting India’s narrative of peaceful normalization.

The policies pursued by the Indian government in IIOJK, Minhas argues, jeopardize the peace and stability of South Asia as a whole. He insists that the Kashmir dispute must be addressed in accordance with the desires of the Kashmiri people to foster genuine peace in the region.

Expressing grave concern over the prolonged illegal detention of several prominent figures including Masarrat Aalam Butt, Shabbir Ahmed Shah, Muhammad Yasin Malik, Nayeem Ahmed Khan, and Aasiya Andrabi in various Indian and IIOJK prisons, Minhas denounces the denial of Jumatul-Wida and Eid prayers at Srinagar’s historic Jamia mosque as a severe violation of people’s fundamental right to religious practice.

Minhas further laments the transformation of the entire Kashmir Valley into a military stronghold, where siege and search operations, along with other brutalities inflicted by the Modi regime, have rendered the lives of Kashmiris profoundly distressing.

Therefore, APHC’s stance underscores the inextricable link between the resolution of the Kashmir dispute and the attainment of genuine peace in the region. By exposing the fallacy of India’s claims of normalcy in IIOJK and highlighting the continued repression faced by Kashmiris, APHC advocates for international attention and action to address the ongoing human rights violations and work towards a just and equitable resolution to the Kashmir conflict.