Recently, I was invited to attend a symposium organized by the Pakistan Repatriation Council (PRC) in Jeddah to express solidarity with the people of Kashmir who are fighting for self-determination. Several prominent figures from the Pakistani community in Jeddah attended the function, which began with the recitation of a few verses from the Holy Qur'an. A na'at in praise of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was recited on the occasion. The speakers expressed their solidarity with the people of Kashmir and voiced their outrage at the persecution and injustice being meted out to them at the hands of the Indian security forces. They demanded that the government of Pakistan exert efforts, together with sisterly countries, to raise the issue at the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) as well as to work for the implementation of UN resolutions with regard to deciding the future of Kashmir on the basis of the self-determination of the Kashmiri people. While presiding over the symposium, Zareen Khan, a member of the Jeddah chapter of the Kashmir Committee, said: "Kashmiris have been fighting for their right to self-determination since July 13, 1931, when 22 boys became martyrs as police opened fire in Srinagar on demonstrators who were protesting against the atrocities of the despotic Dogra rulers." He said the determination of the Kashmiri people to demand their right to freedom remained undaunted despite the use of brutal force by the authorities. Khan called for a fair and transparent inquiry into the killings of Burhan Wani and other innocent Kashmiris. He also urged all community members to pray for the martyrs of Kashmir and for the success of the freedom struggle. At the outset of my speech, I thanked the PRC for holding such a symposium and inviting me to address it. I said: "Kashmir is one of the oldest problems in the world, and the Kashmir and Palestine problems are considered to be a wound in the body of the Islamic Ummah as the world community has failed to find a solution to both of these issues. The United Nations for a long time has been incapable of implementing the resolutions adopted on these issues." I also drew attention to the fact that the Kashmir problem remains a stumbling block in improving bilateral relations between the neighboring states of India and Pakistan. It has also triggered a number of wars fought between these neighbors since the partition of the subcontinent on the basis of agreements reached by the Indian National Congress and All India Muslim League with the British colonial rulers. The state of Pakistan was founded on the basis of the two-nation theory. All of these wars as well as a series of talks held between the leaders of both states have failed to find a solution to the Kashmir problem. Even the resolution of the United Nations to hold a plebiscite for the self-determination of the Kashmiri people about their future has so far not materialized. Initially, India and Pakistan agreed on holding a plebiscite, but later India backtracked citing the elections held in Kashmir after the partition of the subcontinent. In those elections, the victor was Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah, who wanted Kashmir to remain a part of the Indian federal state, claiming that the election result was virtually the same as self-determination. However, Pakistan and the majority of the Kashmiri people were not in favor of this, and they continued to demand that a plebiscite be held under the supervision of the United Nations. Leaders of both India and Pakistan have not yet taken any tough decisions to solve this problem, and the relations between the two countries continues to remain tense and strained over the issue. The OIC always underlines the need to exert serious efforts to support the Kashmiri people in order to achieve their legitimate rights to decide their future on the basis of self-determination. I also spoke about the issue of the stranded Pakistanis in Bangladesh, who have been languishing in squalid camps for 45 years. The position of Pakistan toward key Muslim issues, such as Kashmir, Palestine and the Rohingya Muslims is well-known and commendable. However, there is no justification for Pakistan to ignore the issue of the stranded Pakistanis after abandoning a quarter of a million of its people in extremely miserable conditions. Therefore, I have repeatedly appealed to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to renew the efforts made by him during his first two tenures as PM in addressing this serious issue. As a first step, Sharif is requested to issue directives to the Pakistan embassy in Dhaka to issue passports to these people to enable them to travel to the Gulf states to join millions of Pakistani workers there. It would be appropriate if steps were taken to implement the plan presented earlier by the PRC for the repatriation and rehabilitation of stranded Pakistanis on the basis of a self-financing program and through the initiatives of charity organizations. While concluding my speech, I paid tribute to Abdul Sattar Edhi, the prominent Pakistani philanthropist, social activist and humanitarian. I prayed Almighty Allah to shower on him His boundless mercy and accommodate him in His Paradise. PRC Convener Syed Ehsanul Haque proposed a vote of thanks. He thanked the guests, speakers, poets and journalists for participating in the event. He reiterated the PRC's view, which he had reemphasized on several earlier occasions, that Pakistan is incomplete without Kashmir and the stranded Pakistanis in Bangladesh. He urged Prime Minister Sharif to activate the Senate Committee created in October 2015 under Senator Sartaj Aziz and take concrete steps for the repatriation of all stranded Pakistanis in Bangladesh and thus to find a permanent solution to this long-standing problem. — Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi is a former Saudi diplomat who specializes in Southeast Asian affairs. He can be reached at [email protected]
