Activists of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan protests against atrocities

Activists of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, joined by those from Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on Tuesday highlighted the atrocities being perpetrated by the Pakistan Army and intelligence agencies against the people of these regions as they staged a demonstration here. They staged the demonstration at the venue of a conference of UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) here, with the hope that the world body will act to stop the gross human rights violations being carried out by the Pakistani forces and spy agencies.

Chanting slogans against the Pakistan Army, the activists carried banners like “Stop human rights violations in PoK and Gilgit Baltistan”, “Save River Neelum and Save Muzaffarabad – PoK”, “Pakistan dismantle terror infrastructure”, “Stop enforced disappearances of Sindhi political activists”. Nasir Aziz Khan, a political activist from United Kashmir Peoples National Party (UKPNP) said, Pakistan is exploiting natural resources of PoK and the indigenous people are paying a heavy price.

He slammed Pakistan for building mega dams in PoK and Gilgit-Baltistan, saying it has no right to do so since these territories are disputed. "The international community should intervene and ask Pakistan to stop plundering our natural resources,” he added.

The activist from PoK also blasted the Pakistani dispensation over its claims of acting against terrorism and extremism. ”Pakistan is saying that it is taking action against extremist groups but practically it is not doing anything. Unless Pakistan changes its narrative, curriculum, which is based on religious hatred, intolerance and extremist views, there cannot be a change," he said.

Khan said extremist groups are being bred and nurtured in PoK. "Youngsters are brain-washed and sent to Afghanistan, Kashmir and Iran for holy war or so-called jihad. They are being used for dirty games, gains and designs," he added. Political activists from Sindh also demanded an end to atrocities committed on Sindhi people in Pakistan.

A large number of Sindhi political activists have been forcefully abducted and many killed in the recent years, allegedly by the Pakistan Army and spy agency, the ISI. Lakhu Luhana, secretary general of World Sindhi Congress, said, “The darkness has dissented on my motherland. The human rights violations are unprecedented and with all the struggle of Sindhi people, they are not stopping.

"They are not stopping the enforced disappearances, they are not stopping the extra-judicial killings of Sindhi people, they are not stopping the violence against religious minorities, they are not stopping the abduction of Sindhi Hindu girls, they are not stopping taking away my resources, they are leaving our people to die and that’s the reason we have protested”. Political activists from Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa also joined the protest to raise the gross human rights violations in their provinces.

(With inputs from agencies.)