Rallies, seminars and conferences were held by several religious and political parties across the country and Azad Kashmir on Wednesday demanding the disputed valley’s accession to Pakistan.
The series of events marked the 70th anniversary of a resolution that Pakistan believes was passed by political parties in the then undivided Kashmir on July 19, 1947, less than a month before the creation of Pakistan and India, which called for the Muslim-majority Himalayan valley’s accession to Pakistan.
However, the then Hindu ruler of Jammu Kashmir announced the valley’s accession to Hindu-majority India, which subsequently led to a full-fledged war between the two neighbors, a year later in 1948.
Following the UN’s intervention, the war ended on Jan. 1, 1949, with the establishment of a cease-fire line -- commonly known as the Line of Control (LoC) -- that divided the disputed region between Pakistan and India. Since then, the status of the region remains disputed because an agreed plebiscite aimed at giving right to Kashmiris to choose India or Pakistan for accession was never held.
The main event to commemorate the anniversary was held in northeastern Pakistani city of Lahore, which was organized by the Pakistan Defense Council, a conglomerate of several political and mainly religious parties.
Carrying banners and raising anti-India slogans, thousands of participants of the “Kashmir martyrs rally” packed the city’s main Mall Road, and demanded the implementation of UN resolutions on Kashmir.
Another major public meeting was held in Muzzaferabad, the capital of Azad Kashmir, which was addressed by the region’s Prime Minister, Raja Farooq Haider, and representatives of other political and religious parties.
“This is high time for the United Nations and the international community to work to stop India from committing grave human rights violations and the policy of genocide being pursued by Indian forces as manifested in the continued bloodshed of defenseless Kashmiris with impunity in occupied Kashmir,” Haider was quoted as saying by the local Sabah news agency.
Similar rallies and conferences were held in Mirpur, Rawlakot, Bhimber, Bagh, Kotli, and other districts of Azad Kashmir, including some arranged by the ruling Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz group.
Foreign Affairs Adviser Sartaj Aziz also reaffirmed support of Pakistanis and the government for Kashmiris.
“Pakistan continues to pursue its principled position on Jammu Kashmir and extends its steadfast support for the Kashmiris in their just struggle, as Kashmir cause remains close to the hearts of every Pakistani,” Aziz said, according to the Foreign Ministry.
He also met a nine-member delegation of the Pakistan chapter of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference -- an alliance of several pro-freedom political and religious parties in the valley.
Kashmir is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full. A small sliver of Kashmir is also held by China.
India and Pakistan have fought three wars -- in 1948, 1965 and 1971 -- since they were partitioned in 1947, two of which were fought over Kashmir. Kashmiri resistance groups in Jammu Kashmir have been fighting against Indian rule for independence, or for unification with neighboring Pakistan.
More than 70,000 people have reportedly been killed in the conflict since 1989. India maintains more than half a million troops in the disputed region.