BEIJING: Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts on the Kashmir dispute have achieved remarkable results and the entire international community, including the United Nations, has realised that if the Kashmir issue is not resolved fairly, it will seriously affect regional stability and world peace.

These views were expressed by Cheng Xizhong, visiting professor at Southwest University of Political Science and former defence attache in South Asian countries, in an article issued here on Sunday.

He pointed out that on January 28, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called on both India and Pakistan to “come together and seriously discuss their problems” stemming from the unresolved Kashmir dispute, saying his good offices are always available for mediation.

Mr Guterres emphasised that there is no “military solution” to the decades-old conflict.

“Any military confrontation betw­een the two would be a disaster for both countries and for the whole world,” he warned.

On the same day, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Paki­stan to the United Nations Munir Akram said: “The process of de-colonisation will be incomplete until the people of Jammu and Kashmir are enabled to exercise their right to self-determination through an UN-supervised plebiscite as called for in several resolutions of the Security Council.”

Now the whole world is aware of the crimes committed by India: massive violations of human rights with hundreds of Kashmiri political leaders in jail, thousands of young people disappeared, a hundred thousand Kashmiris martyred and 20,000 women raped in occupied Kashmir, and is aware of India’s intention to create regional unrest through the Kashmir issue.

Cheng Xizhong said fairly and objectively speaking Pakistan has been making unremitting and selfless contributions to regional stability and world peace for decades. “I clearly remember that at the beginning of his term of office, Prime Minister Imran Khan extended an olive branch to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the hope of comprehensively easing bilateral relations.

“However, Pakistan’s goodwill did not receive a positive response from India. On the contrary, the Narendra Modi regime has adopted an extremist policy, making enemies on all sides and comprehensively deteriorating its relations with its neighbors. India’s unilateral actions have seriously shaken the foundation for the settlement of the Kashmir issue.

“The efforts of the Kashmiri people to strive for national self-determination are just struggles, and the military repression, information blockade, changing the population structure and other actions adopted by the Narendra Modi regime in Jammu and Kashmir are unjust. India’s unjust actions have not only been strongly resisted by the Kashmiri people, but also been firmly opposed by the people of other parts of India.”

Mr Xizhong strongly believes that justice will finally prevail over injustice, and the bright future of Jammu and Kashmir belongs to the Kashmiri people.

Published in Dawn, February 1st, 2021