Youm-i-Istehsal

Publishing date: 05 August 2024

Published in: The Nation

With the world’s attention focused on the unfolding crisis in the Middle East, the dramatic US elections, the rise of the violent European far-right, particularly in the United Kingdom, and growing tensions around China and Taiwan, Pakistan must ensure that the Kashmir issue remains in the public eye. On the 5th of August, Pakistan will observe Youm-i-Istehsal, marking the abrogation of Article 370 by India in 2019. This action stripped the region of its special status, which had guaranteed a future plebiscite and restricted the central government’s legislative power over Kashmir, including the purchase of land before the plebiscite was resolved.

India’s move was in defiance of the UN and the agreed understanding between India and Pakistan to hold a plebiscite based on the wishes of the Kashmiri people and their right to self-determination. By taking this step, India has made it clear that it intends to unilaterally decide the fate of Kashmir, imposing its will on the people without regard for their right to self-determination. India is following a strategy similar to that of Israel, sending settlers to alter the demographic makeup of the region, thereby ensuring that if a plebiscite is ever held, the outcome will be in India’s favour.

This approach mirrors tactics used by other occupying forces around the world. For instance, in New Caledonia, France has repeatedly sent settlers to prevent the indigenous population from achieving independence. India has also borrowed other methods from Israel, including counterinsurgency techniques such as the use of torture, sexual violence, collective punishment, and terror to suppress resistance. Kashmir, like Palestine, is a conflict driven by a people’s struggle for self-determination against a brutal occupation that seeks to subjugate them through force.

Pakistan must continue to raise this issue and advocate for the rights of the Kashmiri people. A peaceful, negotiated settlement of the Kashmir issue is essential for achieving lasting peace in South Asia.