Settlement of Kashmir dispute ‘indispensable’ for peace in South Asia: OIC

The ministers of foreign affairs of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Contact Group have called upon the international community to hold India accountable for the heinous crimes being committed by the Indian occupation forces in the Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

In their joint communique after the meeting on the sidelines of the 76th session of the UN General Assembly in New York on Thursday, they reaffirmed their support for the legitimate struggle of the Kashmiri people for the realization of their inalienable right to self-determination.

They declared that the final settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute as per UN Security Council resolutions and a UN-supervised plebiscite is indispensable for durable peace and stability in South Asia.

They demanded India to reverse all illegal and unilateral measures taken on or after 5 August 2019. They also asked it to stop the gross, systematic and widespread human rights abuses in the IIOJK.

They demanded a halt and reverse the illegal demographic changes in the occupied territory, unrestricted access to UN Special procedures, international media and independent observers to visit IIOJK.

They asked India to take concrete and meaningful steps for the full implementation of UNSC resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir.

They directed their respective permanent representatives in New York and Geneva to regularly brief the UN secretary-general, presidents of the UN General Assembly and UN Security Council, President of the Human Rights Council and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on the evolving developments in IIOJK.