UKPNP chief voices concern over oppression of religious minorities in PoK

GENEVA: Shaukat Ali Kashmiri, exiled chairman of United Kashmir People's National Party (UKPNP) raised concerns and miseries of religious minorities in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) at a symposium organised here.

Interfaith International organised a symposium on Freedom of Religion, Human Rights and Politics on Wednesday.

At the outset of the symposium, Kashmiri expressed his gratitude towards Dr Charles Grave, Secretary General of Interfaith International, for providing space to highlight the plight of suffering minorities.

"Some governments are not ready to give space for religious minorities. Every government has their own agenda but only the democratic countries recognised our basic rights but all those countries where there is no democracy are not ready to give us a taste to human rights," he said.

The rights activist further noted the floating problems of the PoK.

"And we are the unfortunate as we are divided forcefully and now our area which is under Pakistani occupation used as a launching pad for the terrorist activities and nobody is ready to open their eyes to see what happened," he added.

Kashmiri recalled a recent incident where 22 children hardly 17-18 years old were kidnapped following which their parents protested but were threatened and asked to not say anything regarding these missing children.

He said, "It is one of the prescribed organisations who kidnap them and now they are in that prescribed organisation for study. And the government of Pakistan is saying then it has dismantled all the terroristic infrastructure and all the organisations out there, but it is an open secret that still the terrorist activities are going on in our areas and the people are protesting."

Kashmiri then spoke about the oppression of Muslim minorities who live in China.

"It is a very sad story regarding the Muslims who lived in China, their miseries, their freedom of expression, their freedom of religion is totally compromised," he said.

In China, Muslims have no right to practice their religious beliefs and become a victim of personal liking and disliking of the systems as they are not pro-people they are not pro-democracy and they do not believe in religious harmony," exiled chairman of UKPNP concluded. (ANI)