British Foreign Secretary expresses concerns over human rights violations in IoK

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister’s Special Envoys on Kashmir Senator Lt Gen Abdul Qayyum and Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh MNA met the Shadow Foreign Secretary Emily Thornberry at the British Parliament, said a press release on Saturday.

The two Envoys briefed the Shadow Foreign Secretary on the human rights violations in Indian Occupied Kashmir (IoK) and reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to resolve the issue peacefully.

The Envoys urged the Shadow Foreign Secretary to raise the issue of human rights violations in Kashmir in the House of Commons and call upon the UK government to send a fact-finding mission of British parliamentarians to IoK.

The Shadow Foreign Secretary expressed concerns over violations of human rights in Kashmir.

The use of pellet guns by Indian forces, she said, was not acceptable. She also expressed disappointment over India’s reluctance to send a UN fact-finding mission to IoK.

Emily Thornberry said that the only solution to the conflict was through peaceful dialogue keeping in view of the aspirations of the Kashmiri people.

She also praised the role of the Kashmiri diaspora for highlighting the just cause of Kashmir in the UK.