Published : Feb. 17, 2013 - 19:32
Pakistani Ambassador to Korea Shaukat Ali Mukadam gestures in a speech during a reception commemorating Kashmir Solidarity Day at a local restaurant in Seoul on Feb. 5. (Philip Iglauer/The Korea Herald)
Pakistan’s Kashmir Solidarity Day was observed by the Pakistani Embassy in Seoul and Friends of Kashmir Association, a Korean support group that counts two former Korean ambassadors and a retired general as members, at a local restaurant on Feb. 5.
Kashmir Solidarity Day has been observed annually since 1990 in Kashmir and around the world as a day of protest against Indian control over part of Kashmir.
Pakistani Ambassador to Korea Shaukat Ali Mukadam said in a speech at the event that the day is observed to express solidarity with the people of Kashmir to “reaffirm our steadfast resolve to stand by our Kasmiri brothers and sisters.”
India claims Pakistan interferes in the state of Jammu and Kashmir by stoking unrest in the region it sees as an integral part of its territory.
The two South Asian neighbors which possess nuclear weapons fought four wars over the region since becoming independent nations in 1947. They indirectly clash repeatedly to this day.
Indian-controlled Kashmir was recently put under lockdown with a curfew enforced by Indian security forces.
“The people of Kashmir have been struggling against Indian occupation for the last 65 years,” Pakistani Ambassador to Korea Shaukat Ali Mukadam said during a speech at the solidarity event. “Kashmir is considered an unfinished issue of the partition of the Indian subcontinent by the British in 1947 into India and Pakistan.”
Elections held in 2008, which were regarded as relatively fair by some international observers, had a high voter turnout. Pro-Pakistan parties called for a boycott, however, and that led to the pro-India political party winning by a significant majority and forming the government in the state.
Former Ambassador Oh Jay-hee said that although he does not support the Pakistani position, he attends the solidarity association’s events because he sympathizes with the Kashmiri people and he wants to urge parties to resolve territorial disputes peacefully.
Retired General Ahn Choung-jun, a commander of the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan from 1997-98, expressed his desire for a peaceful resolution of the conflict during the event.
By Philip Iglauer (ephilip2011@heraldcorp.com)