Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, while addressing an election rally in Bagh, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, said that Kashmir is facing one of the most difficult periods in its history, with the people of the Poonch Division bearing the brunt of the crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman Bilawal said that nowhere else in Pakistan had the Internet and roads remained shut for such an extended period. From the outset, the PPP had maintained that the issues should be resolved through dialogue or by establishing a Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The situation has now reached a point where military and police personnel are being martyred, while Kashmiris are also losing their lives. It is during these circumstances, he said, that a resolution calling for a Truth Commission has been passed in the AJK Assembly. The resolution urges both the protestors and the security forces to cease their activities. All other stakeholders should abide by the Assembly\u2019s resolution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman Bilawal said that free and fair elections were essential to constitute an Assembly that genuinely reflected the will of the people of Kashmir. They are neither willing to establish a Truth Commission nor hold free and fair elections, he said. Never before have elections in Kashmir been conducted in six phases. If there is one Kashmir, then there should have been one election. He said the phased elections had been justified in the name of ensuring security and peace, yet questioned which phase had actually been conducted peacefully.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman PPP said that these \u2018lions\u2019 are hungry for power. They already had 10 seats in their pockets, then robbed Mirpur and Muzaffarabad, and now have set their sights on Bagh and Poonch. On 10 August, they will realise that the people here are lion hunters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman Bilawal said the PML-N was under the illusion that it would form the government in Azad Kashmir, despite elections still being due in Poonch, Bagh, Palandri and Haveli. In reality, it is the government in Islamabad that is in danger, and the countdown has already begun, he said. \u201cI am neither the one saying this nor questioning the intentions of the Prime Minister, but everyone is saying that the government is on the brink of collapse.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman PPP said that those surrounding the PM are not loyal to him and members of his own camp have initiated the political countdown against him. The real battle is not between the PML-N and the PPP, the real contest lies elsewhere between Islamabad and Lahore. A particular faction within the PML-N is rendering every effort of the PM ineffective. The same faction wants him to clash not only with the Opposition, but with his allies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman Bilawal said that PPP workers had been targeted and martyred during the AJK election. Our workers were martyred during Javed Badhanvi and Latif Akbar\u2019s election campaign, he said. My MNA, Salahuddin Junejo, was shot, and even the President of AJK was attacked, Chairman PPP said. This is no alliance, this is a battle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The PPP has presented the people with a new manifesto aimed at addressing the grievances and reservations of the Kashmiri people, Chairman PPP said. We want the valley of Kashmir to become the paradise envisioned by Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto. If we truly wish to realise this dream, we cannot remain content while the people are deprived of the benefits of their own resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He said that unless the people enjoyed the right to governance, the right to ownership and the right to employment, Kashmir could never become that paradise. We cannot keep the people of Kashmir surviving on empty promises. If they stamp the arrow symbol, they will secure their rights. Our Kashmiri brothers and sisters are among the most patriotic people, yet it is a grave injustice that their voices continue to be ignored, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is being said that the system is collapsing, and AJK is the clearest example of this, Chairman Bilawal said. Votes are being stolen instead of counted. The people of Kashmir want genuine representation, yet representatives are being imposed upon them. The people are the true source of power, but democracy and the public mandate are not being respected. The Constitution is the backbone of the state, yet it has repeatedly been abrogated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They say the system has collapsed, Chairman PPP said. However, the truth is that the system has been deliberately made to fail. This situation will persist until the voices of the people of Pakistan and Kashmir are heard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman Bilawal said the country was unwilling to confront its real problems, while everyone claimed to have ready-made solutions. To this day, certain individuals in Islamabad refuse to accept Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto\u2019s principle that the people are the true source of power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They say that the solution for the collapsing system is new provinces. Such a proposal can only succeed if the fundamental rights of the people are first recognised, Chairman PPP said. A senior journalist, Mazhar Abbas, who has been a staunch critic of the PPP, questioned how a country unwilling to grant authority to its own PM could speak of local governments or creating new administrative units.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman Bilawal said that Poonch had the strength to defeat the Khooni League. The PPP pledges to restore Kashmir\u2019s stolen seats when entrusted with the mandate of the people. He said all PPP representatives should be elected through the votes of the people so that the movement initiated in the mountains of Kashmir would continue and spread across every province. \u201cThe people of Pakistan and Kashmir will ultimately secure all these rights,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman Bilawal further said that those who had previously claimed the system was collapsing were now insisting that the government would complete its constitutional term. The very need to repeatedly make that assertion suggests they do not truly believe it themselves, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He reiterated that the PPP would form the government in Kashmir. Addressing the debate over new provinces, he said that any such decision must reflect the aspirations of the people rather than the wishes of a select few making decisions. If it is not the decision of the people, then the PPP cannot be expected to act against their wishes, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman Bilawal said the PPP believed in building consensus. The Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly had unanimously passed a resolution demanding constitutional rights. If there is genuine consensus, be it for a South Punjab province, we support it. However, if it is not the will of the people of Punjab themselves, we will not become part of any conspiracy against them. We can only move forward with the consent of the people, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman Bilawal said that the peace agreement with Iran has collapsed, creating the prospect of a significant economic burden on the people of Pakistan and exacerbating challenges across the entire region. The situation is deeply concerning, especially given the threat posed by India, which has been unable to come to terms with its recent defeat. Coupled with the challenge of terrorism from Afghanistan and the prevailing situation in Balochistan, the gravity of the circumstances is clear for everyone to see.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is not the time for internal political conflict, he said. It is a time for national unity. Instead of fighting its own people, the Opposition and even its allies, the government should unite the nation in confronting these challenges, Chairman PPP said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman Bilawal said that the day was not far when the government would seek the PPP\u2019s support. When that time comes, we will remind them of Mirpur and Muzaffarabad. The PPP is prepared to stand with them in Islamabad in the national interest. However, if they choose to distance themselves from us, that is their decision. We have exercised patience for the sake of the people, but our patience should not be tested, Chairman PPP said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman Bilawal said the people would not allow anyone to steal their mandate. The PPP has every option available to it, and we know how to protest. If the people are denied justice, we will sit among them for their rights. We cannot accept this bloody and rigged election. We will only accept the genuine verdict of the people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chairman PPP said that on 10 August, the PPP\u2019s representatives, Raja Mubashir (LA-14), Sardar Ziaul Qamar (LA-15), Sardar Qamar Zaman and Faisal Rathore from Haveli would emerge victorious. Chairman Bilawal concluded by saying that only the people of Kashmir have the right to determine their own future, and that the PPP would continue following the vision of Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto by securing for the people the right to governance, the right to ownership and the right to employment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, while addressing an election rally in Bagh, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, said that Kashmir is facing one of the most difficult periods in its history, with the people of the Poonch Division bearing the brunt of the crisis. Chairman Bilawal said that nowhere else in Pakistan had the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":78722,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[242],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-78925","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-highlights"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n