Kashmiri diaspora angry over Pakistan's poor and authoritarian governance in PoK: Report

London, Oct 26 (IANS) The Kashmiri diaspora have expressed outrage against Pakistani authorities over poor and authoritarian governance in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), calling Pakistan as a “sinking Titanic” that no one wants to board.

Kashmiris have called their ties with Pakistan strained and mentioned that their cultural and ethnic identity do not align with Islamic ideology of Islamabad, which has resulted in some of them thinking to form a government-in-exile that represents Kashmiris from PoK, a report has stated.

Recently, British Kashmiris held a hunger strike outside the Pakistan High Commission in London to highlight the sufferings of Kashmiris, after their protests for basic rights were violently suppressed by Pakistani security forces in PoK, Sakariya Kareem wrote in a report in UK-based newspaper for British Asians, Asian Lite.

London-based journalist Abdul Rehman Khan revealed how Pakistani diaspora from PoK held protests, stopped the car of Pakistani diplomats, and shouted slogans in the UK, as they were frustrated over internet censorship and brutal crackdown. As per the report, Khan in a Facebook post wrote, "Kashmiris! You are not alone; this atrocity must be taken into account. A large number of Kashmiris participated in Sheffield, UK, in favour of the Public Action Committee. The hall became crowded, and there was a large number outside too."

Jamil Maqsood, President of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the United Kashmir People’s National Party (UKPNP), said that Kashmiris living in PoK hate living there as they are deprived of health, education, development, and job opportunities. He said, "It is rampant corruption, liking and disliking, nepotism, and the fashion they have imposed on us. The constitutional restraints have actually ignited the local population." "Pakistan is sinking the Titanic, and we are not ready to ride on it," the Asian Lite report quoted him as saying.

A London-based Kashmiri political activist, Dr Yasin Rehman, accused Pakistani leaders of plundering resources from the PoK for the past 80 years as they prioritised personal gain over the welfare of local residents, according to the report. Meanwhile, a UK-based human rights campaigner Reiss Haidar said that the people of PoK want to break free from Pakistan since they are suffering at the hands of Pakistani government and army.

A report in Asian Lite stated, "UKPNP’s Maqsood said that Pakistan was trying to erode the identity of Kashmiris through territorial manipulations and by inciting violence. 'Pakistan is a rogue state. It has a history of oppressing people. The people are pushed towards proxy militancy. We are not ready to become scapegoats for Pakistan’s militancy,' he said."

Scotland-based Kashmiri activist Amjad Ayub Mirza has decided to form a government-in-exile amid growing brutalities in PoK. He said, "Hundreds of women have announced that they will support this government. Several youths working in the Middle East, Europe, along with several political parties of the diaspora, have gotten in touch with us."

--IANS

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