MUZAFFARABAD: President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Sardar Masood Khan, has said that designation by the United States of Syed Salahuddin as a global terrorist is a serious misjudgement and gross injustice to Kashmiris.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, he reiterated his condemnation of the misplaced designation. “Indian forces in Occupied Kashmir (IoK) should have been branded with that epithet instead”, he said.
Sardar Masood Khan urged the US to revise its decision which is flawed and biased. Allegations against the Hizbul Mujahideen (HuM) are based on information fed by India, which wants to perpetuate its illegal occupation in Kashmir.
“The US should use its independent judgment and draw a comparison with its own historic freedom movement back in the 18th century. Are Kashmiris any different? Have they not been colonised? Are they not entitled to aspire for their inalienable rights of life, liberty, as propagated by the US constitution?” he asked.
The Kashmiri president called on the US to side with the oppressed, not the oppressor. As a permanent member of the UN Security Council and a global leader, he said, it was the United States’ responsibility to be fair and just; it should help to implement UN resolutions on Kashmir and assist in finding a peaceful, diplomatic solution to the Kashmir dispute.
