By The South Asia Times

NEW YORK— The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir reaffirmed its unwavering support for the Kashmiri people’s right to self-determination during a high-level meeting held on Tuesday the sidelines of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

The meeting, chaired by the OIC Secretary General, was attended by foreign ministers and senior officials from Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Turkiye, Saudi Arabia, and Niger. The participants heard detailed reports from the OIC Secretariat, the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission (IPHRC), Pakistan’s Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Syed Tariq Fatemi, and Kashmiri representatives on the latest developments in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

The communiqué issued after the meeting strongly condemned recent human rights violations in the region. It noted the large-scale arrests of more than 2,800 people, the demolition of dozens of homes, and the ongoing restrictions on religious gatherings following the April 2025 Pahalgam attack. The ministers expressed particular concern over the continued detention of senior Kashmiri leader Shabbir Ahmed Shah, recently diagnosed with cancer, and the prolonged incarceration of thousands of political activists and human rights defenders.

The Group reiterated its rejection of India’s unilateral measures of August 5, 2019, and subsequent steps aimed at altering the demographic and political status of the disputed territory. It emphasized that any electoral exercise held under the Indian Constitution in IIOJK cannot serve as a substitute for the Kashmiri people’s inalienable right to self-determination as enshrined in UN Security Council resolutions.

Expressing solidarity with Pakistan, the ministers voiced deep concern over the recent military escalation in South Asia, including strikes carried out in Pakistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. They welcomed the ceasefire that followed and praised the mediation efforts that helped defuse tensions, but underscored that lasting peace and stability in the region will remain impossible without a just settlement of the Kashmir dispute.

The OIC Contact Group also condemned statements by Indian leaders regarding Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, warning that such rhetoric threatened regional stability. It further denounced the campaign to confiscate properties of Kashmiri activists and the banning of political parties in IIOJK.

Welcoming the visit of the OIC Secretary General’s Special Envoy to Pakistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir earlier this year, the Group urged the OIC Independent Human Rights Commission to dispatch a fact-finding mission to the Line of Control to gather first-hand information. It also directed the OIC Observer Missions in New York and Geneva to circulate the communiqué to all UN member states and international human rights bodies.

The ministers pledged to highlight the plight of Kashmiris at global forums, including the United Nations, and urged India to repeal restrictive laws, lift bans on political parties, release political prisoners, and respect the human rights of the Kashmiri people.

“The unresolved Jammu and Kashmir dispute remains the core issue affecting peace and security in South Asia,” the communiqué concluded.