Student activists display banners during a rally to mark Kashmir Solidarity Day in Lahore. Photo: AFP
ISLAMABAD:
The federal government on Monday announced that February 5 would be a public holiday on the occasion of Kashmir Solidarity Day.
The announcement was made in a press release by the Cabinet Secretariat which said that a minute’s silence would be observed across the country at 10 am in memory of the Kashmiri martyrs.
The Pakistan Stock Exchange also notified market participants that it would remain closed for the holiday.
The origins of the day date back to the early 1990s, when it was first proposed by Qazi Hussain Ahmad.
The annual celebration is used by successive governments to reaffirm support for Kashmiris in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, and to amplify Pakistan’s long-standing call for a settlement in line with United Nations resolutions.
The Ministry of External Affairs has said that the day is a reminder to the world and a show of solidarity with Kashmiris for their right to self-determination. The government’s information department has also linked the day to UN Security Council resolutions calling for a plebiscite.
Read: Pakistan calls for UN-backed plebiscite on Kashmir
Kashmir Solidarity Day is often celebrated with rallies, seminars, peace marches and candlelight vigils, including events in Islamabad and across the country, as well as in Azad Jammu and Kashmir. In previous years, the day included human chains at key connection points like Kohala.
Civic groups and members of the Kashmiri diaspora have also used the day to keep international attention on Kashmir, reiterating calls for a UN-backed vote on the future of the region.
