Dal Khalsa Thursday hailed the UN General Assembly (UNGA) committee resolution that reaffirmed the universal realisation of people’s right of self-determination was a fundamental condition for the effective guarantee and observance of human rights.In a statement issued here, a spokesperson of Dal Khalsa and its allied group “Sikh Federation UK” urged the UN Secretary General and the Human Rights Council to give special attention to the “violations of human rights especially India’s denial of the right to self-determination”.Dal Khalsa president Advocate Harpal Singh Cheema and spokesperson Kanwar Pal Singh termed the development as a positive step as it gives a ray of hope to all the struggling people that aspire to be independent.Quoting the resolution that the right to self-determination is a fundamental principle of the United Nations Charter, the duo wondered whether the UN Secretary-General would be able to ensure its implementation in letter and spirit.
“Like the citizens of Quebec and Scotland, New Delhi should also give chance to people of Kashmir and Punjab to decide their destiny by holding referendum in both the Border States.”Appreciating the efforts of Pakistan in tabling the resolution, the duo said this resolution if endorsed in the General Assembly would give voice to the yearning for freedom in Asia and across the world.“Sikh and Kashmiri people cannot live securely without securing their self-determination and this was something they must struggle for, regardless of who supports them in the world. Both the Kashmiri and Sikh Diaspora had been and would remain pivotal in the struggle for self-determination.” (CNS)