Rawalapindi, August 25: The leadership of All Parties National Alliance (APNA), an alliance of nationalist and progressive elements, groups, organizations and political parties of Pakistan-Administered-Jammu Kashmir (PAJK) and Occupied Gilgit-Baltistan (OGB), Mr. Sabir Kashmiri, Advocate, Mr. M. Iqbal, Advocate, Mr. Shahid Hussain, Advocate, Farooq Niazi, Arif Shahid, Prof. MARK Khaleeque, Mirza Nadir Hassan Khan, Mr. Mehmood Baig, Advocate, Wajid Ali Wajid, Advocate, Mehfooz Tahir, Burhan Ullah, Safdar Ali and some others have, in a joint statement, highly condemned the persecution and arrest of Engineer Manzoor Parwana, an activist and leader of APNA, at the hands of agencies, while speaking in a function arranged by the BSO at Skardu (OGB) a few days ago.

They said that Mr. Parwana was just giving voice to his conscience regarding the political, economic, social and human rights of the people of OGB and was not involved in any subversive activity. The leadership of APNA said that OGB, being disputed territory like other units of Jammu Kashmir, could not be considered part of Pakistan and hence its citizens could not be treated like that by the institutions of Pakistan and its puppets at OGB. Any citizen of OGB had a right to speak for and protest against the deprivation of the people of this territory, they said. They demanded immediate release of Mr. Parwana and an impartial inquiry into his persecution and arrest which is quite illegal and unconstitutional.
Issued By APNA