Kashmiris mark the the 68th Foundation Day of the state of Azad Kashmir

Ceremony at Rochdale Town Hall to mark the 68th day of Azad Kashmir

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Mayor Surinder Biant, Mayoress Cecile Biant, Councillor Janet Emsley and Afzal Khan MEP lead the flag hoisting ceremony at Rochdale Town Hall to mark the the 68th Foundation Day of the state of Azad Kashmir. The event was organised by Rochdale Kashmiri Association and conducted by Farooq Qureshi.

Participants in a very well-attended ceremony outside the Town Hall included Councillor Daalat Ali, Councillor Iftikhar Ahmed, Councillor Aftab Hussain, Councillor Amna Mir, Councillor Wazir Ali, Councillor Sultan Ali, Councillor Mohhamed Zaman, Councillor Asim Rashid, Councillor Allen Brett, along with a wide range of community members.

Speaking at the event, Mayor Biant congratulated the participants and expressed his support for the peaceful struggle of Kashmiris for independence.

Afzal Khan informed of the work he is doing at European Parliament, which includes the setting up of a Friends of Kashmir group with MEPs from 28 countries as its members. Next step he stated was to link up all these countries to support the right of Kashmiris people across the division line for self-determination and to ask the international community to play its role in creating conditions conducive for Kashmiris to "exercise this basic democratic and human right".

Councillor Emsley pointed out that Kashmiris have formed an important part of Rochdale society since the Second World War and continue to play a significant role in the development of Rochdale's economy and a cohesive society. She stated that Rochdale is taking lead in exploring the social economic and cultural needs of the local Kashmiri community which may have been overlooked.

Javed Ahmed, Chairman of Rochdale Kashmiri Association, said: “Kashmiris form a significant part of most British towns and cities but remain a marginalised community. The purpose of these events is to increase confidence of the community to become and more positive and healthy part of the local society to improve community cohesion."

Thanking all the participants and various services including police and town hall staff that helped in making the event a success, Councillor Sameena Zahee congratulated Kashmiris and said she hoped that the event will grow more into a community event every year and will include more community and family oriented activities in future.