WHY 5TH JANUARY MUST CONTINUE TO BE REMEMBERED

Majlis Perundingan Pertubuhan Islam Malaysia (Malaysian Consultative Council of Islamic Organizations) – MAPIM
Space U8 , Eco Mall , Bukit Jelutong , Shah Alam , Selangor Malaysia
azmiabdulhamid58@gmail.com
………………………………………

MAPIM PRESS RELEASE
5th January 2026

WHY 5TH JANUARY MUST CONTINUE TO BE REMEMBERED:
KASHMIR, UNRESOLVED JUSTICE, AND INTERNATIONAL RESPONSIBILITY

For Immediate Release

The Majlis Perundingan Pertubuhan Islam Malaysia MAPIM affirms that 5th January is not a ceremonial date, nor a symbolic remembrance frozen in history. It is a living reminder of an unfulfilled international obligation to the people of Jammu and Kashmir, rooted in the universally accepted principle of self-determination.

On 5th January 1949, the United Nations formally acknowledged the right of the Kashmiri people to determine their own political future through a free and impartial process. More than seven decades later, that commitment remains unresolved, deferred, and systematically undermined.

WHY 5TH JANUARY STILL MATTERS

MAPIM stresses that 5th January must continue to be remembered for three fundamental reasons:

First: Unresolved injustices do not expire.
Political disputes denied resolution do not disappear with time. They deepen, harden, and exact heavier human and strategic costs. Kashmir demonstrates that postponing justice only entrenches instability, repression, and suffering.
Second: International commitments cannot be selectively forgotten.
The credibility of international law depends on consistency. When commitments made to powerful regions are enforced while those made to Kashmir are ignored, the global system loses legitimacy. Remembering 5th January is a reminder that international promises carry moral and legal weight.
Third: Silence normalizes occupation.
For decades, Kashmir has been reduced from a political and legal dispute to a narrow security narrative. This reframing has marginalized Kashmiri voices, shrunk diplomatic space, and enabled prolonged rights violations. Remembering 5th January challenges this normalization.

DIALOGUE HAS FAILED BECAUSE IT EXCLUDED THE PEOPLE

MAPIM emphasizes that dialogue has not failed because it is impossible, but because it has been exclusive, episodic, and detached from Kashmiri political agency.

Processes that exclude Kashmiri representation, ignore lived realities, and avoid accountability cannot produce peace. Dialogue without legitimacy is not resolution, it is delay.

A CALL FOR POLICY RESET

● MAPIM calls on the international community to move beyond rhetorical concern and towards structured engagement by:
●Reaffirming Kashmir as a self-determination and decolonization issue under international law
●Ensuring Kashmiri voices are included in all dialogue and advocacy platforms
●Pursuing sustained legal, diplomatic, and human rights engagement rather than crisis-driven statements
●Holding all parties accountable for demographic change, collective punishment, and rights violations

CONCLUSION

5th January reminds the world that deferred justice does not dissolve, it accumulates.

Kashmir cannot be managed indefinitely through silence or securitization. It must be resolved by restoring political agency to its people and honoring international commitments made in good faith.

MAPIM reiterates that peace built on denial is temporary. Peace built on justice is durable.

Mohd Azmi Abdul Hamid
President MAPIM