THIS PAGE WILL UPDATE, ON A WEEKLY BASIS NEW RELATED TO THE STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM BY THE KASHMIRI PEOPLE.. Kindly refer
to https://javedrashid.blogspot.com/2018/12/kashmir-struggle-news-weekly-update.html (Kashmir
Struggle News (weekly) Update (JR107)
for previous updates .
Kashmir Update 69:
Week Mar.,30, 2019 to Mar., 5, 2020
1.
Jalil Ahmed Andrabi: Mar., 30,
2020: In occupied Kashmir, the High Court Bar Association has paid
rich tributes to prominent martyred Kashmiri lawyer and the leading human
rights activist, Jaleel Ahmad Andrabi on his 24th martyrdom anniversary. Jaleel Andrabi was arrested in broad daylight
by men in uniform in March 1996 and was tortured to death in custody. They said
that Andrabi sacrificed his life for the cause of of Kashmir. The Bar members
also paid tributes to other lawyers including Abdul Qadir Sailani, Mohammad
Sultan Butt, Peer Hussam-ud-Din and Sheikh Mohammad Hussain for laying down
their lives for the noble cause.https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/29/martyred-hr-lawyer-andrabi-eulogized/
2.
Actions needed: Mar.,30, 2020: Those who
opposes the Indian rule in Kashmir, have to reposition in their efforts to seek
the realisation of self-determination through a UN supervised Plebiscite. The
parties that have identified themselves, in rejecting the Indian action of 31
October 2019 are mainstream pro India parties, Hurriyat, non Hurriyat,
Governments of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit and Baltistan, Government of Pakistan
and the United Nations. Seven pro India political parties came up
with Gupkar Declaration on 4 August 2019, Hurriyat Conference has a
constitution adopted on 31 July 1993, Azad Kashmir Government has its
Constitution committing itself to a duty under UNCIP Resolutions and Government
of Pakistan has assumed duties under UNCIP resolutions in AJK and has the UN
template on the conduct of a UN supervised vote and the people of Jammu and
Kashmir, have a title to ‘equality’ and right of ‘self-determination.’ India
stands as a lone wolf and a leper in the eyes of law. Each one of these parties
have a higher burden of responsibility. How would these political parties
behave and how long would they resist the temptation to gain power, remains to
be seen. Interestingly many of Kashmiri leaders signatories to Gupkar
Declaration have tasted the loss of liberty for the first time, of course,
under less hostile living conditions. However, they have been subjected to the
push and shove of a policeman. We hope that Gupkar Declaration, cements these
leaders for some time to stand together and seek on their demands made in the
resolution. The first and foremost step, that they have avoided to take, is to
challenge the State Governor for dissolving the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly on
21 November 2018 in bad faith and without any merit. All actions that have
flown from 21 November to date are unconstitutional and without any legal
effect. Governor may have done a bidding for his employer, the
Government of India but he cannot substantiate the contents of his report made
to the President of India in a court of law. As a start Mehbooba Mufti had
staked her claim to the Governor on 21 November 2018 that she had the support
of National Conference with 15 members and Congress with 12 members to form the
Government. It is an intriguing coincidence that the fax Machine at the
Governor House was out of order to receive the claim. She however, managed to
communicate her claim through WhatsApp and Twitter. Sajjad Lone of People
Conference, also staked his claim to form the Government on the same day. He
too had to WhatsApp and Tweet his claim. The notice of two different claims of
being able to form the Government was in public domain on 21 November 2018. Therefore,
the decision of the Governor to dissolve the Assembly in the evening of 21
November 2018, is in bad faith and unconstitutional. The
President of India’s Notification of 19 December 2018 and other orders that
have flowed from this mischief, are all without any legal sanction.
New Delhi could not overrun the Constitutional and Legislative process in
Kashmir, unless it had to push through a self-serving legislation for the
benefit of Delhi Government. National Conference and Congress, should start
helping as appropriate PDP (Mehbooba Mufti) and PC (Sajjad Lone) in their
challenges to the unconstitutional conduct of the Jammu and Kashmir Governor,
in the interests of his employer – the New Delhi. All acts done after 21
November and 19 December 2018, are unconstitutional. Governor as an Indian
representative and a non-State Subject (non-Kashmiri) has committed a ‘fraud’
on the legislative process in Kashmir. If the signatories to Gupkar Declaration
are serious, they need to prove the constitutional disability of the Governor
from 21 November 2018, when two respective claims by PDP and PC were lodged for
the formation of the majority Government. It would automatically annul the
action of Government of India taken on 31 October 2019. On the action of 5
August 2019, National Conference in particular and other parties in general
need to challenge the status of Indian army in Kashmir. National Conference
shall have to make a reference to the ’character certificate’ given by Sheikh
Abdullah, at the UN Security Council guaranteeing the good behaviour of these
forces, pending the holding of a UN supervised Plebiscite in Kashmir. Other
parties should bring into question and notice of the court, the four conditions
placed on the Indian army, at the time of their temporary admission into
Kashmir. Signatories to the Gupkar Declaration, Azad Kashmir Government and
the Government of Pakistan, could use the jurisprudence of UN Security Council
resolutions of 21 April 1948 and 30 March 1951, to challenge the current manner
of presence of Indian army and the action taken by Government of Indian on 31
October 2019. We need to involve France, United Kingdom,
Netherlands, China and United States of America in particular and other
countries in general, in our efforts seeking to vacate the action of Government
of India taken on 31 October 2019, which temporarily has fractured the part of
the State under Indian administration into two union territories and annexed
them. France has argued at the 539th meeting of the UN Security Council held on
30 March 1951, ““Resolutions of 13 August 1948 and 5 January 1949, to which we
must always return because they won the express agreement of both India and
Pakistan. If the parties are unable to reach agreement on the plan submitted to
them, provision is made for arbitration, and, to make assurance doubly sure,
arbitration is to be carried out by an arbitrator or panel of arbitrators
appointed not by a political body but by the President of the International
Court of Justice.” Similarly, United States of America at the 768th meeting of
the UN Security Council held on 15 February 1957, has held that“The Security
Council will, “always welcome any agreement which the parties themselves can
reach on any basis which will settle the dispute, provided of course that, that
basis is consistent with the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.
Security Council had a ‘positive duty’ and “unless the parties are able to
agreeupon some other solution, the solution which was recommended by the
Security Council should prevail.” Additional guidance is provided by the United
Kingdom and Netherlands. United Kingdom has argued at the 606 meeting of the UN
Security Council held on 6 November 1952 that, “The ultimate objective of a
fair and impartial plebiscite under the auspices of the United Nations has,
after all, been written into solemn agreements by the two governments and
endorsed by this Security Council. These agreements have been affirmed and
reaffirmed ‘by the two governments many times during the last three and a half
years,” and Netherlands have argued at the 611th meeting of the UN Security
Council held on 23 December 195, that “The party that would dare to violate an
agreement thus reached would load upon itself a very grave offence against the
other party, against the United Nations, and against the right of the people of
Jammu and Kashmir to self-determination, a right which, in other contexts, both
parties have so often and so eloquently defended.” Therefore, any sense of
helplessness that India has not left any options after 31 October 2019, is ill
founded. In fact India has re-occupied the part of the State and has loaded
upon itself a very grave offence committed against many the other parties https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/30/steps-needed-to-vacate-indian-action-of-31-october-2019/
3.
Martyrs remembered: March 31. 2020: : In occupied Kashmir, the Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference
Chairman, Shabbir Ahmed Dar, Tehreek Muzahamat Chairman Bilal Ahmed Siddiqui,
acting Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front Abdul Hameed Butt and
other Hurriyat leaders and organizations have paid glowing tributes to Ashfaq
Majid Wani, Dr Abdul Ahad Guru, Shabbir Ahmad Siddiqui and Jaleel Ahmed Andrabi
on their martyrdom anniversaries. Shabbir Ahmad Dar in a statement
issued in Srinagar said, these Kashmiri martyrs were great sons of soil who
sacrificed their lives for the freedom of Jammu and Kashmir from Indian
subjugation. He said these great martyrs always advocated the just settlement
of the Kashmir dispute and never hesitated in calling a spade a spade. “Ashfaq
Majeed Wani was a born freedom fighter with leadership qualities, who always
led from the front,” he said. Shabbir Dar said martyrs Abdul Ahad Guroo and
Jaleel Ahmad Andrabi always championed human and political rights of the
Kashmiri people and they never shied away in highlighting the heinous crimes
against humanity in Kashmir. Shabir Ahmad Siddiqui and his associates were
killed under a conspiracy in Hazratbal shrine, Srinagar. He said that the
mission of these martyrs would be taken to its logical conclusion, against all
odds.Tehreek Muzahamat Chairman Bilal Ahmed Sidiqui in his statement said that
the martyrs would always be remembered. He said martyrs Jaleel Andrabi, Ashfaq
Majeed Wani, Dr Abdul Ahad Guru and Shabbir Ahmed Siddiqui would always act as
an inspirational force for the Kashmiri people.
.It is worth mentioning here that Indian troops had killed Ashfaq Majeed
Wani in March 1990, Jaleel Andrabi and Shabbir Siddiqui in March 1996 and Dr
Abdul Ahad Guru in April 1992 in different areas of the occupied territory. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/30/glowing-tributes-to-martyrs-ashfaq-guru-siddiqui-and-andrabi/
4.
Detentions: Mar., 31, 2020: While the
prisoners are being released worldwide to protect them from the rising cases of
coronavirus, the Indian authorities in occupied Kashmir arrested 627 people
in the name of preventive measures. Director-General of Police
Dilbagh Singh in a statement issued in Srinagar confirmed that the police had
so far arrested 627 people while cases were registered against 373 people. He
said more than 100 shops were sealed while 490 vehicles were taken into custody
for violation of the lockdown. It is worth mentioning here that the occupation
authorities have imposed curfew-like restrictions in Srinagar and all district
and tehsil headquarters in the territory in the name of preventive measures
against the coronavirus, further compounding the miseries of the Kashmiri
people. Indian forces are widely harassing Kashmiris in the name of security
measures. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/30/world-releasing-detainees-while-india-arrest-627-more-in-iok/
5. OIC: Apr., 1, 2020: Pakistan
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi held a telephonic conversation with OIC
Secretary General Yousef A Al-Othaimeen during which he discussed the situation
in Kashmir and the world in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. The Foreign
Office said in a statement that exchange between the two covered the situation
arising out of COVID-19 pandemic, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation's
responses, and developments in Jammu and Kashmir.The minister claimed that
"continued restrictions on communication and movement" in Kashmir
"were preventing unfettered supply of medicines and other essentials, as
well as dissemination of information needed to combat the disease," the FO
said.He also highlighted concerns regarding the possibility of spread of
coronavirus among the large number of Kashmiri youth.
. https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/world/pakistan-foreign-minister-shah-mahmood-qureshi-raises-kashmir-issue-with-oic-chief-5089441.html
6.
March cost: April, 1, 2020: In occupied Kashmir, Indian troops martyred nine (9) Kashmiris during the last
month of March, one woman was rendered widowed due to the killing of her
husband by the troops. During the period, at least seven (7) people were
injured in the use of brute force on peaceful protesters by Indian police and
troops. Indian police and paramilitary personnel arrested eight hundred and six
(806) people including Hurriyat activists and youth during three hundred and
ninety four (394) cordon and search operations in different areas of the
territory. The troops also destroyed two (2) residential houses in the month. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/04/01/indian-troops-martyr-nine-kashmiris-in-march/
7.
Electoral changes: Apr., 1, 2020: Modi revoked 370
and 35A, this was accepted by the majority of the Hindu population, only a few
liberals protested, ( Sikhs also pretested) . CAA and NRC similarity was
accepted by the Hindus majority, some liberals and minorities did protest. The
AAP won an election in Delhi; all of this did not result in any political
realignment. The Delhi massacre also did not evoke and large scale protests.
The incompetent and shoddy way in which the lockdown has been imposed has resulted in anger towards the BJP, the
migrants have been very badly treated , with the police also contributing
towards their misery, at least 22 have lost their lives in what is called
the largest human migration since the
1947 partition. This resentment in lower
class and Hindus has the potential of creating new political alliances, there
will be need to formulate a platform that could align the interests of the
minorities and lower class Hindu is a possible political realignment.
8.
Domicile laws Apr.,2, 2020
Exploiting the situation arising from the spread of
coronavirus in the world, India took another step to further erode the Muslim
majority status of occupied Kashmir by notifying an order to pave the way for
Indian citizens to get permanent resident status as well as jobs in the
territory. Now ‘domicile’ has been defined in an order which has been notified
by the Indian government as the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Adaptation of
State Laws) Order, 2020, as that “who has resided for a period of fifteen
years in the UT of J&K or has studied for a period of seven years and
appeared in class 10th/12th examination in an educational institution located
in the UT of J&K.” The order has come into force with immediate
effect. The definition expands to include “children of those central [Indian]
government officials, all India services officers, officials of PSUs and
autonomous body of central [Indian] government, public sector banks, officials
of statutory bodies, officials of central universities and recognised research
institutes of central government who have served in Jammu and Kashmir for a
total period of ten years or children od parents who fulfill any of the
conditions in sections.” According to the new rules, the State Service
Selection Board has been redesignated as Service Selection Board, omitting the
word state All Indian citizens would be
eligible for remaining non-gazetted and gazetted posts. Before August 5, all jobs in
occupied Kashmir were exclusively reserved for permanent residents of the
territory. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/04/01/as-world-faces-corona-india-snatches-kashmirs-muslim-identity/
9.
Youth killed Apr., 3, 2020: In occupied
Kashmir, a 28-year-old youth was killed after fired by unknown gunmen in
Larkipora area of Fatehpora in Islamabad district. A police officer said that
the youth namely Mohammad Saleem Dar, 28, son of Mohammad Abdullah Dar, a
resident of Larkipora, Fatehpora was attacked, this evening. He received four
bullet wounds and was taken to Government Medical College (GMC) Islamabad district. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/04/02/another-youth-shot-dead-in-iok/
10.
Land mines: Apr., 4, 2020: As the
world observes International Day for Mine Awareness on Saturday, a noted human
rights activist in Indian-administered Kashmir said that response of
governments to deal with the menace has been disappointing. Parvez said that vast tracts of land in
Kashmir are laden with mines. Khurram
Parvez: Hundreds of thousands of APMs were laid along the 734-kilometer
(456-mile) Line of Control and the 190 km (118 mi) of the international border
between India and Pakistan during the 1999 Kargil War and then again in 2001
when both countries were face to face following an attack on the Indian
parliament.There is no specific data on the total area under landmines. But in
response to a question, the government told Jammu and Kashmir Assembly in 2013
that the Indian army had laid land mines in approximately 3,512 acres of land
in several villages in 1999. A report by an Indian parliamentary panel in 2005
said 1776 Indian soldiers died while laying and removing mines from 2001-2005.
Since then, Landmine Monitor’s annual reports on India have been recording
killings of Indian soldiers and civilians in landmine explosions continuously.
In February last year, an army major was killed while defusing a mine. He was
to get married the following month. A civilian was injured last year in
December. According to Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor,
a total of 1091 people have been killed and 2638 injured from 1999-2016.
The Monitor has said that the cumulative number of casualties in India are not
known”. Parvez: They think, it helps to prevent militants from areas controlled
by Pakistan to enter Kashmir and acts as a deterrent during the war. But there
is no report of any militant being killed in a landmine explosion while
crossing border. The only casualties have been Indian soldiers and civilians of Jammu
and Kashmir. Also, over the years, the Indian state has erected
several layers of fences along the border and has deploying hi-tech electronic
surveillance system as well. This should have reduced the reliance and need for
landmines. But surprisingly, a news report last year said, the Indian army
wants to procure 1 million more landmines from private manufacturers. This
effectively shows they are not interested in de-mining the already mined areas
but are planning to plant more. It is said that removing an APM costs 40 times
than laying it. We had requested the
army to mark and fence the mined areas. This was after a man lost both limbs in
a mine blast in 2004 in the Kupwara district. He had gone to the nearby forest
to fetch firewood and the area is quite far away from the border. While they
have marked some areas, they have not fenced them at all. In a few areas, we
noticed boards in the Hindi language warning people about mines. People in
these areas cannot read Hindi and many are illiterate. Instead, there should be
warning symbols. The fencing of the landmine area is essential because
livestock gets killed. Loss of livestock results in huge economic losses for
the people living near borders. Then there is the issue that floods, landslides
or snowfall uproot mines from their original places. We have landmines in the
region laid way back in 1965 and then 1971 India-Pakistan wars in the region. Parvez: Residents in few areas told us that
the army had laid mines along the fences of its various camps strewn across the
Kashmir Valley, especially after a few suicide bombings attacks. These camps
are located in civilian areas and pose a threat Parvez: Pakistan contends that
they are concerned about their people because they consider them their own. On
the Indian side, because of insurgency now in its third decade, the government
essentially views the population as hostile. When we were campaigning against
landmines and the United Jihad Council unilaterally stated that it will abide
by the Geneva Conventions, the Indian army issued a statement saying this was a
publicity stunt because militants never used landmines. In Pakistan, the
government and NGOs work even to have differences. But the Indian side does not
engage them at all. Whenever we have tried to engage with the Indian army on
any concrete issue, say extra-judicial killings, we never get a positive
response. Parvez: Landmines outlive conflicts and wars. They continue to take
lives even after wars are over. Look at countries like Cambodia. Long after the
conflicts are over, people realize getting rid of landmines is a bigger mess. https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/-vast-tracts-of-land-laden-with-mines-in-kashmir-/1790739
11.
COVID 19 and IOK: Apr., 4, 4040: Soon after
the first patient of COVID-19 – a 67-year-old woman who had recently travelled
to Saudi Arabia — tested positive on March 18, a team of health
professionals and volunteers were sent to Khanyar to sanitise the area. They
were also tasked with tracing the people the woman may have had contact with.
Meanwhile, police personnel began patrolling in their jeeps. With speakers,
they warned people to stay indoor. On March 22, another patient surfaced. Four
days later, the 65-year-old man died.The third patient had lied about his
travel history. The fourth one is just 22 years old.Now, 70 people have tested
positive, including a 10-year-old from Eidgah Srinagar. Jammu and Kashmir are
faced with the same challenge as the rest of the world, yet the dearth of
infrastructure and manpower in the healthcare sector here makes the task more
challenging.As the whole Valley is in a lockdown, memories are
strong of another unprecedented lockdown, imposed after the former state was
stripped of its special status and bifurcated into two Union Territories on
August 5. To ensure the efficiency of lockdown, authorities have been taking
the hardliner approach that they have taken since August 5. People
have reported having been beaten up by policemen even after furnishing a
magisterial permit. Tawseef, an engineering student from South
Kashmir, had to see his ailing aunt in Srinagar. The district magistrate of
Kulgam gave him a permit, but to his surprise, uniformed men at Khudwani
stopped him and beat him up.“I told them my aunt had just undergone a surgery
and I had to visit her,” said Tawseef, who suffered multiple fractures from the
beating.Police have lodged 337 FIRs against people who have allegedly violated
the lockdown. Moreover, about 627 people have been arrested in the past week.
“The incidents capture the horrors of violence against civilians in Kashmir at
the hands of police personnel ensuring a lockdown. They do not have a humane
approach, but with a militaristic one,” writes Gowhar Geelani, a veteran
journalist and author of Kashmir: Rage and Reason for The Federal. Dr. Khawar, one of the medicos treating
coronavirus patients, said this is the exact kind of epidemic that takes people
by awe. “It took me nearly nine hours to process the news that the first
COVID-19 patient had been found in the Valley. Like me, people are in utter
confusion. Most are not aware of the implications of contracting the disease,”
he said “Another reason for people evading quarantine
is the careless attitude of the authorities. People were stacked like cattle in the
quarantine facilities at Awantipoora and Sumbal,” said
Geelani.“There were videos that went viral on social media showing that not
even necessities like soap or sanitizers were available. The people were not
really isolated, because in some instances, dozens of people had to stay in a
single room and had to use common washrooms, which were dirty and unhygienic”.
Asifa was then taken to a quarantine centre, which is a local hotel cum
restaurant in Lawaypura area of Srinagar. “There were people from Europe,
Pakistan, Bangladesh and all of us were kept together. For three days, nobody came to
the hotel, not even the doctors. We were left alone.” “On March 23,
at about 10 pm, we were told that we were being shifted. At about 12:30 in the
night, we realised that we were brought to a hill-station, with three-feet
snow. We were caught unprepared in the cold,” said Asifa. “Some of us were in
slippers. We were told to stay in a hut where there are only two rooms for five
of us. There was no water, not enough heating, not even a bar of soap “Haj
House was dirty. The compound was full of stray dogs. There was no water in the
washrooms, toilets were defunct.” Moreover, more than 14 beds were stacked in a
single room, which were not even an arm’s length apart.” After the first
patient tested positive, the number of ventilators at SKIMS, SMHS and JVC and
other district and sub-district health centres was 97. And most of these
ventilators are occupied by non-COVID-19 patients. According to Census 2011,
there are seven million people in Kashmir and by 2021, it is expected to be
eight million.One of the health officials from the Valley said on the condition
of anonymity, “I think we are living in a slaughterhouse. We must not care much
about masks and other personal protective equipments (PPEs) for doctors. If
Milan, France and New York are facing acute shortage of PPEs, Kashmir, a third
world region in a third world country, should not be an exception.”
“What we must do is import more and more ventilators. Since March 18, how many
ventilators did the government arrange for? None,” he said. The official also
said that the level of testing was abysmal and called for more testing kits. An
official at the Government Chest Diseases Hospital, Srinagar echoed him when he
said, https://thewire.in/rights/kashmir-coronavirus-covid-19-internet
12.
Youth arrested: Apr., 4, 2020: In occupied
Kashmir, Indian police arrested four more Kashmiri youth from different areas,
today.The police during house raids arrested four youth including Azad
Ahmed Butt and Altaf Ahmed Baba in Handwara and Sopore areas of
north Kashmir.A police officer talking to media men claimed that the arrested
youth were over-ground workers of mujahideen. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/04/03/indian-police-arrest-four-kashmiri-youth/
13.
Youth martyred: Apr., 4, 2020: Four
Local young men Killed In Kulgam
Encounter,2 Army Mens Injured Indian troops in their fresh act of state
terrorism martyred four Kashmiri youth in Kulgam district, today. The troops
martyred the youth identified as Sadam Malik, Aijaz Ahmed Naikoo, Shahid
Sadiq Malik and Waqar Ahmed during a cordon and search operation in
Hardmanguri area of the district. Earlier, three Indian troops were injured in
an attack in the same area. The troops also destroyed three residential houses
in the area with explosive material. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/04/04/indian-troops-martyr-four-kashmiri-youth-in-kulgam/
15.
OIC on Kashmir; Apr., 6, 2020; The Organisation
of Islamic Cooperation's (OIC) human rights body on Saturday condemned the
Indian government's new domicile law — Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Order,
The Indian government recently announced a new domicile law, under which an
Indian citizen, who has lived in occupied Jammu and Kashmir for 15 years, can
call the territory their place of domicile. The Independent Permanent Human
Rights Commission (IPHRC) of the OIC in a tweet said that it condemns the
promulgation of the new law which attempts to "alter the demographic and
geographic" status of India-occupied Kashmir (IOK) tion of illegal
“J&K Reorg Order 2020” by India which is an attempt to alter
demographic and geographic status of the Indian #Occupied #Kashmir. Calling it a
violation of international laws and United Nations Security Council and OIC
resolutions on the issue, the international organisation asked India to repeal
"draconian laws" and stop its human rights abuses in the region. It violates int’l #HR and humanitarian laws incl 4th
Geneva Conv + #OIC & #UNSC Res. India must put an end to HR
abuses in #IOK repeal draconian
laws & let #Kashmiris exercise Rt to
SD. https://www.dawn.com/news/1546402/oic-body-condemns-indias-draconian-domicile-law-in-occupied-kashmir
1
18.
Cost
of Kashmir struggle
HR
Violations
|
(From Jan 1989 till Mar 31,2020)
|
|
|
Total Killings *
|
95,515
|
|
Custodial Killings
|
7,139
|
|
Civilian arrested
|
159,450
|
|
Structures Arsoned/Destroyed
|
109,462
|
|
Women Widowed
|
22,912
|
|
Children Orphaned
|
107,784
|
|
Women gang-raped / Molested
|
11,179
|
From July 8, 2016)
|
(Mar 2020)
|
|
|
Total Killings *
|
9
|
|
Custodial Killings
|
0
|
|
Tortured/Injured
|
7
|
|
Civilian arrested
|
806
|
|
Structures Arsoned/Destroyed
|
0
|
|
Women Widowed
|
1
|
|
Children Orphaned
|
0
|
|
Women gang-raped / Molested
|
0
|
From July 8, 2016)
Casualties
during ongoing uprising
|
(From July 8, 2016)
|
|
|
Total Killings *
|
1031
|
|
Custodial Killings
|
68
|
|
Tortured/Injured
|
27739
|
|
Arrested
|
11858
|
|
Structures Arsoned/Destroyed
|
3306
|
|
Women Widowed
|
91
|
|
Children Orphaned
|
205
|
|
Women gang-raped / Molested
|
933
|
|
Inured by pellets
|
10298
|
|
Youth lost total eye-sight
|
147
|
|
Youth lost one eye sight
|
215
|
|
Schools arsoned
|
56
|
|
People detained under PSA
|
951
|
|
Compiled by:
Kashmir Media Service
|
|
1. Youth arrested: Mar., 23, 2020: In occupied Kashmir, Indian troops arrested two Kashmiri youth
on the fake charge of being overground workers of mujahideen in South Kashmir.
the youth identified as Irfan Ahmed Kuttey and Adil Bashir Lone
were arrested during a cordon and search operation by a joint team of Indian
Army and police in Shopian district. Police claimed that Irfan, a resident of
Chotipora Sedow in Pulwama district, was motivating the youth to join the armed
struggle against Indian occupation. The other detained youth, Adil Bashir Lone,
was a resident of Aaloora, Shopian. The troops have taken the detained youth to
an unknown location. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/22/indian-troops-arrest-two-youth-in-south-kashmir/
2.
4G: Mar., 24, 2020: The
Centre must immediately restore 4G internet connectivity in Jammu and Kashmir.
To deprive citizens of direct access to information and instructions during a
global pandemic is unjustifiable. Moreover, it is outright inhuman to do so at
a time when there is no indication of trouble on the ground and when the forces
and security arrangements in place are adequate to meet any challenges As things currently stand, businesses have
suffered a lot. Some have had to suspend their operations or even shut down
altogether .Students and researchers have faced great problems. Many have faced
terrible difficulties to complete mere applications and registrations. Doctors
and other health care personnel have also faced significant predicaments. With
concerns arising over the coronavirus pandemic, the risks to life and lungs
have increased. A Kashmiri doctor recently tweeted
his frustration over not being able to download the ICU guidelines for COVID-19
even after an hour of trying.In this situation, some Kashmiris have begun to
publicly describe the communication restrictions imposed as a form of
collective punishment. . https://thewire.in/rights/kashmir-coronavirus-pandemic-internet
3.
Youth arrested: Mar.,24, 2020: In occupied Kashmir, Indian troops
arrested six Kashmiri youth in Kapwara district, today. The youth were arrested
during a cordon and search operation in Keran area of the district. Four of the
arrested youth are from Sopore area of Baramulla district and they have been
identified as Ehtisham Farooq Malik, Shafqat Ali Tego, Masab Hassan Butt and Nisar
Ahmad Ganai.The other two are residents of Karen area of Kapawara
district and were identified as Kabir Lone and Sharif Ahmed Khan.
https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/23/indian-troops-arrest-six-kashmiri-youth-in-kupwara/
4. Lock down: Mar., 2, 2020: On
the morning of August 5, 2019, everyone in Kashmir woke up to a complete
blackout. There was no mobile or internet service. A shrill silence fell over
the state as neighbours sat in silence. Within a few hours, Prime Minister Modi
announced the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, that the state
would be divided into union territories, and also the changing of various
state-specific laws. We Kashmiris felt betrayed. But the decision was lauded in the Indian nationalist press, with publications such as
Times Now and Republic calling it a brave decision. Indigenous Kashmiris
were under siege, with schools shut and hospitals out of reach amid a curfew.
Reporting the on-the-ground realities — one of the cornerstones of journalism —
was forgotten, as Indian media spent the first few days in celebration, and
information filtered through them offered no crucial context for local
Kashmiris. We struggled to connect with our loved ones in different
regions of the state and had no clue about major political and social
developments. People travelled for miles in the searing heat, spending large
sums of money just to access healthcare with no respite whatsoever. The
observances for the Islamic festival of Eid on August 12 were muted. We did not celebrate, merely offering prayers in the
morning as dictated by religious practice. For the children there were no toys
or sweets, as we were barely surviving on the bare essentials. Every
street was filled with fear and grief. Nobody was aware of the happenings in
other households, not to mention happenings around the world. People who were
believed to have any semblance of political affiliation were caged and
transported to jails outside the state. Kashmir — already the largest
militarized zone on earth — was converted into a garrison of forces. The
extraordinary situation worsened the health of my mother, who has been on
medication for diabetes. Lack of medicine and transportation made matters
worse, and we had to seek help from a kind local man who dropped us at the
hospital gates in Srinagar. The impact of Modi’s decision is
clear. The blackout has alienated Kashmiris even further, in their hearts and
their minds alike. There is no other way to look at it.The removal of Article 370 may or may not impact the people of the Kashmir valley, but
the treatment meted out to us only reminds us about the brutal occupation of
our land. The cruelty inflicted on us has resulted in
far worse human tragedies. But these things refuse to leave our minds and will
only strengthen our desire for an independent land. https://globalvoices.org/2020/03/25/grief-alienation-trauma-kashmir-under-lockdown/
5.
Kashmir: Mar., 26, 2020: On August 5, 2019, the
government revoked Article 370 of the Indian Constitution, doing away with the
autonomy accorded to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Simultaneously, the state
was divided up into administrative divisions to be ruled directly by the central
government. This marks the completion of a long-standing program of the Hindu
far right, the full “integration” of Kashmir into India. Article 370 of the
Indian Constitution had allowed Kashmir a special status, reflecting the very
unusual conditions of its incorporation into the country at the time of
independence in 1947. Kashmir was granted a great degree of autonomy, and the
Indian government had limited powers over the state when compared to its
authority over other states in India’s highly centralized federal structure. Although
Article 370 had been reduced to a dead letter by the 1960s, something that
Kashmiris resisted fiercely at every step, its formal revocation is a signal
that the de facto erosion of Kashmir’s rights has now become de jure.
Kashmir has since been subject to a near total communication blackout, punitive
restrictions on mobility, the virtual cessation of essential services, frequent
night raids, and mass arrests. The entire political
leadership is under arrest, including BJP allies. Anyone who has shown a
capacity for organizing, even in their neighborhoods, has been harassed or
detained. This state of total siege is only a formalization of what has been
Kashmir’s reality for decades; It is held by force and maintained in a permanent
state of emergency.Although layered with complexity, the core issue from the
point of view of most Kashmiris is a simple one: they have been denied the
right to determine their political future. In 1947, the British partitioned
their former empire on religious lines, creating the Muslim Pakistan and the
ostensibly secular India. Of more than 550 princely states under the suzerainty
of the Crown, each was expected to join either dominion, depending on the
religion of the majority of their subjects. Jammu and Kashmir, with a Muslim
majority population and a Hindu maharaja, was one of a few princely states
where rulers and subjects professed different religions. Although, by the logic
of partition, Jammu and Kashmir had “Pakistan potential,” the unpopular
maharaja acceded to the Indian Union. Military advances from both India and
Pakistan resulted in the division of the state, with both countries claiming
the entire territory as rightfully theirs. The state’s accession to India has
remained bitterly contested by Pakistan, and by a majority of Kashmiris. The
Valley of Kashmir, currently under Indian control, has been struggling for
self-determination ever since. https://catalyst-journal.com/vol3/no4/kashmir-the-long-descent
7. Indian Jails: Mar., 26, 2020: “Indian
jails have no healthcare facility, nor the detained Hurriyat leaders are given
any proper medical treatment. We appeal to the United Nations, OIC and all
other humanitarian and health organisations to pressurise India to release Dr Hameed Fayaz, Zafar Akbar Bhat, Yasin
Malik, Asiya Andrabi, Shabir Ahmed Shah, Masarat Aalam Butt and all other
leaders and Kashmiris from jails,” Malik added. the-long-descent https://tribune.com.pk/story/2185005/1-india-urged-release-ailing-kashmiri-leaders-amid-coronavirus-fears/
8.
4 G and Kashmir: Mar., 29, 2020: Paris-based media watchdog Reporters Without
Borders or Reporters Sans Frontières has termed the continued restrictions on
the high speed internet in occupied Kashmir as potentially criminal
irresponsibility of New Delhi during the coronavirus pandemic. According to Kashmir Media Service, in a statement released to
media, Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk, said that 8 million
Kashmiris continued to be cut off from the absolutely vital information that
was needed to prevent the spread of the pandemic, when people under lockdown
all over the world are using the internet to work, communicate and get
information. He said, this is the cruel reality to which the citizens of the
Kashmir Valley, including its journalists, are currently being subjected. He
demanded of India to immediately restore the high speed Internet in the
territory. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/28/iok-internet-gag-can-be-deadly-during-covid-19-rsf/
9.
Youth arrested: Mar., 29, 2020: In occupied Kashmir, Indian troops arrested two youth in north
Kashmir’s Baramulla district, today.The troops arrested the youth identified as
Showkat
Mir and Showkat Yattoo, during vehicle checking in Pattan town of
the district. The troops labeled the youth as over-ground workers of mujahideen https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/28/indian-troops-arrest-two-youth-in-baramulla/
1. ICJ: Mar., 15, 2020: International
Human Rights Association of American Minorities (IHRAAM) organised a panel
discussion “Democratic Despotism and Crimes Violations of Self-Determination”
on the sidelines of the 43rd session of the United Nations Human Rights Council
(HRC) in Geneva.The panelists, in a lively interaction, detailed the Kashmir
dispute, Alaska and Hawaii, referencing other cases in the world where the
right to self-determination is denied and suppressed, when in fact it could be
used as a conflict prevention strategy.Prof Alfred de Zayas, First UN
Independent Expert for the Promotion of a Democratic and Equitable
International Order, said that in 2013, he presented a report to the UN General
Assembly discussing issues of self-determination including Jammu and Kashmir,
and the matter should be taken seriously and that they should adopt appropriate
resolutions and send the case to the International Court of Justice for an
advisory opinion. He referred to and endorsed the reports of the UN High
Commissioner for human rights situation in occupied Kashmir, saying there is an
urgent need to address the past and ongoing human rights violations and to
deliver justice for all people in Kashmir. Prof De Zayas concluded by endorsing the
right to self-determination of various peoples around the globe, as specified
in his report to the United Nations General Assembly, commonly known as 69(n),
assessing that the source of the problem is in the violation of that right,
emphasising that realisation of self-determination is a conflict prevention
strategy. Kashmiri representative and
Executive Member of Organisation of Kashmir Coalition (OKC), Ms Shamim Shawl
evaluated India’s action in Kashmir since the 5th of August 2019 and offer her
analysis on future strategies to best illicit international response to India’s
continued occupation and aggression on Kashmir as well as their disregard to
International laws. Ms Shaista Safi, journalist and TV anchor expressed the
need to emphasize on personal stories of Kashmiri victims as well as lobbyists
who advocate for them. She gave the examples of Kashmiri representative, Syed
Faiz Naqsbandi who was informed of his mother’s demise whilst in a UN session
in Geneva. She further referred to Barrister Tramboo’s exile and the cruelty
India has meted out to him and his family. Another Kashmiri representative,
Advocate Pervaz Shah, questioned the illegal annexation of occupied Kashmir on
5th of August, last year, and expressed concerns over India’s plan to change
Kashmir’s demography by ushering in illegal land reforms after the abrogation
of special status of Kashmir. He stated that there was an impending
economic crisis in occupied Kashmir and that the Indian judicial system had
proved to be not only a failure, but corrupt as they bend to the whims of the
BJP government. He ended by reminding the audience of Kashmiri
prisoners including leaders and suggested a campaign to demand the early
release of all political leaders.Kashmiri journalist, Latif Ahmed Butt
expressed concern over the journalists of occupied Kashmir who have been unable
to report freely post August 5th and lamented India’s action by clamping down
on the media in Kashmir and placing hundreds of journalists on Exit Control
List.Barrister Abdul Majeed Tramboo, IHRAAM Permanent Representative to United
Nations and Executive Member of OKC concluded the event by re-emphasizing
crucial terminologies that must be used to accurately reflect the actions of
India in occupied Kashmir such as: Genocide, demographic change, war crimes,
crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing.He further added his
pursuit of Kashmir’s cause at the ICC and ICJ, stating that no stone will be
left unturned in seeking and delivering justice, peace and freedom for the
oppressed and subjugated people of occupied Kashmir https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/15/panelists-seek-icjs-intervention-on-kashmir-issue/
2. Farooq Abdullah: Mar., 15, 2020: former R&AW chief A.S. Dulat says that
he visited Srinagar to meet Abdullah and that the government had cleared the
visit and, additionally, national security adviser Ajit Doval was fully aware
of it. Dulat – who said he visited Abdullah in Srinagar on February 12 – has
known the National Conference patriarch for decades and interceded with him on
behalf of earlier governments on at least two previous occasions. Speaking to
Karan Thapar for The Wire,
he says Farooq Abdullah will respond if the Centre reaches out and that he has
always done so. Dulat told The
Wire that his involvement began when he spoke to Abdullah on
October 31 to enquire how he was. He asked if he could come and meet him and
Abdullah said that depends on the authorities.
Dulat then contacted a former colleague in the IB in Srinagar who said
he would need to get clearance from Delhi. Dulat then contacted sources in the
home ministry in Delhi but they did not give him permission to meet Farooq
Abdullah. However, on February 9, he received a phone call from the home
ministry saying he was free to go to Kashmir. Dulat says this phone call would
only have happened with the knowledge and concurrence of Doval and this means
the NSA was fully in the loop. Although Dulat told The Wire his visit to Srinagar was a
“private” one, he revealed that the IB in Srinagar provided transport to take
him from Srinagar airport to Abdullah’s residence at Gupkar Road and back to
the airport. It was a short trip and Dulat was back home in Delhi by 6.30 pm
the same day. Shortly after his return, he was rung by the home ministry to
find out how the trip had gone. Dulat told The
Wire that he spoke to Farooq Abdullah late on the night of March
13t), some six hours after the latter’s release, and that Abdullah told him he
would probably come to Delhi in 15 days time. This means Abdullah is likely to
miss the present session of parliament altogether. Speaking about his meeting
with Abdullah on February 12, Dulat told The
Wire that the NC leader was particularly concerned about the use of
PSA against his son, Omar Abdullah, and PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti. Dulat said
Abdullah could not understand why this was done. He says Abdullah also
expressed concern about the impact of the reading down of Article 370 and all
the subsequent developments in Kashmir on his grandchildren. He
said he himself was fully committed to India and had brought up his children in
the same way. But now he did not know how to answer questions his
grandchildren may ask The meeting with
Farooq lasted for an hour during which time he also met Abdullah’s wife, Molly,
and his daughter, Safia, and had lunch.Dulat told The Wire he was confident the
government would also find some way of talking to Mehbooba Mufti if it had not
already done so. Talking about Omar Abdullah, Dulat said the
present government was even more comfortable with Omar than with Farooq. With
great confidence, he said Omar Abdullah would be the next chief minister of
Jammu and Kashmir, i.e. whenever the state elections are held. https://thewire.in/security-security/interview-karan-thapar-a-s-dulat-farooq-abdullah
3. Youth martyred:
Mar., 16, 2020: Indian troops on Sunday
martyred four Kashmiri youth in Indian Occupied Kashmir in the latest spike in
violence. One of the martyred youth was identified as Tariq, Muzaffar, Umar and Sajjad. The youth were martyred during a cordon and
search operation in Watrigam area of Islamabad district on Sunday.The Indian
forces sealed all the entry points of Watrigam, Achabal and Islamabad and
launched a massive door-to-door search operation. https://tribune.com.pk/story/2176939/1-four-kashmiris-martyred-iok/
4. Omar Abdullah: Mar., 16, 2020: With the release of top National
Conference (NC) leader Farooq Abdullah from detention on March 13, and the
recent formation of a new political entity –Apni Party– in Kashmir,
the focus is back on which political forces New Delhi may side with in the
Valley next. “I think they (the government) need to talk to everybody. She
(Mehbooba) has been in alliance with them (the BJP); she is a big player. And
Dr Farooq (Abdullah) did not mention Mehbooba’s name (on the day of his release
in Srinagar, he demanded the release of Omar and Mehbooba too) for nothing
yesterday. I mean, it all adds up.” To a pointed question on whether like he
went to meet Abdullah senior in detention, anyone went to meet Mehbooba too,
Dulat said, “Who knows. But I don’t know, I have no idea.” Though Dulat said
the government would talk to Mehbooba too, the former Research & Analysis
Wing (RAW) chief and special director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB)
categorically stated to the interviewer, Karan Thapar, that he was confident of Omar Abdullah being the next chief
minister of Jammu and Kashmir.“He will be the next chief ”. https://thewire.in/politics/omar-abdullah-chief-minister-jammu-and-kashmir
5. China: Mar., 17, 2020: China has reiterated that the Kashmir
issue, which is a dispute left from history, should be properly and peacefully
resolved based on the UN Security council (UNSC) resolutions and bilateral
agreement. “China opposes any
unilateral actions that complicate the situation,” read a joint statement
issued by Chinese Foreign Ministry on Tuesday at the conclusion of the two-day
visit of President Dr Arif Alvi to China. https://tribune.com.pk/story/2178216/1-beijing-reaffirms-support-kashmir-president-alvi-visits-virus-hit-china/
6.
UK Parliament: Mar., 17, 2020: As many as 32 Members of British Parliament
have supported the demand for a debate on gross human rights violations in
Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir to ask the British government and the
international community to play their role in mitigating the sufferings of the
Kashmiri people at the hands of Indian brutal forces. The support has been expressed by the British MPs in response to
a letter written by Jammu and Kashmir Self-Determination Movement International
Chairman, Raja Najabat Hussain. Raja Najabat along with a team contacted all
the MPs in the UK Parliament to participate in the debate and speak on gross
human rights violations in occupied Jammu and Kashmir. These 32 MPs have
supported Debbie Abrahams, Chairperson of All Parties Parliamentary Group on
Kashmir in the British Parliament.JKSDMI Chairman Raja Najabat Hussain wrote
the letter requesting more than 400 MPs as well as Councilors, community
leaders and people from all walks of life to play their role to make this
debate successful and put forward their names to Speaker of the House of
Commons for their speeches on the issue. It is worth mentioning here that
Debbie Abrahams, UK Labour Party MP and Chairperson of All Parties
Parliamentary Group on Kashmir (APPGK) in the British Parliament, presented, in
the second week of March, a resolution titled “Human Rights in Kashmir” in the
UK Parliament for a debate on rights situation in occupied Kashmir. The
parliament, accepting the resolution, fixed 26th March for debate. The members
will take part in the debate for three hours. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/17/32-mps-voice-support-for-debate-on-kashmir-in-uk-parliament/
7. Solider martyred: Mar., 17,
2020: A Pakistan Army soldier was martyred after Indian
forces resorted to unprovoked fire in the Shahkot sector along the Line of
Control (LOC) on Tuesday.“Indian Army troops resorted to unprovoked fire in
Shahkot sector along LOC with heavy weapons,” said the Inter-Services Public
Relations. “During the exchange of fire, one
brave soldier Sepoy Wajid Ali, age 20 years, resident of District Dadu,
valiantly responding to Indian ceasefire violation (CFV) embraced shahadat. https://tribune.com.pk/story/2178084/1-one-pakistan-army-soldier-martyred-indian-firing-across-loc/
8.
Economic strangulation: Mar., 19, 2020: President
of the Jammu Kashmir Salvation Movement and senior Hurriyat leader Altaf Ahmad
Bhat censured Indian democracy by highlighting the injustice and inhumane
actions the Modi fascist government has been carrying upon besieged people of
Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK). While talking to ZMC News live from UK,
Bhat said that the pre-planned actions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his
aides Amit Shah, Ajit Doval and Indian army chief were to economically strangle
the region and people were thrown into a digital black hole “In a
bid to weaken the people of Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir, the
Indian government started economic terrorism, and hence the world-famous
apples, walnuts and apricots of IOJ&K were destroyed because of Indian
state terrorism.” Shedding light on situations of education, Bhat
affirmed that the education system of Kashmir is one of its kind, and it’s
better than Indian education system, however, in order to snatch future of
Kashmiri children and youth, Indian brutal forces have converted
schools, colleges, and universities into army camps with additional forces.
“The students are going through psychological trauma and are unaware of their
future.” The president went on to say
that Indian occupation troops under the guise of
cordon and search operations are deliberately targeting the young Kashmiris by
falselybranding them as terrorists. https://tribune.com.pk/story/2178873/1-india-economically-strangling-occupied-kashmir/
9.
Yasin Malik: Mar., 20, 2020: The illegally
detained Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front, Muhammad Yasin Malik
has announced to go on ‘a fast until death’ from 1st April 2020 against the
authoritarian attitude of India.Muhammad Yasin Malik in a statement released by
his family in Srinagar, today, said that the Indian government had made a
pledge with him that he would be provided with a genuine political space and
efforts would be made for the resolution of the Kashmir dispute through a
meaningful dialogue process. However, he added that India had reneged from this
pledge. Muhammad Yasin Malik pointed out that besides Indian officials, many
international diplomats were also on board for pursuing the idea behind the
pledge. The JKLF Chairman said, the cases against him are politically motivated
and the prejudice of the TADA court judge hearing a case against him was
evident by his attitude. Muhammad Yasin Malik maintained that he had every
legal right to be presented physically before the court but the Judge and the
Central Bureau of Investigation at the behest of the Indian government did not
allow it. He said he was presented through a video link, where he was neither
able to hear the arguments of lawyers, nor was allowed to speak. He
added that he had already withdrawn his counsel. Muhammad Yasin Malik, who is
detained in Delhi’s Tihar jail, deplored that the judge was not ready to
listen to him, and was behaving like a prosecuting or police officer.
He went on to add that whenever he tried to speak, the judge
muted the volume or went offline, which showed his bias and
prejudice against him and his friends. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/19/yasin-malik-to-go-on-hunger-strike-till-death/
10.
New laws: Mar., 20, 2020: In a bid to
totally annex occupied Jammu and Kashmir with India, the Modi government has
ordered implementation of 37 Central Laws in the territory. The order issued by
the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs (Department of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh
Affairs), has been notified in the Gazette of India along with a schedule
mentioning all 37 central Acts. Issued after the nod of the Indian Cabinet, the
order will allow 37 central laws in the Concurrent List to be implemented in
the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Indian Cabinet had given a nod to
implement these laws in occupied Kashmir on February 26, this year. This new
Order will be called the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Adaptation of
Central Laws) Order, 2020. The provisions will come into force with immediate
effect in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, which came into being on
October 31, 2019, after India repealed the special status of occupied Kashmir
on August 5, 2019. India had also announced to divide occupied Kashmir into two
Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. Among the said 37 Indian
laws some include important acts like All India Services Act, The Census Act,
The Central Goods and Services Tax Act, Income Tax Act, Insolvency and
Bankruptcy Act, which were not earlier applicable to Jammu and Kashmir, but
will now be applied in the territory. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/20/another-anti-kashmir-act/
11.
AI: Mar., 21, 2020: In wake of the Coronavirus (COVID-19)
pandemic, the Government of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir must
restore full access to internet services in the region of Jammu and Kashmir
and ensure that people have full access to health and safety related
information, said Amnesty International India today. “There is a
growing anxiety around the pandemic and unwarranted restrictions on content and
dissemination of information only stands to add to the panic,” said Avinash
Kumar, Executive Director of Amnesty International India."Complete
shutdowns or restricting of internet speed or access makes it difficult for
people to navigate their way through a difficult time further undermining their
trust in the authorities. The Government of India needs to adopt a
rights-respecting approach to protect public health and restore access to 4G
speed internet." Human rights approach must be at the centre
of all prevention, preparedness, containment, and treatment efforts to protect
public health and support the most vulnerable groups. The right to health, as
guaranteed under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, provides for the
right to access healthcare. Access to health-related information is also a
crucial part of the right to health. Providing “education and access to
information concerning the main health problems in the community, including
methods of preventing and controlling them” is considered an “obligation of
comparable priority” to the core obligations of the right to health. The latest
Situation Report issued by the World Health Organisation on 17 March
recommended that that the public must be informed of the situation so that they
can take appropriate measures to protect yourself and your family. It further
advised that anxiety around the outbreak can be countered by access to facts
from reliable sources that help accurately determine risks so that reasonable
precautions can be taken. The people of Jammu and Kashmir have the right to
remain informed of the threat to their health, the measures to mitigate risks,
early warning information of possible future consequences and information on
ongoing response efforts. They have the right to information in the local
languages and through media and in formats that can be easily understood and
accessed, so that they can fully participate and take informed decisions in the
response efforts. Failures to do so can heighten the sense of helplessness,
anger and frustration, undermine the public health response, put the health of
others at risk, and may constitute human rights violations.“The situation in
relation to the coronavirus is constantly evolving. To ensure its full
communication to the people of Jammu & Kashmir, the Government of India
must urgently lift internet restrictions in the region and ensure real time
preparedness of the people against the spread of the virus. The responses to
coronavirus cannot be based on human rights violations and a lack of
transparency and censorship,” said Avinash Kumar. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2020/03/mitigate-risks-of-covid-19-for-jammu-and-kashmir-by-immediately-restoring-full-access-to-internet-services/
12.
COVID 19 and IOK: Mar., 21, 2020:
“This is so frustrating. Trying to download the guidelines for intensive care
management as proposed by doctors in England. It is as many as 24 MBs. It has
been one hour…still not able to do so,” Iqbal Saleem, a professor of surgery at
Government Medical College, Srinagar tweeted on Thursday about his inability to
access intensive care management guidelines as the coronavirus pandemic spreads.“While
the world is helping each other in fighting #COVID, a professor of surgery in
Kashmir had to waste hours trying to download treatment guidelines from the
internet,” another Kashmiri doctor tweeted in response. “Reason? Internet is deliberately slowed down! When
will this collective punishment end?” he asked. A research scholar from
Kashmir also tweeted about the urgent need to restore high-speed internet which
remains officially banned in Kashmir, after an unprecedented government-ordered
shutdown following the reading down of Article 370 on August 5 last year.“Restore
the damn 4G internet, Modi. Human security and health of the people of J&K
must not be kept hostage to the so-called ‘security of the state’ which is
being invoked as the reason for the continuing internet restrictions in
J&K,” Tahir Firaz, a Dublin-based Kashmiri researcher tweeted.“Our doctors
need internet now.” “This becomes all the more important in Kashmir given the
poor healthcare infrastructure. The effects of the pandemic are only worsening
because of rampant misinformation and rumours,” he said. Andrabi and his
colleagues in the US tried to reach out to people in Kashmir by making
informative videos in Kashmiri language about COVID-19 with facts about the
infection and ways to prevent its spread. However, he points out, the biggest
hurdle they’re facing is making the information accessible through the internet
to people in Kashmir is the ongoing ban on high-speed internet. “Therefore, it
is absolutely necessary that the internet is properly restored in the valley
before the problem become too big for anyone to handle, including the Indian
government itself which will likely have plenty of coronavirus related problems
of its own to deal with within a short span of time,” he cautioned. On
Thursday, Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK), a doctors’ body in Kashmir started
an online initiative which will make doctors available online for voluntary
health consultations to people through WhatsApp and mobile phones in order to
limit hospital visits of routine patients in view of the COVID-19 scare.The
doctors’ body has also requested more doctors to volunteer and provide online
consultations to patients so that “people suffering from general ailments limit
visiting hospitals.”“Internet should be fully restored as it would be helpful
in disseminating critical information by doctors about the coronavirus epidemic
among people,” said Dr. Mir Mushtaq, a senior executive member of DAK. “Even
the government can use the internet to disseminate a positive message and keep
people updated about the steps taken by administration.” A psychiatrist who
works in a government hospital in south Kashmir told The Wire that given
the rising anxieties and restricted mobility of people, the already stretched
healthcare system in Kashmir will be soon overwhelmed by general patients
instead of preparing and focusing on coronavirus patients. The doctor said that
4G internet access should be immediately restored by the authorities so that
they can provide online video consultations to general patients in order to
minimiSe the patient load in hospitals. “It’s a double whammy for the Kashmiri
population in general and persons suffering from mental health issues in
particular. A video call to their physician/psychiatrist would have alleviated
anxieties of the patients when every other doctor here is offering their
personal cell numbers for their patients in this hour of need,” he said. Another doctor, an assistant professor in a
medical college said due to the months-long internet ban, he couldn’t follow up
on many of his patients from August 5 last year who would otherwise consult him
and remain in touch via video calls for their medication. “In my personal
practice, video call consultation, and videos through WhatsApp was a routine
until the lockdown from August 5 last year,” he said, adding that it was very
feasible for elderly and frail patients across the valley as well as they
didn’t have to move out of their homes and travel.“Many such patients have
stopped medications and I have lost the opportunity to follow up on many more
patients since last summer,” he said. “It has been a tragedy in my personal
practice.” The doctor said in the present situation when the coronavirus
epidemic is posing a serious threat and claiming lives worldwide, the
restoration of 4G internet services would “at least alleviate the anxiety and
fears among people and also help the student community.” “Despite the rising
number of cases, on 17 March 2020 the Government of the Union Territory of
Jammu and Kashmir ordered for the continued restrictions on full internet
services such as restricting the speed to 2G in the region. Complete internet
shutdowns have also been imposed intermittently in certain areas in the guise
of security,” the statement further said.
https://thewire.in/rights/coronavirus-kashmir-slow-internet
13.
1.
OIC: Mar.,
9, 2020: OIC Secretary General’s Special Envoy for Jammu
and Kashmir Yousef M Al Dobeay, who led a six-member delegation
on a five-day visit to Pakistan, said the OIC was concerned about the situation
in Kashmir. The envoy said Jammu and Kashmir was an “internationally
recognised” dispute and called for its peaceful settlement. “The OIC will take
all necessary steps to alleviate the sufferings of the Kashmiris and help
resolve the dispute according to the wishes of the people of Jammu and
Kashmir,” he said.
. https://kashmirobserver.net/2020/03/07/oic-wants-peaceful-resolution-of-kashmir-issue-official/
2. Protest: Mar., 9, 2020:
British Kashmiris and Pakistanis held a protest on Sunday to pay tribute to the
oppressed women of Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) – who have been fighting for
their right to self-determination in the Himalayan valley. The protesters, gathered
outside the British Prime Minister’s House at 10 Downing Street, chanted
slogans against the atrocities and persecution of Kashmiri women and children
by brutal Indian forces. https://tribune.com.pk/story/2171961/1-british-kashmiris-pakistanis-call-end-violence-women-iok/
3.
New party: Mar., 9, 2020: The first indications of the Centre’s political plans
became apparent two days before the controversial
visit of foreign envoys on January 9, when nine former legislators sought an audience with Lt
Governor G.C. Murmu in Jammu. The group was led by Altaf Bukhari – a
former member of the Peoples’ Democratic Party who served as a minister in the
BJP-PDP coalition government which collapsed in 2018 after the BJP pulled the
plug on the alliance. Bukhari’s delegation furnished a memorandum listing a
number of demands that includes restoration of statehood and extension of
domicile laws to J&K. Later, members of the delegation, Bukhari included,
sat across the table with the visiting foreign envoys who were shepherded
around Srinagar as part of the Narendra Modi government’s efforts to project
‘normalcy’ in the former state. The two meetings prompted the PDP to expel the former legislators for being part of parleys
with the government and “acting against the will of people.” Certainly, all mainstream parties have reasons to be
furious with the Central government. They have been relegated to margins and
their leaders are now into their sixth month of captivity without charge. With the former state in the grip of such
repression and prolonged political inactivity threatening to create a power
vacuum, it was only a matter of time before the Central government moved to
engineer a new political set-up – one that would not only help it assuage
international concerns but would also, post the ending of Article 370, play
second fiddle to it in the way that the NC or PDP would have not. It’s here
that Bukhari’s re-entry into politics, after being expelled from the PDP in
2018, fits in. He will be the nucleus around which a ‘third front’ is to be
built, with the backing of the Centre and its instrumentalities. Another
apparent contender for the Centre’s affections, the PDP leader Muzaffar
Hussain Beigh, was given a Padma
Bhushan in the Republic Day honours listand most political observers in the Valley see this as his
consolation prize for his having lost out to Bukhari. Bukhari’s meeting earlier
in January with Governor Murmu also coincided with reports of the announcement
of a new political party. With himself at the helm, the new set-up is likely to
capitalise on desertions from the NC, PDP and Congress. Thus, from the ruins of
the older order, a new one will be fashioned, compliant enough to operate
within the strictly regulated framework whose terms Delhi will get to decide.
The memorandum that Bukhari submitted to the Lt Governor clearly delineates the
contours within which the new formation will function. They have demanded
domicile rights, extension of Article 371 of the constitution to J&K,
protection of jobs for locals and a host of other issues. Right from J&K’s accession to India
in 1947 until the present day, the political history of Kashmir is studded with
such eventful occurrences when successive governments in New Delhi went out of
their way to ruthlessly intervene in Kashmir’s politics, undermining democracy
and installing collaborationist regimes conditioned to be at their beck and call
https://thewire.in/politics/altaf-bukhari-kashmir-third-front
4.
Women day: Mar., 9, 2020: As the world
is observing the International Women’s Day, today, the miseries and victimization
of the Kashmiri women at the hands of Indian troops and police personnel
continue unabated in occupied Kashmir. According to a report released by the
Research Section of Kashmir Media Service on the occasion of the International
Women’s Day, today, thousands of women are among 95,507 Kashmiris, martyred by
Indian military, paramilitary and police personnel since January 1989 till
date. At least 671 women have been
martyred by Indian troops since January 2001 till date. The report
pointed out that the unabated Indian state terrorism rendered 22,912 women widowed.
The Indian forces’ personnel molested 11,179 women including the victims of
Kununposhpora
mass rape and Shopian
double-rape-and murder of 17-year-old Aasiya Jan and her sister-in-law
Neelofar Jan. An eight-year girl, Aasifa Bano, of Kathua, was abducted,
gang-raped and subsequently murdered by Indian police personnel, in January
2018. The report said that thousands of women lost their sons, husbands,
fathers and brothers in the occupied territory who were subjected to custodial
disappearance by India troops. As per the Association of Parents of Disappeared
Persons, more than 8,000 Kashmiris went missing in custody during the past 31 years,
the report added.The report revealed that thousands of school boys and girls
were also injured by the pellets fired by Indian troops while over hundred
including 19-month-old Heeba Jan, 2-year-old Nusrat Jan, Ulfat Hameed (17),
Insha Mushtaq, Ifrah Shakoor (17), Shakeela Bano, Tammana (11), Shabroza Mir (16),
Shakeela Begum(35) and Rafia Bano (31)were blinded. The report said
that near a dozen women including Hurriyat leaders, Aasiya Andrabi, Fehmeeda
Sofi, Naheeda Nasreen and Insha Tariq Shah (23) were facing illegal detention
inside Kashmir jails and in infamous Tihar Jail in India. They are being
victimized only for representing the Kashmiri people’s righteous demand and
aspirations. The report further pointed out that womenfolk are majority of the
Kashmiris suffering from multiple psychic problems. The women whom these
disappeared men leave behind are referred to as “half-widows,” reflecting their
uncertain status between wifehood and widowhood.Many mothers are waiting for
their disappeared sons while widows and half-widows are in pain since decades in
occupied territory. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/08/thousands-of-women-killed-molested-by-indian-troops-in-iok/
5.
Youth martyred: Mar., 9, 2020: In occupied
Kashmir, Indian troops martyred two
Kashmiri youth in Shopian district, today. The youth were killed by Indian
troops during a violent siege and search operation in Khawjapora Reban area of
the district. Meanwhile, Indian forces blocked all entry and exit points of the
area and conducted house-to-house search. The movement of the people was
restricted. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/09/indian-troops-martyr-one-kashmiri-youth-in-iok-2/
6. Arrests: Mar.,10, 2020: Jahanzaib Sami and his wife
Hina Bashir Beigh, both in their late 30s and residents of
Srinagar, were detained from their rented home in Okhla Vihar on Sunday and
booked for sedition and promoting enmity between different communities under
Sections 124A and 153A of the Indian Penal Code, and under the Unlawful
Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), police officials said. The family of the
couple said the two were professionals with no interest in CAA or ISIS. “We are
shocked. They are being framed just because they are Kashmiri Muslims. They are
career oriented people and have a very clean record. They had no interest in
the Kashmir issue and the CAA is out of question. Why would they instigate other
people?,” asked Sami’s sister Sehrish Sami.
Sami has a BTech and MBA, and was working as a project manager with a UK
based IT company in Srinagar, the family claimed. The company asked him to
shift to Delhi after the internet shutdown in J&K following the revocation
of the erstwhile state’s special status on August 5 last year. . https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/framed-for-being-kashmiri-muslims-says-family-of-kashmir-couple-arrested-for-is-links/story-W2wrU0gry4EF0m7Qgd43DJ.html
7.
MAPIM: Mar., 10, 2020: Kuala Lumpur based non-governmental
organization, Malaysian Consultative Council for Islamic Organization (MAPIM)
has expressed deep anguish and concerns over the prevailing bloodbath targeting
Muslims in India and inhuman lockdown in occupied Kashmir. The MAPIM headed by
Mohammad Azmi Abdul Hamid in a statement issued in Kuala Lumpur demanded the
Indian government to immediately take action against Hindus extremist elements
who targeted and killed the innocent Muslims in Delhi and destroyed their
properties and masjids. The organization also condemned the role of the Indian
media and police in being biased against the Muslims and being complicit with
the government to promote their hateful agenda of division and oppression. “The
unjust policies, laws and actions by the government have intentionally target a
religious creed and this will render India unmanageable politically, socially
and economically,” the statement added. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/10/mapim-denounces-massacre-of-indian-muslims-lockdown-in-iok/
8.
Funeral: Mar., 11, 2020: In occupied
Kashmir, thousands of people defying curfew and other restrictions participated
in the funeral prayers of two martyred youth in Kulgam and Shopian districts. The
youth identified as Shabbir Ahmed Malik and Aamir Ahmed Dar were killed by
Indian troops during a violent cordon and search operation in Ribbon area of
Shopian district, yesterday. The troops also destroyed a house with mortar
shells. Amid high-pitched pro-freedom and anti-India slogans, the martyred
youth were buried in their ancestral graveyards in Kulgam and Shopian
districts. The killing triggered complete shutdown in the two districts. . https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/10/thousands-turn-up-for-martyrs-funeral-in-iok/
9.
Youth arrested: Mar., 12, 2020: In occupied Kashmir, Indian troops arrested over a dozen youth
during the ongoing crackdown operations in Pulwama district, today.The troops
launched massive cordon and search operations in Sirnoo, Monghama and
Kareemabad areas of the district. They barged into houses, ransacked household
goods and arrested, at least, 13 youth. The troops also harassed the inmates. A
police official said the youth were arrested on charges of taking part in
anti-India protests . https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/11/indian-troops-arrest-13-youth-in-iok/
10.
Exhibition: Mar., 12, 2020: The
Organisation Of Kashmir Coalition OKC arranged an exhibition titled”Stop
Genocide in Kashmir” on the Common Wealth Day, celebrated by an alliance of 54
countries spanning the globe, which is known as The common Wealth.The
participants of the exhibition were informed that India being a member of the
Common Wealth is violating all the core values of the organization.
The exhibition reminded the representatives of member states with 2.4 billion
Common Wealth citizens around the globe that New Delhi is continuously
committing crimes against humanity in occupied Kashmir, especially after the
abrogation of Article 370. All prominent Kashmiri leaders are jailed and life
of ordinary citizens is at stake. The plight of the in the backdrop of India’s
unilateral action of 5th August was highlighted. The exhibition tried to
portray that the lockdown and cyber curfew had put a blanket cover on the human
rights violations committed by the Indian troops in the occupied territory with
impunity. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/11/stop-genocide-in-kashmir-exhibition-held-in-london/
11.
Youth martyred: Mar., 13, 2020: In occupied Kashmir,
Indian troops in their fresh act of state terrorism martyred one Kashmiri youth
in Baramulla district, today.The troops martyred the youth identified as Mudassir
Ahmed Butt during a cordon and search operation in Shutloo area of
the district. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/13/indian-troops-martyr-one-kashmiri-youth-in-baramulla-4/
12.
UK Parliament: Mar., 13, 2020: Debbie Abrahams, UK Labour Party
MP and Chairperson of All Parties Parliamentary Group on Kashmir (APPGK) in the
British Parliament, presented a resolution in the UK Parliament for debate. March
26 has been fixed for debate on the resolution titled “Human Rights in
Kashmir”.The debate is being held in the wake of a week-long visit by a
delegation of the APPGK to Pakistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir last month. The
parliamentary delegation, besides a report of the visit, also presented a
resolution in the parliament for a detailed debate on ‘Kashmir situation and
human rights in Kashmir’. The parliament, accepting the resolution, fixed 26th
March for debate. The members will take part in the debate for three hours https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/13/debate-on-human-rights-in-kashmir-in-uk-parliament-on-march-26/
13.
Farooq
Abdullah: Mar., 15, 2020:
former R&AW chief A.S. Dulat says that he visited Srinagar to meet
Abdullah and that the government had cleared the visit and, additionally,
national security adviser Ajit Doval was fully aware of it. Dulat – who said he
visited Abdullah in Srinagar on February 12 – has known the National Conference
patriarch for decades and interceded with him on behalf of earlier governments
on at least two previous occasions. Speaking to Karan Thapar for The Wire, he says Farooq
Abdullah will respond if the Centre reaches out and that he has always done so.
Dulat told The Wire
that his involvement began when he spoke to Abdullah on October 31 to enquire
how he was. He asked if he could come and meet him and Abdullah said that
depends on the authorities. Dulat then
contacted a former colleague in the IB in Srinagar who said he would need to
get clearance from Delhi. Dulat then contacted sources in the home ministry in
Delhi but they did not give him permission to meet Farooq Abdullah. However, on
February 9, he received a phone call from the home ministry saying he was free
to go to Kashmir. Dulat says this phone call would only have happened with the
knowledge and concurrence of Doval and this means the NSA was fully in the
loop. Although Dulat told The
Wire his visit to Srinagar was a “private” one, he revealed that
the IB in Srinagar provided transport to take him from Srinagar airport to
Abdullah’s residence at Gupkar Road and back to the airport. It was a short
trip and Dulat was back home in Delhi by 6.30 pm the same day. Shortly after
his return, he was rung by the home ministry to find out how the trip had gone.
Dulat told The Wire
that he spoke to Farooq Abdullah late on the night of March 13t), some six
hours after the latter’s release, and that Abdullah told him he would probably
come to Delhi in 15 days time. This means Abdullah is likely to miss the
present session of parliament altogether. Speaking about his meeting with
Abdullah on February 12, Dulat told The
Wire that the NC leader was particularly concerned about the use of
PSA against his son, Omar Abdullah, and PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti. Dulat said
Abdullah could not understand why this was done. He says Abdullah also
expressed concern about the impact of the reading down of Article 370 and all
the subsequent developments in Kashmir on his grandchildren. He
said he himself was fully committed to India and had brought up his children in
the same way. But now he did not know how to answer questions his
grandchildren may ask The meeting with
Farooq lasted for an hour during which time he also met Abdullah’s wife, Molly,
and his daughter, Safia, and had lunch.Dulat told The Wire he was confident the
government would also find some way of talking to Mehbooba Mufti if it had not
already done so. Talking about Omar Abdullah, Dulat said the
present government was even more comfortable with Omar than with Farooq. With
great confidence, he said Omar Abdullah would be the next chief minister of
Jammu and Kashmir, i.e. whenever the state elections are held. https://thewire.in/security-security/interview-karan-thapar-a-s-dulat-farooq-abdullah
1.
VPH: Mar 2, 2020: Keen to clamp down on VPN use, the security
forces first resorted to physical checks of smartphones, as multiple Kashmir
residents told Scroll.in. Then,
on February 17, the Jammu and Kashmir Police’s cyber wing filed a first information reprt on the alleged “misuse of
social media” through VPNs.
The FIR invoked the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and various sections of
the Indian Penal Code against unknown persons. According to police officials,
there have been no arrests directly under the cyber police’s FIR. But it has
kicked into motion several arrests under FIRs filed at the district level. Scroll.in tracked down
at least five cases of arrest since February 17, all for social media and VPN
use. https://scroll.in/article/954711/in-kashmir-a-spree-of-arrests-for-alleged-misuse-of-social-media-and-vpns.
2. Journalism in Occupied Kashmir: Mar., 2, 2020: Due to frequent internet
blockage IOK journalists, face difficulty in broadcasting their stories and
full filling their duties. In recent lockdown and revoke of article 370, life
in IOK became stagnant and miserable. The lockdown of the internet has ceased
communication. The Indian authorities had snapped the broadband internet
connection of the Kashmir press club. This move meant 200 journalists who are a
member of Kashmir Press Club; fraternity could not file their reports. Hence,
Internet blockage is the main hindrance in full filling the profession of
journalism in IOK. Besides the difficulties of internet blockage, journalists
of the valley face imprisonment, torture and even murder for their obvious
duty. They are continuously harassed. Indian authorities are
seeking forced undertakings from news organizations regarding assurance to
defend Indian defined narrative. India has also issued an advisory to
international journalists who are working in India, reminding them that they
would need prior permission to travel to “protected areas” including IOK. IOK
journalists are bound to ensure the Indian government promoted versions. They
are summed and called to police stations often. The detention of Journalists
in Counter Insurgency Centre (Cargo) in Srinagar has become a routine matter. Beside local journalists,
Peerzada Ashiq who works for “The Hindu” was also summoned to Kothi Bagh Police
station. He was interrogated for breaking news regarding IOK. Aqib Javaid of
Daily Kashmir Observer was interrogated for interviewing Aasiya Andrabi
(Chairman Dukhtaran-e-Millat). Asif Sultan Assistant Editor at Kashmir Narrator
was arrested in lieu of defaming India and possession of incriminatory material
on his laptop. None of these charges were substantiated. These assaults on
journalists are an attempt to suppress freedom of expression in IOK. On the other hand, under the draconian Unlawful Activities
Prevention Act (UAPA), journalists are
captured, detained, tortured and molested by the Indian army for portraying the
true events to the world. Recently, pellets were fired
on four photojournalists in the Shopian area of the valley. This assault left
these journalists injured. Asian Forum for Human Rights development
(FORUM-Asia) expressed its concerns over the firing and detention of
journalists. Journalist broadcasting truth is accused of spying and supporting
Pakistan. These journalists are detained, tortured and left without any proof
of allegation on them. In recent curfew, journalism is the most suffered
profession in IOK. Only a few local and international journalists are daring
enough to work in IOK in today´s situation. Operating freely from the valley
has become a dream for IOK journalists. Concluding more! Human Rights
commissions condemned India for its genocide in Kashmir including people from
any walk of life. Human Rights watch urge India to ensure the security of
Journalists in IOK. United Nations should take positive actions and pressurize India
to bring peace in the valley and provide security to the journalist. India
should allow International journalists and news agencies to work in IOK
providing sufficient security to them. Indian army should be prohibited to
capture or torture any registered journalist regardless of any proven
allegation. Human Rights violations should be controlled. http://kashmirwatch.com/journalism-in-indian-occupied-kashmir/
3.
Youth arrested: Mar., 3, 2030: In occupied
Kashmir, Indian troops arrested several Kashmiri youth during crackdown
operations and house raids in different areas of the territory. Around half a
dozen youth including Fayaz Ahmed Butt, Muzamil Nabi, Umar
Ajaz, Rauf Ahamd and Ishfaq Ahmad were arrested in Srinagar,
Badgam, Ganderbal and Bandipore districts. The occupational forces have created
an atmosphere of fear and harassment through the ongoing cordon and search
operations in Kupwara, Baramulla, Islamabad, Pulwama, Shopian, Kulgam, Ramban,
Kishtwar, Doda, Rajouri and Poonch districts. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/02/indian-troops-arrest-several-youth-in-iok/
4.
OIC
Special envoy: Mar., 4, 2020: Parliamentary
Committee on Kashmir Monday briefed the visiting OIC Secretary General's
Special Envoy for Jammu and Kashmir, Ambassador Yousef M. Al Dobeay and his
delegation on the worst human rights situations in Indian occupied Jammu and
Kashmir. The parliamentary panel on Kashmir met here with its chairman Syed
Fakhar Imam in the chair for an in-camera session, which was also specially
attended by the OIC Secretary General's Special Envoy for Jammu and Kashmir and
members of his delegation. The OIC's delegation is visiting Pakistan from March 2-6 during,
which they will also visit the areas along the Line of Control to get
first-hand information about the losses caused to both life and property due to
the India's ceasefire violations, besides visiting the Azad Jammu and Kashmir. . https://www.brecorder.com/2020/03/03/576591/jammu-and-kashmir-oic-sgs-special-envoy-briefed-about-iok-situation/.
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)'s
Special Envoy for Jammu and Kashmir Ambassador Yousef M. Al Dobeay said on
Tuesday that the "OIC has
always strongly supported the resolution of the Kashmir issue and the
resolution of both Kashmir and Palesti ne The
special envoy is part of a six-member delegation that reached Pakistan on
Monday for a five-day visit to witness the destruction and sufferings caused by
ceasefire violations by Indian troops along the Line of Control (LoC).e issues stand at the top of OIC's
agenda." https://www.dawn.com/news/1538109/kashmir-and-palestine-foremost-on-oics-agenda-says-special-envoy
5.
Youth martyred: Mar., 5, 2020: In occupied
Kashmir, Indian troops in their fresh act of state terrorism martyred a
Kashmiri youth in Baramulla district, today. The troops killed the 22-year-old
youth, identified as Omar Subhan, during a cordon and search operation in Warpura area of Sopore
in the district.Earlier, a Special Police Officer of Indian police was killed
and another was injured in an attack in the same area. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/04/indian-troops-martyr-youth-in-baramulla/
6.
Freedom of World: Mar., 5, 2020: In the latest edition of Freedom in the World, an annual
report published by Washington-based pro-democracy nonprofit Freedom House,
India has suffered the largest decline in its political rights and civil
liberties score among the 25 most populous democracies because of the Narendra
Modi government’s “alarming departures from democratic norms,”
while Kashmir’s status has declined from “Partly Free” to “Not Free.” On
Kashmir, the Report 2020 highlights the abrupt revocation of Jammu
and Kashmir’s (J&K) special status on 5 August, 2019, the massive deployment
of troops, the arbitrary arrests of hundreds of Kashmiri leaders and activists,
and shutdown of mobile and internet services. Kashmir, the report said,
“experienced one of the largest single-year score declines of the past 10 years
in Freedom in the World, and its freedom status dropped to Not Free. Interestingly,
the Freedom House was founded in 1941 with the support of President Franklin D.
Roosevelt in response to the rise of Nazism at the time. The 2020 gives a
damning assessment of the Modi government’s pattern of Hindu nationalist
policies, including the persecution of religious minorities, abruptly revoking
Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, the adoption of the Citizenship Amendment
Act (CAA), which it calls a discriminatory citizenship law and the aggressive
suppression of the anti-CAA protests that followed. India, which is ranked
‘Free,’ dropped from 75/100 in 2019 to 71 in 2020.“Indian government has taken
its Hindu nationalist agenda to a new level with a succession of policies that
abrogate the rights of different segments of its Muslim population, threatening
the democratic future of a country long seen as a potential bulwark of freedom
in Asia and the world,” Sarah Repucci, Freedom House’s Senior Director of
Research and Analysis, writes in the report. India because of its Hindu
nationalist policies was highlighted as glaring example in the 2020 Freedom
report, which is called A Leaderless Struggle For Democracy. The report said,
“The BJP has distanced itself from the country’s founding commitment to
pluralism and individual rights, without which democracy cannot long survive.” https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/04/freedom-report-grills-india-for-anti-kashmir-anti-muslim-agenda/
7.
Journalism under occupation: Mar., 6, 2020: Next
day, we woke up to a curfew or we can call it a military siege, stricter and
more threatening than what we had witnessed in Kashmir before. Streets, lanes
and bylanes that connect one area with the other were sealed with barbed wires.
Everywhere, only gun-toting paramilitary troops with orders to foil any kind of
resistance were present on the roads. I was watching television and at around
10:30 am, news channels reported that home minister Amit Shah had presented a
Bill in the upper house of parliament to revoke Jammu and
Kashmir’s autonomy. Two days after restrictions were placed; I went outside
to observe the situation. When I reached the main road, I was chased by
soldiers who swore at me. They behaved in an uncouth manner and didn’t even let
me tell them that I am a journalist. I was left without any work, like hundreds of
thousands of other young Kashmiris whose careers were in peril
and who were looking for new opportunities. My plans were falling apart before
me and I felt distressed at home. It was difficult to concentrate on anything,
as rumours about killings, detention of youth and protests were circling. Every
night, I kept tossing and turning in bed, thinking about the future of my
people. I wanted to amplify their voices, as their human rights were being
brazenly violated. But I was helpless In South Kashmir districts people told us
horrific tales of torture, detention and loss. Most people looked frightened
and refused to talk to us. It was as if an invisible tape bound their mouth or
there was a gun to their heads, asking them to accept the decision that had
changed their lives drastically and had been made without counting their
opinion. During my career, I have mostly covered South Kashmir, where hundreds
of people were killed during the last few years of anti-militancy operations
and violent protests. I had never met a local who was reluctant to talk to the
media. In fact, they were always vocal. The one phrase that was often repeated
to us while interviewing people was, “Kasheer Karikh Khatim (Kashmir has
been destroyed One afternoon, we went to a nearby hotel to have lunch. A
Kashmiri man, probably in his 40s and wearing a salwar kameez, was sitting at
the table before us. He looked distressed and tired and started to converse
with us. He had come to Jammu all the way from Shopian, a hotbed of militancy
in South Kashmir, to meet his elder brother, who was incarcerated in the Kot
Bhalwal Jail in Jammu. The brother had been picked up by the police from his
home two days after the dilution of Article 370.As he wasn’t able to make any
contact with his brother, two days ago, he had left his home early morning
under clampdown. He had passed through scores of barricades and security
checkpoints. He walked by foot, hitchhiked up to Anantnag, around 35 kilometres
from Shopian, where he boarded a cab to Jammu. While speaking to us, the man
was almost in tears. He was running out of money and wanted to leave Jammu as
soon as possible. “Before leaving home, I collected some cash from family
members and took a cheque with me,” the man told me. “I thought I would
withdraw it in Jammu as the banks were still closed in Shopian.”When he went to
the bank to withdraw money, the cheque got bounced because of an incorrect
signature. He couldn’t even contact his family. Before leaving the hotel, the
man turned toward us and said, “Assi Kya Korukh (What has been done to
us?).” When I returned home, I began feeling frustrated again. In Jammu, I came
to know that I had been shortlisted
for the ‘Young Journalist Award 2019’ run by Thomson Foundation in collaboration
with the Foreign Press Association. I was waiting for news on who would be the
three finalists, as they would be flown to London to attend the Gala Award
Ceremony.I gave access to my email to a friend who was working in Delhi in a
private firm. He was checking my email everyday day. I wasn’t one of the three
finalists, but I was given an opportunity to sign up for a free online course
offered by the Thomson Foundation. I was unable to utilise that opportunity as
the Internet was still disconnected in Kashmir.To work around the restrictions,
I had begun to dictate story ideas to my friend in Delhi, who sending emails to
editors on my behalf. In the months
preceding August 5, 2019, I was regularly writing reports from Kashmir. During
the last six months, I only managed to file four reports. The Internet blockade
in Kashmir has already surpassed 200 days. On January 25, a painfully slow
speed mobile internet was restored with access limited to just
government-approved whitelisted
websites. It was mere eyewash, just to show the outside world
that ‘normalcy’ has returned to Kashmir. Apart from stifling journalism, the
prolonged internet ban has severely damaged
businesses has left Kashmiri
students in distress. And still, we do not know when the restrictions will be
lifted.Can you imagine living in today’s digital world without the Internet,
under a prolonged military siege? Have you ever witnessed raids in the dark of
the night and widespread detentions? Have you ever stayed in your own home as a
prisoner for months? https://thewire.in/rights/kashmir-life-under-clampdown
8. PSA: Mar., 6, 2020: Geneva: International Human Rights
Association of American minorities (IHRAAM), a global organisation dedicated to
human rights and right to self-determination, has expressed deep concern about
Kashmiris’ arbitrarily detentions and accused India of widely misusing a law
allowing for detention without trial in Indian occupied Kashmir. Barrister
Abdul Majid Tramboo represents the IHRAAM at the 43rd session (24 February-20
March 2020) of the Human Rights Council at UN offices in Geneva. The
Public Safety Act (PSA), which Indian Supreme Court describes a “lawless law” under
which the Indian authorities hold children, old people, political leaders,
activists, lawyers and protesters, IHRAAM said in its statement submitted at on
ongoing session. It was a breach of international human rights law, the
statement of IHRAAM said published on the UN General Assembly said.The IHRAAM,
which is in consultative status with the UN, demands that PSA be scrapped and prisoners released. “OHCHR, the
President of UNHRC and UNGA must take serious note of this and call upon India
to repeal the PSA to ensure it complies with its international human rights
norms and obligations and release all the prisoners detained under PSA,” it
said. The law prohibits the detention of children but IHRAAM said that Indian
authorities knowingly detained minors under this law. IHRAAM said that Indian authorities
use the PSA as a safety net, using it to secure the detention of people who are
released, or likely to be released, on bail. It said that authorities keep on
issuing orders to keep people behind bars. In August 2018, authorities amended
the Act to remove a proviso that barred detainees who are permanent residents
of Jammu and Kashmir from being lodged in jails outside the state. The US NGO
IHRAAM said that at least 40 pro-freedom Kashmiri political leaders, who are
detained under PSA, have been moved to Indian jails outside the state. In its
statement. This law provides cover to those officials who detain people
arbitrarily. As per Section 22, “no suit, prosecution or any other legal
proceeding shall lie against any person for anything done or intended to be
done in good faith” under the PSA http://kashmirwatch.com/india-is-misusing-lawless-law-in-kashmir-us-ngo-informs-unhrc-at-geneva/
9.
PSA : Mar., 7, 2020: In occupied Kashmir, the authorities
have booked three more youth under draconian law, Public Safety Act. The
occupation authorities slapped the black law on the youth, Nisar Ahmed Rathar,
Mubarak Ahmed Dar and Faheem Ahmed Sofi. Nisar Ahmed Rathar was shifted to Kot
Bhalwal Jail in Jammu while Mubarak Dar and Faheem Sofi were lodged at sub-jail
Mattan in Islamabad district. Under the PSA a person can be kept under
detention for upto two years without trial. Over 750 of the Kashmiri detainees
have been booked under the PSA. Prominent among those slapped with the black
law include Kashmir High Court Bar Association President Mian Abdul Qayoom,
Jamaat-e-Islami chief Dr Abdul Hameed Fayaz, Jamiat Ahle Hadith leader Maulana
Mushtaq Ahmed Veeri, and Hurriyat leaders, Masarrat Aalam Butt, Aasiya Andrabi,
Ghulam Ahmed Gulzar, Fehmeeda Sofi, Naheeda Nasreen, Qazi Yasir Ahmed, Maulana
Sarjaan Barkati, Muhammad Yasin Attai, and trade leader, Muhammad Yasin Khan. Meanwhile,
Indian troops arrested a youth identified as Waseem Bashir during a cordon and
search operation in Monghama area of Pulwama district, last night. The troops
have dubbed the arrested youth as over-ground worker of mujahideen. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/06/among-thousands-of-kashmiri-detainees-over-750-face-psa/
10.
Warren:
Mar., 7, 2020: Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic
presidential aspirant for the 2020 Elections, has condemned ‘anti-Muslim
violence’ in India and committed herself to “fighting for the rights and
freedom of the people of Kashmir
11.
Youth arrested : Mar., 88, 2020: In occupied Kashmir, Indian troops have
intensified cordon and search operations across the territory to suppress the
Kashmiris’ freedom movement and to stop them from raising voice against the
recent anti-Kashmir moves of the Modi government.The troops and sleuths of
National Investigation Agency have arrested several youth during military
operations and house raids in Srinagar, Badgam, Islamabad, Pulwama, Baramulla,
Kupwara, Kishtwar, Doda, Bhaderwah, Rajouri and other areas. The main objective
behind these operations is to create a sense of fear among the masses. The
residents of these areas told media that the troops barge into their
houses, thrash the inmates and vandalize their properties. The NIA
alone has arrested four people including a woman and her father from Srinagar
and Pulwama areas during the last few days. The Kashmir Press Club in a
statement issued in Srinagar strongly condemned the harassment of two
photojournalists by Indian police in Pulwama district. Two cameramen, Qayoom
Khan and Qaisar Mir, were stopped by the police when they were covering a raid
by the NIA in Hakripora area of the district. The police also snatched away
their cameras and mobile phones and returned the same after several hours.
Qaisar Mir said that he was used as a human shield by the troops during a cordon
and search operation at Babgund in Pulwama on 29th February. https://kmsnews.org/news/2020/03/07/indian-troops-intensify-casos-in-iok-2/
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