According to the United Nations(UN), Human rights is a
cross-cutting theme in all UN policies and programme in the key areas of peace
and security, development, humanitarian assistance and economic and social
affairs under a series of international human rights treaties and other
instruments adopted since 1945 have expanded the body of international human
rights law, including the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the
Crimes of Genocide(1948), the international Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Racial Discrimination (1965), among others.
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Internationally, protests are increasing day by day to show solidarity with the
people of Indian Occupied Jammu &Kashmir(IOJ&K). Restrictions on movement and
assembly is imposed. Educational institutions are closed. Mobile and internet
service is suspended. There is severe shortage of food, medicines and other
basic necessities. There is a worst historic curfew in IOJ&K for more than a
month. Entire international media and community with its sane voices are raising
their concerns regarding the deplorable news being received fromIOJ&K. Worldwide
protests are continued against the constitutional blitzkrieg Of special status
of IOJ&K. By all counts, the Kashmir Freedom March rally on Tuesday 3rd Of
September,2019 was bigger than the massive protest on August 15 when nearly
15,000 had gathered outside Indian High Commission after Narendra Modi’s
government revoked Article 370.
US Senator Bernie Sanders Democratcandidate for Presidential Electionsaid that
he is also deeply concerned about the situation in Kashmir where the Indian
government has revoked Kashmiri autonomy, cracked down on dissent and instituted
a communications blackout. The crackdown in the name of security is also denying
the Kashmiri people access to medical care. Even many respected doctors in India
have acknowledged that the Indian government-imposed restrictions on travel are
threatening the life-saving care that patients need.
Jeremy Corbyn Opposition Leader Of the Labour Party said that the situation in
Kashmir is deeply disturbing. Human rights abuses taking place are unacceptable.
The rights of the Kashmiri people must be respected and UN resolutions
implemented.British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab on Tuesday said that Britain
had asked the Indian government to respect international standards of human
rights, respect rights of Kashmiris and end lockdown of occupied Kashmir, which
has now entered the second month. Dominic Raab expressed alarm at the worsening
human rights situation in occupied Kashmir as a result of the draconian
clampdown on Kashmiris.
Leading Indian newspaper 'the Indian Express' says Kashmir problem is becoming a
bigger headache for India due to increasing reports of violence by Indian
military in the territory.
In an opinion piece, the paper notes that incidents of torture and violence
taking place in Kashmir are a terrible mistake on the part of Indian
authorities.It says Prime Minister Narendra Modi must know that in the presence
of a violent military crackdown there is absolutely no chance of winning the
peace.
The paper says the arrest of a doctor in Srinagar for drawing attention to the
collapse of healthcare facilities there, refutes the claims by Indian
authorities that there has not been a single death since the military clampdown.
Indian Journalist, Nirupama Subramanian said that the Indian government will
eventually tire out the people, but if there ever was a plan to win them over,
it has become much more difficult now, if not impossible than it was before
August 5.
BBC and AlJazeeraand other international media is severely critical about the
Indian oppressive and claustrophobic behaviour for the people of IOJ&K.
Recent two UN reports on Kashmir calls for probe into human rights violations.
Moreover, Genocide Watch calls upon UN to warn India not to commit genocide in
IOJ&K. Human Rights Watch reported that 50,000 people were killed in Kashmir
from 1989 to 2006. The Kashmir State Human Rights Commission has evidence of
2,730 bodies buried in 40 mass graves. The Commission reported over 8000
disappearances. The Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society said that by
2016, there were over 70,000 killings, most by Indian forces. Amnesty
International reports that disappearances, torture and rape by Indian Army units
against Kashmiri Muslims are common.
In June 2018, first report released by the Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on said that The Muslim-majority region of
Kashmir is claimed in full by India and Pakistan.The two countries came close to
a third war, previously fighting two wars on Kashmir already, following the
killing of over 40 Indian soldiers in a suicide attack at Pulwama in 2019.
The UN report asked India to investigate more than 100 protesters were killed in
the five-month-long street protests following BurhanWani's killing in 2016,
triggering a new wave of popular anger against the Indian rule.
The UN report says the heightened tensions in Kashmir following the February
suicide bombing continues to have a severe effect on the human rights of
civilians, including the right to life.
It says authorities in India-administered Kashmir "continue to use various forms
of arbitrary detention to target protesters, political dissidents and other
civil society actors".
Second report by UN on Jammu & Kashmir once again affirms massive human rights
violations perpetrated by the India.
India was the first party among the two to go to the UN in 1948 for
international meditation.One of the most important resolutions was Resolution 47
that added, a provision to facilitate a “free and impartial plebiscite which is
yet to be conducted.
According to the OHCHR report, the official government figures list 17 people
killed by pellet injuries between July 2016 and August 2017. Subjecting
Kashmiris to violence on the pretext that terrorism is being unleashed in the
garb of freedom struggle is just not acceptable.Two million Muslims in Assam
have been refuted to be called Indian citizens and more than eight million
Kashmiris are under siege. The condition between India and Pakistan has reached
the boiling point and people of Kashmir have stuck in the middle.Any violence is
deplorable.
Lastly, world is needed to try and reduce the tensions but also, on a positive
side, build up confidence building measures to allow proper dialogue between the
communities in Kashmir and also between India and Pakistan and respect for
internationally recognised human rights.