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Showing posts with label Human Rights situation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Human Rights situation. Show all posts

Monday, November 7, 2011

Kunan-Poshpora gang rape


Srinagar, Nov 6: : The JK Human Rights Commission (JKHRC) Wednesday asked the State government to start a fresh probe into the case relating to the alleged mass gang rape of women by army personnel in Kunan and Poshpora villages of Kupwara district 20 ago.

Announcing its recommendations on the case, a division bench of JKHRC asked the state government to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to reinvestigate the alleged mass gang rape of at least 31 women by army personnel in 1991.

Dozens of women from Kunan and Poshpora villages, around 110 km from here, had claimed that they were gang raped by army troopers during the intervening night of February 23 and 24 in 1991, leading to outrage across Kashmir.

"The SIT should be headed by an officer not below the rank of Superintendent of Police," the bench comprising JKHRC Chairman Justice (retd) Syed Bashiruddin Ahmad and Javaid Kawoos said.

It also asked the state government to prosecute the the then Director Prosecution who had sought closure of the case as the perpetrators were "untraceable".

"The then Director Prosecution had overstepped his brief...prosecution proceedings should be initiated against him and those officers who had approved his report," the JKHRC bench recommended.

Reading out from the report of the then district magistrate, Kawoos said 31 women, who claimed to have been victims of gangrape, had been sent for medical examination, which confirmed that they were subjected to atrocities.

"In the course of hearing the case, statements of 18 women were recorded and during which they testified that they were subjected to the atrocity," he said.

The Commission asked the state government to pay compensation of Rs two lakh each to the victims of the incident.

The then Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Wajahat Habibullah, who visited the villages following the allegations, had filed a confidential report in the same year about the incident.

"While the veracity of the complaint is highly doubtful, it still needs to be determined why such complaint was made at all. The people of the village are simple folk and by the army's own admission have been generally helpful and even careful of security of the army's officers," a part of Habibullah's report, released later, read.

"Unlike Brig Sharma, I found many of the village women genuinely angry... It is recommended that the level of investigation be upgraded to that of a gazetted police officer," it said.

In response to the criticism of the government's handling of the investigation, the army had requested the Press Council of India to investigate the incident.

The Press Council team, which visited Kashmir in June that year, claimed that "such a delayed medical examination proves nothing" and that the medical findings were typical among villagers.

The team concluded that the charges against the army were "well-concocted bundle of fabricated lies" and "a massive hoax orchestrated by militant groups and their sympathisers and mentors in Kashmir and abroad".

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Unmarked graves result of impunity enjoyed by forces under AFSPA: Prashant Bhushan

SRINAGAR, October 1: Calling for DNA profiling in the anonymous/unmarked graves, senior Supreme Court lawyer and influential core member of team Anna, Prashant Bhushan  Friday said unbridled impunity to forces  under Armed Forces Special Powers Act  (AFSPA) has led to  thousands of such graves across the State, ISHFAQ TANTRY reports in Rissing Kashmir (30/10/2011)

“Primarily, I was here to appear in 1996 Baderwah civilian killing case, which was listed before High Court today. This is one of the case which indicates how large number of  persons were killed in Kashmir over the years by forces”, Prashant Bhushan, a leading Supreme Court lawyer, said while addressing a press conference, here today.

He said in the particular (Baderwah killing case) involving death of three persons in a fake encounter, the charge sheet was filed but subsequent trial ended in acquittal of the main accused because the initial investigation had loopholes.
Linking the Baderwah fake encounter case with discovery of unmarked and unknown graves in Kashmir, Bhushan said if the fourth person in the case, Talib Hussain, who escaped from clutches of the accused would have been killed,  all the three persons would have been buried in an anonymous or unknown grave somewhere.

“That is why we say that anonymous grave issue, as reported by the SHRC in its investigation,  is important to be probed. The DNA profiling should be done and it should be matched with the DNA profiles of the missing persons, whose list is available with APDP,” he said.

He said Baderwah case is one such case, which can be re-investigated and perpetrators, howsoever influential, be brought to the book. “Because of the impunity enjoyed by armed forces under special powers like AFSPA, such crime are repeated time and again”.

Linking impunity of troops under special powers with mass anonymous graves, team Anna member said this cycle of impunity needs to be broken. “It will be broken only when we can provide justice  to victims by  bringing culprits, howsoever big or influential they may be, to book. For this reason, we are demanding that AFSPA should be removed and DNA profiling  of victims in unmarked  graves be carried out,” he said.

About Hurriyat (M) chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq proposal to seek support of team Anna  on mass grave issue, Bhushan said the matter  is under consideration.“  I am here in my individual capacity. But the proposal is before the core group and I hope it will be considered soon”, he said.

He, however, dismissed the proposal of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to setting up Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to probe issues like unmarked graves.  “It (TRC) won’t serve any purpose. TRC has its uses but it cannot be a complete substitute for booking persons involved in heinous crimes. Here (in Kashmir) we are dealing with accountability of forces who have committed heinous crimes,” he said.

The SC lawyer linked the mass graves issue with unresolved nature of Kashmir issue. “The longer the Kashmir issue festers, the larger number of forces would operate  in Kashmir and it would result in larger number of human rights abuses  like existence of unmarked graves,” he said.

He said conditions should be created conducive for political solution  to the Kashmir problem.
Baderwah Case hearing

Meanwhile, High Court Friday posted the  writ petition seeking reinvestigation into 1996 fake encounter case  for hearing on October 10.

“ The court  will not proceed into the case till Advocate General causes his appearance”, Justice Hasnain Masoodi observed  after  the petitioner lawyer Prashant Bhushan pressed  for issuing notices in the case and the recall of the  case records.
The defence counsel also pleaded  for reinvestigation of the case on the pattern of Best Bakery, Rubabudin and Zahira Sheikh cases wherein Supreme Court ordered reinvestigation and set up the Special Investigation Teams.

Earlier, senior additional Advocate General informed the court that the office of the Advocate General has not received any notice for the assistance of AG in the case from the bench. “The AG’s office has no such information. Advocate General cannot appear in the case, as he has already boarded the plane,” he informed the court.

The families of  Baderwah fake encounter victims, Fazal Hussain Dar, Fareed Hussain Dar and Mohammad Hussain Lone, who were killed in 1996,  had  on  September 21, 2011 approached  High Court with a petition seeking  re-opening  and  reinvestigation of the  case. (Writer-South Asia)

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Kashmiris to observe black day on Jan 26 : APHC

Srinagar, January 16: In northern disputed state of Kashmir, India’s Republic Day on 26th January will be observed as a Black Day to remind the international community that India has trampled over all democratic norms and recognized standards of justice by continuously denying Kashmiris’ inalienable right to self-determination, reports KMS.

Veteran Kashmiri Hurriyet leader, Syed Ali Gilani, in a statement in Srinagar today appealed the Kashmiri people to observe complete strike on this day.

The statement also strongly denounced the life imprisonment awarded on Saturday by a Delhi court to six people including two Kashmiris in a false case against them. It said that India after implicating the Kashmiri youth in concocted cases was victimizing them through its biased courts.

Senior APHC leader, Shabbir Ahmed Shah visited Bijbehara and expressed solidarity with the families of the youth who had been martyred by Indian police and troops during the past six months. Talking to the people on the occasion, he said that sacrifices of the Kashmiri martyrs would not be allowed to go waste.

A delegation of Jammu and Kashmir Salvation Movement after visiting Kot Bhalwal Jail in Jammu said in a statement that the political detainees were being deprived of sufficient medical and food facilities due to which they had developed various ailments of serious nature.

Indian police arrested six more innocent persons five of them from Nowhatta in Srinagar and one from Navpachchi area of Doda.