Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Srinagar: The Pak-India dialogue process, started in January 2004 when President Musharraf and Prime Minister Vajpayee met in Islamabad, has entered into fourth year. Since then, international community and more importantly, Kashmiris have been continuously pinning its hopes that these talks focused mainly on the core issue of Kashmir would help improve the ground situation in occupied Kashmir. But to the dismay of all, the situation remains as it was; Kashmiris are facing the same ordeal as before 2004. According to the data since January 2004 to March 2007, Indian troops in their continued acts of state terrorism have killed 3906 Kashmiris, including 332 in custody. Among the killed are also 117 women and 102 children. During this period, 997 structures, including shops and residential houses, have been destroyed, 328 women molested, 830 youth disappeared, 625 women rendered widowed and 1684 children orphaned. This mind-boggling number of human rights violations occurred in an era when the people of the 21st century are struggling for universal peace end harmony.
A couple of months ago, the exhumation of the dead bodies of Abdul Rahman Paddar, Maulvi Shoukat Ahmed, Ghulam Nabi Wani, Ali Mohammad Paddar and Nazeer Ahmad Deka and their subsequent DNA tests conducted at Chandigarh Forensic Labs had, in fact, established the flagrant phenomena of disappearances and killings of Kashmiri youth in custody and fake encounters by Indian troops. Although India endeavored to color the incidents as the crimes committed by some individuals among the Special Operation Group (SOG) of Indian Police, however, the explicit matters of routine in occupied Kashmir are hard to conceal.
All the atrocities being inflicted upon the Kashmiris are systematically governed by Indian state policy to continue them to the extent that they withdraw from their legitimate struggle against illegal Indian occupation. Indian authorities by the exhumation of the dead bodies of the above-mentioned Kashmiris during the preceding months have tried to prove that HR violations in occupied Kashmir are driven by a few disgruntled individuals among SOG. To augment the effect, India has also suspended some of its policemen due to their involvement to prove the notion that these are the individuals and not the state that is responsible for HR violations in the occupied territory. Though, it is only the tip of the iceberg of the killings of Kashmiri youth in fake encounters and during custody who afterwards are labeled as foreign militants, yet it is a solid proof of the day-to-day acts of Indian state terrorism in the Indian-Occupied Kashmir.
The SOG personnel who carried out the above heinous killings were allured by the Indian policy of giving rewards and promotions for such acts. The puppet regime, therefore, had duly rewarded the SOG personnel with 1,20,000 Indian rupees. Indian intransigence in its policy towards Kashmiris is evident from myriads of examples, one of them being Indian stubbornness for not releasing thousands of Kashmiris living in distressed conditions in different jails of India and occupied Kashmir. Among illegally arrested Kashmiris are also included prominent Kashmiri liberation leaders, Sheikh Abdul Aziz, Zamruda Habib, Muhammad Ahsan Untoo, Ashiq Hussain Fakhtoo, Bilal Siddiqi, Ghulam Muhammad Khan Sopori and many others.
Another striking fact of India's intransigence is that despite the ongoing peace process, it has blatantly shunned from repealing black laws implemented to suppress Kashmiris. Under these laws Indian troops enjoy full impunity to suppress Kashmiris (by killing, arresting, harassing). These laws include Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), Terrorism And Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) and the Jammu And Kashmir Disturbed Areas Act (DAA). Under the DAA, Indian troops have extraordinary powers, including authority to shoot the suspected and to destroy structures merely on suspicions. TADA gives Indian troops special powers for the use of force, arrest and detention. POTA has equipped Indian troops with extraordinary lethal powers. According to it, any act committed with any weapon (even licensed) can be described as a terrorist act. The suspects can be detained for three months without charges being brought against them and three more months if allowed by a special judge. Following intense international pressure, TADA and POTA was repealed, however, cases are still filed under this draconian law. Glaring examples in this regard are those of the cases filed against prominent Kashmiri Liberation leaders, Syed Ali Gilani and Muhammad Yasin Malik.
AFSPA gives armed and paramilitary forces sweeping powers that facilitate arbitrary arrests and detentions and extra-judicial executions and reinforce the impunity of offenders acting under it. PSA permits administrative detention for a period of up to two years on vaguely defined grounds to prevent people "from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of the state or the maintenance of public order". Important legal and constitutional safeguards including the right to be brought before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest and to consult a lawyer of one's choice, are not available to anyone held under preventive detention legislation. Thousands of people over the years have been detained under the Act. Under the above-mentioned black laws, confessions made before police, and army officers have been described as admissible in the courts of law. The result has been that many Kashmiri youth like Muhammad Afzal Guru and Dr Muhammad Qasim Fakhtoo were awarded death sentences and life imprisonments on the basis of their so-called confessions recorded under severe torture during interrogation.
There are thousands of Kashmiris who for years have been searching for their missing kin in Indian troops' custody in every nook and corner of India and the occupied territory. During this time, most of them have also heavily greased the palms of Indian officials only to have a single look either of a missing son, father, husband, brother, mother or a sister. According to the data released by the Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP), the number of those missing in troops custody exceeds ten thousand. Among the missing are also included children less than 10-year old. Missing for over a decade, their mothers faintly hope them to have grown up as adults.
No day passes in occupied Kashmir without a forceful protest demonstration, sit-ins or strikes, in which decades-suppressed IOK people call upon International community to press upon India to stop its troops' ever-growing human rights violations. India needs to realize that it will have to take serious measures to improve human rights situation in the occupied territory such as repealing the draconian laws and pulling out of its troops from the towns and populated areas as the first phase of demilitarization from the occupied territory. The rights violations committed by Indian troops can indeed be done away with if the demilitarization of Kashmir as proposed in the four-point formula of Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf is implemented in its letter and spirit. As for International community, it should take cognizance of the unabated acts of Indian terrorism and press upon India to allow international human rights bodies to investigate into the massive acts on Human Rights violations to know the crude facts of the last 18 years.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Srinagar: The Pak-India dialogue process, started in January 2004 when President Musharraf and Prime Minister Vajpayee met in Islamabad, has entered into fourth year. Since then, international community and more importantly, Kashmiris have been continuously pinning its hopes that these talks focused mainly on the core issue of Kashmir would help improve the ground situation in occupied Kashmir. But to the dismay of all, the situation remains as it was; Kashmiris are facing the same ordeal as before 2004. According to the data since January 2004 to March 2007, Indian troops in their continued acts of state terrorism have killed 3906 Kashmiris, including 332 in custody. Among the killed are also 117 women and 102 children. During this period, 997 structures, including shops and residential houses, have been destroyed, 328 women molested, 830 youth disappeared, 625 women rendered widowed and 1684 children orphaned. This mind-boggling number of human rights violations occurred in an era when the people of the 21st century are struggling for universal peace end harmony.
A couple of months ago, the exhumation of the dead bodies of Abdul Rahman Paddar, Maulvi Shoukat Ahmed, Ghulam Nabi Wani, Ali Mohammad Paddar and Nazeer Ahmad Deka and their subsequent DNA tests conducted at Chandigarh Forensic Labs had, in fact, established the flagrant phenomena of disappearances and killings of Kashmiri youth in custody and fake encounters by Indian troops. Although India endeavored to color the incidents as the crimes committed by some individuals among the Special Operation Group (SOG) of Indian Police, however, the explicit matters of routine in occupied Kashmir are hard to conceal.
All the atrocities being inflicted upon the Kashmiris are systematically governed by Indian state policy to continue them to the extent that they withdraw from their legitimate struggle against illegal Indian occupation. Indian authorities by the exhumation of the dead bodies of the above-mentioned Kashmiris during the preceding months have tried to prove that HR violations in occupied Kashmir are driven by a few disgruntled individuals among SOG. To augment the effect, India has also suspended some of its policemen due to their involvement to prove the notion that these are the individuals and not the state that is responsible for HR violations in the occupied territory. Though, it is only the tip of the iceberg of the killings of Kashmiri youth in fake encounters and during custody who afterwards are labeled as foreign militants, yet it is a solid proof of the day-to-day acts of Indian state terrorism in the Indian-Occupied Kashmir.
The SOG personnel who carried out the above heinous killings were allured by the Indian policy of giving rewards and promotions for such acts. The puppet regime, therefore, had duly rewarded the SOG personnel with 1,20,000 Indian rupees. Indian intransigence in its policy towards Kashmiris is evident from myriads of examples, one of them being Indian stubbornness for not releasing thousands of Kashmiris living in distressed conditions in different jails of India and occupied Kashmir. Among illegally arrested Kashmiris are also included prominent Kashmiri liberation leaders, Sheikh Abdul Aziz, Zamruda Habib, Muhammad Ahsan Untoo, Ashiq Hussain Fakhtoo, Bilal Siddiqi, Ghulam Muhammad Khan Sopori and many others.
Another striking fact of India's intransigence is that despite the ongoing peace process, it has blatantly shunned from repealing black laws implemented to suppress Kashmiris. Under these laws Indian troops enjoy full impunity to suppress Kashmiris (by killing, arresting, harassing). These laws include Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), Terrorism And Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) and the Jammu And Kashmir Disturbed Areas Act (DAA). Under the DAA, Indian troops have extraordinary powers, including authority to shoot the suspected and to destroy structures merely on suspicions. TADA gives Indian troops special powers for the use of force, arrest and detention. POTA has equipped Indian troops with extraordinary lethal powers. According to it, any act committed with any weapon (even licensed) can be described as a terrorist act. The suspects can be detained for three months without charges being brought against them and three more months if allowed by a special judge. Following intense international pressure, TADA and POTA was repealed, however, cases are still filed under this draconian law. Glaring examples in this regard are those of the cases filed against prominent Kashmiri Liberation leaders, Syed Ali Gilani and Muhammad Yasin Malik.
AFSPA gives armed and paramilitary forces sweeping powers that facilitate arbitrary arrests and detentions and extra-judicial executions and reinforce the impunity of offenders acting under it. PSA permits administrative detention for a period of up to two years on vaguely defined grounds to prevent people "from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of the state or the maintenance of public order". Important legal and constitutional safeguards including the right to be brought before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest and to consult a lawyer of one's choice, are not available to anyone held under preventive detention legislation. Thousands of people over the years have been detained under the Act. Under the above-mentioned black laws, confessions made before police, and army officers have been described as admissible in the courts of law. The result has been that many Kashmiri youth like Muhammad Afzal Guru and Dr Muhammad Qasim Fakhtoo were awarded death sentences and life imprisonments on the basis of their so-called confessions recorded under severe torture during interrogation.
There are thousands of Kashmiris who for years have been searching for their missing kin in Indian troops' custody in every nook and corner of India and the occupied territory. During this time, most of them have also heavily greased the palms of Indian officials only to have a single look either of a missing son, father, husband, brother, mother or a sister. According to the data released by the Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP), the number of those missing in troops custody exceeds ten thousand. Among the missing are also included children less than 10-year old. Missing for over a decade, their mothers faintly hope them to have grown up as adults.
No day passes in occupied Kashmir without a forceful protest demonstration, sit-ins or strikes, in which decades-suppressed IOK people call upon International community to press upon India to stop its troops' ever-growing human rights violations. India needs to realize that it will have to take serious measures to improve human rights situation in the occupied territory such as repealing the draconian laws and pulling out of its troops from the towns and populated areas as the first phase of demilitarization from the occupied territory. The rights violations committed by Indian troops can indeed be done away with if the demilitarization of Kashmir as proposed in the four-point formula of Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf is implemented in its letter and spirit. As for International community, it should take cognizance of the unabated acts of Indian terrorism and press upon India to allow international human rights bodies to investigate into the massive acts on Human Rights violations to know the crude facts of the last 18 years.
Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Srinagar: Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Srinagar: The Pak-India dialogue process, started in January 2004 when President Musharraf and Prime Minister Vajpayee met in Islamabad, has entered into fourth year. Since then, international community and more importantly, Kashmiris have been continuously pinning its hopes that these talks focused mainly on the core issue of Kashmir would help improve the ground situation in occupied Kashmir. But to the dismay of all, the situation remains as it was; Kashmiris are facing the same ordeal as before 2004. According to the data since January 2004 to March 2007, Indian troops in their continued acts of state terrorism have killed 3906 Kashmiris, including 332 in custody. Among the killed are also 117 women and 102 children. During this period, 997 structures, including shops and residential houses, have been destroyed, 328 women molested, 830 youth disappeared, 625 women rendered widowed and 1684 children orphaned. This mind-boggling number of human rights violations occurred in an era when the people of the 21st century are struggling for universal peace end harmony.
A couple of months ago, the exhumation of the dead bodies of Abdul Rahman Paddar, Maulvi Shoukat Ahmed, Ghulam Nabi Wani, Ali Mohammad Paddar and Nazeer Ahmad Deka and their subsequent DNA tests conducted at Chandigarh Forensic Labs had, in fact, established the flagrant phenomena of disappearances and killings of Kashmiri youth in custody and fake encounters by Indian troops. Although India endeavored to color the incidents as the crimes committed by some individuals among the Special Operation Group (SOG) of Indian Police, however, the explicit matters of routine in occupied Kashmir are hard to conceal.
All the atrocities being inflicted upon the Kashmiris are systematically governed by Indian state policy to continue them to the extent that they withdraw from their legitimate struggle against illegal Indian occupation. Indian authorities by the exhumation of the dead bodies of the above-mentioned Kashmiris during the preceding months have tried to prove that HR violations in occupied Kashmir are driven by a few disgruntled individuals among SOG. To augment the effect, India has also suspended some of its policemen due to their involvement to prove the notion that these are the individuals and not the state that is responsible for HR violations in the occupied territory. Though, it is only the tip of the iceberg of the killings of Kashmiri youth in fake encounters and during custody who afterwards are labeled as foreign militants, yet it is a solid proof of the day-to-day acts of Indian state terrorism in the Indian-Occupied Kashmir.
The SOG personnel who carried out the above heinous killings were allured by the Indian policy of giving rewards and promotions for such acts. The puppet regime, therefore, had duly rewarded the SOG personnel with 1,20,000 Indian rupees. Indian intransigence in its policy towards Kashmiris is evident from myriads of examples, one of them being Indian stubbornness for not releasing thousands of Kashmiris living in distressed conditions in different jails of India and occupied Kashmir. Among illegally arrested Kashmiris are also included prominent Kashmiri liberation leaders, Sheikh Abdul Aziz, Zamruda Habib, Muhammad Ahsan Untoo, Ashiq Hussain Fakhtoo, Bilal Siddiqi, Ghulam Muhammad Khan Sopori and many others.
Another striking fact of India's intransigence is that despite the ongoing peace process, it has blatantly shunned from repealing black laws implemented to suppress Kashmiris. Under these laws Indian troops enjoy full impunity to suppress Kashmiris (by killing, arresting, harassing). These laws include Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), Terrorism And Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) and the Jammu And Kashmir Disturbed Areas Act (DAA). Under the DAA, Indian troops have extraordinary powers, including authority to shoot the suspected and to destroy structures merely on suspicions. TADA gives Indian troops special powers for the use of force, arrest and detention. POTA has equipped Indian troops with extraordinary lethal powers. According to it, any act committed with any weapon (even licensed) can be described as a terrorist act. The suspects can be detained for three months without charges being brought against them and three more months if allowed by a special judge. Following intense international pressure, TADA and POTA was repealed, however, cases are still filed under this draconian law. Glaring examples in this regard are those of the cases filed against prominent Kashmiri Liberation leaders, Syed Ali Gilani and Muhammad Yasin Malik.
AFSPA gives armed and paramilitary forces sweeping powers that facilitate arbitrary arrests and detentions and extra-judicial executions and reinforce the impunity of offenders acting under it. PSA permits administrative detention for a period of up to two years on vaguely defined grounds to prevent people "from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of the state or the maintenance of public order". Important legal and constitutional safeguards including the right to be brought before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest and to consult a lawyer of one's choice, are not available to anyone held under preventive detention legislation. Thousands of people over the years have been detained under the Act. Under the above-mentioned black laws, confessions made before police, and army officers have been described as admissible in the courts of law. The result has been that many Kashmiri youth like Muhammad Afzal Guru and Dr Muhammad Qasim Fakhtoo were awarded death sentences and life imprisonments on the basis of their so-called confessions recorded under severe torture during interrogation.
There are thousands of Kashmiris who for years have been searching for their missing kin in Indian troops' custody in every nook and corner of India and the occupied territory. During this time, most of them have also heavily greased the palms of Indian officials only to have a single look either of a missing son, father, husband, brother, mother or a sister. According to the data released by the Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP), the number of those missing in troops custody exceeds ten thousand. Among the missing are also included children less than 10-year old. Missing for over a decade, their mothers faintly hope them to have grown up as adults.
No day passes in occupied Kashmir without a forceful protest demonstration, sit-ins or strikes, in which decades-suppressed IOK people call upon International community to press upon India to stop its troops' ever-growing human rights violations. India needs to realize that it will have to take serious measures to improve human rights situation in the occupied territory such as repealing the draconian laws and pulling out of its troops from the towns and populated areas as the first phase of demilitarization from the occupied territory. The rights violations committed by Indian troops can indeed be done away with if the demilitarization of Kashmir as proposed in the four-point formula of Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf is implemented in its letter and spirit. As for International community, it should take cognizance of the unabated acts of Indian terrorism and press upon India to allow international human rights bodies to investigate into the massive acts on Human Rights violations to know the crude facts of the last 18 years.
Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Srinagar: Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Srinagar: The Pak-India dialogue process, started in January 2004 when President Musharraf and Prime Minister Vajpayee met in Islamabad, has entered into fourth year. Since then, international community and more importantly, Kashmiris have been continuously pinning its hopes that these talks focused mainly on the core issue of Kashmir would help improve the ground situation in occupied Kashmir. But to the dismay of all, the situation remains as it was; Kashmiris are facing the same ordeal as before 2004. According to the data since January 2004 to March 2007, Indian troops in their continued acts of state terrorism have killed 3906 Kashmiris, including 332 in custody. Among the killed are also 117 women and 102 children. During this period, 997 structures, including shops and residential houses, have been destroyed, 328 women molested, 830 youth disappeared, 625 women rendered widowed and 1684 children orphaned. This mind-boggling number of human rights violations occurred in an era when the people of the 21st century are struggling for universal peace end harmony.
A couple of months ago, the exhumation of the dead bodies of Abdul Rahman Paddar, Maulvi Shoukat Ahmed, Ghulam Nabi Wani, Ali Mohammad Paddar and Nazeer Ahmad Deka and their subsequent DNA tests conducted at Chandigarh Forensic Labs had, in fact, established the flagrant phenomena of disappearances and killings of Kashmiri youth in custody and fake encounters by Indian troops. Although India endeavored to color the incidents as the crimes committed by some individuals among the Special Operation Group (SOG) of Indian Police, however, the explicit matters of routine in occupied Kashmir are hard to conceal.
All the atrocities being inflicted upon the Kashmiris are systematically governed by Indian state policy to continue them to the extent that they withdraw from their legitimate struggle against illegal Indian occupation. Indian authorities by the exhumation of the dead bodies of the above-mentioned Kashmiris during the preceding months have tried to prove that HR violations in occupied Kashmir are driven by a few disgruntled individuals among SOG. To augment the effect, India has also suspended some of its policemen due to their involvement to prove the notion that these are the individuals and not the state that is responsible for HR violations in the occupied territory. Though, it is only the tip of the iceberg of the killings of Kashmiri youth in fake encounters and during custody who afterwards are labeled as foreign militants, yet it is a solid proof of the day-to-day acts of Indian state terrorism in the Indian-Occupied Kashmir.
The SOG personnel who carried out the above heinous killings were allured by the Indian policy of giving rewards and promotions for such acts. The puppet regime, therefore, had duly rewarded the SOG personnel with 1,20,000 Indian rupees. Indian intransigence in its policy towards Kashmiris is evident from myriads of examples, one of them being Indian stubbornness for not releasing thousands of Kashmiris living in distressed conditions in different jails of India and occupied Kashmir. Among illegally arrested Kashmiris are also included prominent Kashmiri liberation leaders, Sheikh Abdul Aziz, Zamruda Habib, Muhammad Ahsan Untoo, Ashiq Hussain Fakhtoo, Bilal Siddiqi, Ghulam Muhammad Khan Sopori and many others.
Another striking fact of India's intransigence is that despite the ongoing peace process, it has blatantly shunned from repealing black laws implemented to suppress Kashmiris. Under these laws Indian troops enjoy full impunity to suppress Kashmiris (by killing, arresting, harassing). These laws include Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), Terrorism And Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) and the Jammu And Kashmir Disturbed Areas Act (DAA). Under the DAA, Indian troops have extraordinary powers, including authority to shoot the suspected and to destroy structures merely on suspicions. TADA gives Indian troops special powers for the use of force, arrest and detention. POTA has equipped Indian troops with extraordinary lethal powers. According to it, any act committed with any weapon (even licensed) can be described as a terrorist act. The suspects can be detained for three months without charges being brought against them and three more months if allowed by a special judge. Following intense international pressure, TADA and POTA was repealed, however, cases are still filed under this draconian law. Glaring examples in this regard are those of the cases filed against prominent Kashmiri Liberation leaders, Syed Ali Gilani and Muhammad Yasin Malik.
AFSPA gives armed and paramilitary forces sweeping powers that facilitate arbitrary arrests and detentions and extra-judicial executions and reinforce the impunity of offenders acting under it. PSA permits administrative detention for a period of up to two years on vaguely defined grounds to prevent people "from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of the state or the maintenance of public order". Important legal and constitutional safeguards including the right to be brought before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest and to consult a lawyer of one's choice, are not available to anyone held under preventive detention legislation. Thousands of people over the years have been detained under the Act. Under the above-mentioned black laws, confessions made before police, and army officers have been described as admissible in the courts of law. The result has been that many Kashmiri youth like Muhammad Afzal Guru and Dr Muhammad Qasim Fakhtoo were awarded death sentences and life imprisonments on the basis of their so-called confessions recorded under severe torture during interrogation.
There are thousands of Kashmiris who for years have been searching for their missing kin in Indian troops' custody in every nook and corner of India and the occupied territory. During this time, most of them have also heavily greased the palms of Indian officials only to have a single look either of a missing son, father, husband, brother, mother or a sister. According to the data released by the Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP), the number of those missing in troops custody exceeds ten thousand. Among the missing are also included children less than 10-year old. Missing for over a decade, their mothers faintly hope them to have grown up as adults.
No day passes in occupied Kashmir without a forceful protest demonstration, sit-ins or strikes, in which decades-suppressed IOK people call upon International community to press upon India to stop its troops' ever-growing human rights violations. India needs to realize that it will have to take serious measures to improve human rights situation in the occupied territory such as repealing the draconian laws and pulling out of its troops from the towns and populated areas as the first phase of demilitarization from the occupied territory. The rights violations committed by Indian troops can indeed be done away with if the demilitarization of Kashmir as proposed in the four-point formula of Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf is implemented in its letter and spirit. As for International community, it should take cognizance of the unabated acts of Indian terrorism and press upon India to allow international human rights bodies to investigate into the massive acts on Human Rights violations to know the crude facts of the last 18 years.
Srinagar: Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Srinagar: The Pak-India dialogue process, started in January 2004 when President Musharraf and Prime Minister Vajpayee met in Islamabad, has entered into fourth year. Since then, international community and more importantly, Kashmiris have been continuously pinning its hopes that these talks focused mainly on the core issue of Kashmir would help improve the ground situation in occupied Kashmir. But to the dismay of all, the situation remains as it was; Kashmiris are facing the same ordeal as before 2004. According to the data since January 2004 to March 2007, Indian troops in their continued acts of state terrorism have killed 3906 Kashmiris, including 332 in custody. Among the killed are also 117 women and 102 children. During this period, 997 structures, including shops and residential houses, have been destroyed, 328 women molested, 830 youth disappeared, 625 women rendered widowed and 1684 children orphaned. This mind-boggling number of human rights violations occurred in an era when the people of the 21st century are struggling for universal peace end harmony.
A couple of months ago, the exhumation of the dead bodies of Abdul Rahman Paddar, Maulvi Shoukat Ahmed, Ghulam Nabi Wani, Ali Mohammad Paddar and Nazeer Ahmad Deka and their subsequent DNA tests conducted at Chandigarh Forensic Labs had, in fact, established the flagrant phenomena of disappearances and killings of Kashmiri youth in custody and fake encounters by Indian troops. Although India endeavored to color the incidents as the crimes committed by some individuals among the Special Operation Group (SOG) of Indian Police, however, the explicit matters of routine in occupied Kashmir are hard to conceal.
All the atrocities being inflicted upon the Kashmiris are systematically governed by Indian state policy to continue them to the extent that they withdraw from their legitimate struggle against illegal Indian occupation. Indian authorities by the exhumation of the dead bodies of the above-mentioned Kashmiris during the preceding months have tried to prove that HR violations in occupied Kashmir are driven by a few disgruntled individuals among SOG. To augment the effect, India has also suspended some of its policemen due to their involvement to prove the notion that these are the individuals and not the state that is responsible for HR violations in the occupied territory. Though, it is only the tip of the iceberg of the killings of Kashmiri youth in fake encounters and during custody who afterwards are labeled as foreign militants, yet it is a solid proof of the day-to-day acts of Indian state terrorism in the Indian-Occupied Kashmir.
The SOG personnel who carried out the above heinous killings were allured by the Indian policy of giving rewards and promotions for such acts. The puppet regime, therefore, had duly rewarded the SOG personnel with 1,20,000 Indian rupees. Indian intransigence in its policy towards Kashmiris is evident from myriads of examples, one of them being Indian stubbornness for not releasing thousands of Kashmiris living in distressed conditions in different jails of India and occupied Kashmir. Among illegally arrested Kashmiris are also included prominent Kashmiri liberation leaders, Sheikh Abdul Aziz, Zamruda Habib, Muhammad Ahsan Untoo, Ashiq Hussain Fakhtoo, Bilal Siddiqi, Ghulam Muhammad Khan Sopori and many others.
Another striking fact of India's intransigence is that despite the ongoing peace process, it has blatantly shunned from repealing black laws implemented to suppress Kashmiris. Under these laws Indian troops enjoy full impunity to suppress Kashmiris (by killing, arresting, harassing). These laws include Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), Terrorism And Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) and the Jammu And Kashmir Disturbed Areas Act (DAA). Under the DAA, Indian troops have extraordinary powers, including authority to shoot the suspected and to destroy structures merely on suspicions. TADA gives Indian troops special powers for the use of force, arrest and detention. POTA has equipped Indian troops with extraordinary lethal powers. According to it, any act committed with any weapon (even licensed) can be described as a terrorist act. The suspects can be detained for three months without charges being brought against them and three more months if allowed by a special judge. Following intense international pressure, TADA and POTA was repealed, however, cases are still filed under this draconian law. Glaring examples in this regard are those of the cases filed against prominent Kashmiri Liberation leaders, Syed Ali Gilani and Muhammad Yasin Malik.
AFSPA gives armed and paramilitary forces sweeping powers that facilitate arbitrary arrests and detentions and extra-judicial executions and reinforce the impunity of offenders acting under it. PSA permits administrative detention for a period of up to two years on vaguely defined grounds to prevent people "from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of the state or the maintenance of public order". Important legal and constitutional safeguards including the right to be brought before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest and to consult a lawyer of one's choice, are not available to anyone held under preventive detention legislation. Thousands of people over the years have been detained under the Act. Under the above-mentioned black laws, confessions made before police, and army officers have been described as admissible in the courts of law. The result has been that many Kashmiri youth like Muhammad Afzal Guru and Dr Muhammad Qasim Fakhtoo were awarded death sentences and life imprisonments on the basis of their so-called confessions recorded under severe torture during interrogation.
There are thousands of Kashmiris who for years have been searching for their missing kin in Indian troops' custody in every nook and corner of India and the occupied territory. During this time, most of them have also heavily greased the palms of Indian officials only to have a single look either of a missing son, father, husband, brother, mother or a sister. According to the data released by the Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP), the number of those missing in troops custody exceeds ten thousand. Among the missing are also included children less than 10-year old. Missing for over a decade, their mothers faintly hope them to have grown up as adults.
No day passes in occupied Kashmir without a forceful protest demonstration, sit-ins or strikes, in which decades-suppressed IOK people call upon International community to press upon India to stop its troops' ever-growing human rights violations. India needs to realize that it will have to take serious measures to improve human rights situation in the occupied territory such as repealing the draconian laws and pulling out of its troops from the towns and populated areas as the first phase of demilitarization from the occupied territory. The rights violations committed by Indian troops can indeed be done away with if the demilitarization of Kashmir as proposed in the four-point formula of Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf is implemented in its letter and spirit. As for International community, it should take cognizance of the unabated acts of Indian terrorism and press upon India to allow international human rights bodies to investigate into the massive acts on Human Rights violations to know the crude facts of the last 18 years.
Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Srinagar: Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Srinagar: The Pak-India dialogue process, started in January 2004 when President Musharraf and Prime Minister Vajpayee met in Islamabad, has entered into fourth year. Since then, international community and more importantly, Kashmiris have been continuously pinning its hopes that these talks focused mainly on the core issue of Kashmir would help improve the ground situation in occupied Kashmir. But to the dismay of all, the situation remains as it was; Kashmiris are facing the same ordeal as before 2004. According to the data since January 2004 to March 2007, Indian troops in their continued acts of state terrorism have killed 3906 Kashmiris, including 332 in custody. Among the killed are also 117 women and 102 children. During this period, 997 structures, including shops and residential houses, have been destroyed, 328 women molested, 830 youth disappeared, 625 women rendered widowed and 1684 children orphaned. This mind-boggling number of human rights violations occurred in an era when the people of the 21st century are struggling for universal peace end harmony.
A couple of months ago, the exhumation of the dead bodies of Abdul Rahman Paddar, Maulvi Shoukat Ahmed, Ghulam Nabi Wani, Ali Mohammad Paddar and Nazeer Ahmad Deka and their subsequent DNA tests conducted at Chandigarh Forensic Labs had, in fact, established the flagrant phenomena of disappearances and killings of Kashmiri youth in custody and fake encounters by Indian troops. Although India endeavored to color the incidents as the crimes committed by some individuals among the Special Operation Group (SOG) of Indian Police, however, the explicit matters of routine in occupied Kashmir are hard to conceal.
All the atrocities being inflicted upon the Kashmiris are systematically governed by Indian state policy to continue them to the extent that they withdraw from their legitimate struggle against illegal Indian occupation. Indian authorities by the exhumation of the dead bodies of the above-mentioned Kashmiris during the preceding months have tried to prove that HR violations in occupied Kashmir are driven by a few disgruntled individuals among SOG. To augment the effect, India has also suspended some of its policemen due to their involvement to prove the notion that these are the individuals and not the state that is responsible for HR violations in the occupied territory. Though, it is only the tip of the iceberg of the killings of Kashmiri youth in fake encounters and during custody who afterwards are labeled as foreign militants, yet it is a solid proof of the day-to-day acts of Indian state terrorism in the Indian-Occupied Kashmir.
The SOG personnel who carried out the above heinous killings were allured by the Indian policy of giving rewards and promotions for such acts. The puppet regime, therefore, had duly rewarded the SOG personnel with 1,20,000 Indian rupees. Indian intransigence in its policy towards Kashmiris is evident from myriads of examples, one of them being Indian stubbornness for not releasing thousands of Kashmiris living in distressed conditions in different jails of India and occupied Kashmir. Among illegally arrested Kashmiris are also included prominent Kashmiri liberation leaders, Sheikh Abdul Aziz, Zamruda Habib, Muhammad Ahsan Untoo, Ashiq Hussain Fakhtoo, Bilal Siddiqi, Ghulam Muhammad Khan Sopori and many others.
Another striking fact of India's intransigence is that despite the ongoing peace process, it has blatantly shunned from repealing black laws implemented to suppress Kashmiris. Under these laws Indian troops enjoy full impunity to suppress Kashmiris (by killing, arresting, harassing). These laws include Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), Terrorism And Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) and the Jammu And Kashmir Disturbed Areas Act (DAA). Under the DAA, Indian troops have extraordinary powers, including authority to shoot the suspected and to destroy structures merely on suspicions. TADA gives Indian troops special powers for the use of force, arrest and detention. POTA has equipped Indian troops with extraordinary lethal powers. According to it, any act committed with any weapon (even licensed) can be described as a terrorist act. The suspects can be detained for three months without charges being brought against them and three more months if allowed by a special judge. Following intense international pressure, TADA and POTA was repealed, however, cases are still filed under this draconian law. Glaring examples in this regard are those of the cases filed against prominent Kashmiri Liberation leaders, Syed Ali Gilani and Muhammad Yasin Malik.
AFSPA gives armed and paramilitary forces sweeping powers that facilitate arbitrary arrests and detentions and extra-judicial executions and reinforce the impunity of offenders acting under it. PSA permits administrative detention for a period of up to two years on vaguely defined grounds to prevent people "from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of the state or the maintenance of public order". Important legal and constitutional safeguards including the right to be brought before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest and to consult a lawyer of one's choice, are not available to anyone held under preventive detention legislation. Thousands of people over the years have been detained under the Act. Under the above-mentioned black laws, confessions made before police, and army officers have been described as admissible in the courts of law. The result has been that many Kashmiri youth like Muhammad Afzal Guru and Dr Muhammad Qasim Fakhtoo were awarded death sentences and life imprisonments on the basis of their so-called confessions recorded under severe torture during interrogation.
There are thousands of Kashmiris who for years have been searching for their missing kin in Indian troops' custody in every nook and corner of India and the occupied territory. During this time, most of them have also heavily greased the palms of Indian officials only to have a single look either of a missing son, father, husband, brother, mother or a sister. According to the data released by the Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP), the number of those missing in troops custody exceeds ten thousand. Among the missing are also included children less than 10-year old. Missing for over a decade, their mothers faintly hope them to have grown up as adults.
No day passes in occupied Kashmir without a forceful protest demonstration, sit-ins or strikes, in which decades-suppressed IOK people call upon International community to press upon India to stop its troops' ever-growing human rights violations. India needs to realize that it will have to take serious measures to improve human rights situation in the occupied territory such as repealing the draconian laws and pulling out of its troops from the towns and populated areas as the first phase of demilitarization from the occupied territory. The rights violations committed by Indian troops can indeed be done away with if the demilitarization of Kashmir as proposed in the four-point formula of Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf is implemented in its letter and spirit. As for International community, it should take cognizance of the unabated acts of Indian terrorism and press upon India to allow international human rights bodies to investigate into the massive acts on Human Rights violations to know the crude facts of the last 18 years.
Srinagar: Over 3-years' dialogue sans change in Kashmir situation
Srinagar: The Pak-India dialogue process, started in January 2004 when President Musharraf and Prime Minister Vajpayee met in Islamabad, has entered into fourth year. Since then, international community and more importantly, Kashmiris have been continuously pinning its hopes that these talks focused mainly on the core issue of Kashmir would help improve the ground situation in occupied Kashmir. But to the dismay of all, the situation remains as it was; Kashmiris are facing the same ordeal as before 2004. According to the data since January 2004 to March 2007, Indian troops in their continued acts of state terrorism have killed 3906 Kashmiris, including 332 in custody. Among the killed are also 117 women and 102 children. During this period, 997 structures, including shops and residential houses, have been destroyed, 328 women molested, 830 youth disappeared, 625 women rendered widowed and 1684 children orphaned. This mind-boggling number of human rights violations occurred in an era when the people of the 21st century are struggling for universal peace end harmony.
A couple of months ago, the exhumation of the dead bodies of Abdul Rahman Paddar, Maulvi Shoukat Ahmed, Ghulam Nabi Wani, Ali Mohammad Paddar and Nazeer Ahmad Deka and their subsequent DNA tests conducted at Chandigarh Forensic Labs had, in fact, established the flagrant phenomena of disappearances and killings of Kashmiri youth in custody and fake encounters by Indian troops. Although India endeavored to color the incidents as the crimes committed by some individuals among the Special Operation Group (SOG) of Indian Police, however, the explicit matters of routine in occupied Kashmir are hard to conceal.
All the atrocities being inflicted upon the Kashmiris are systematically governed by Indian state policy to continue them to the extent that they withdraw from their legitimate struggle against illegal Indian occupation. Indian authorities by the exhumation of the dead bodies of the above-mentioned Kashmiris during the preceding months have tried to prove that HR violations in occupied Kashmir are driven by a few disgruntled individuals among SOG. To augment the effect, India has also suspended some of its policemen due to their involvement to prove the notion that these are the individuals and not the state that is responsible for HR violations in the occupied territory. Though, it is only the tip of the iceberg of the killings of Kashmiri youth in fake encounters and during custody who afterwards are labeled as foreign militants, yet it is a solid proof of the day-to-day acts of Indian state terrorism in the Indian-Occupied Kashmir.
The SOG personnel who carried out the above heinous killings were allured by the Indian policy of giving rewards and promotions for such acts. The puppet regime, therefore, had duly rewarded the SOG personnel with 1,20,000 Indian rupees. Indian intransigence in its policy towards Kashmiris is evident from myriads of examples, one of them being Indian stubbornness for not releasing thousands of Kashmiris living in distressed conditions in different jails of India and occupied Kashmir. Among illegally arrested Kashmiris are also included prominent Kashmiri liberation leaders, Sheikh Abdul Aziz, Zamruda Habib, Muhammad Ahsan Untoo, Ashiq Hussain Fakhtoo, Bilal Siddiqi, Ghulam Muhammad Khan Sopori and many others.
Another striking fact of India's intransigence is that despite the ongoing peace process, it has blatantly shunned from repealing black laws implemented to suppress Kashmiris. Under these laws Indian troops enjoy full impunity to suppress Kashmiris (by killing, arresting, harassing). These laws include Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), Terrorism And Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) and the Jammu And Kashmir Disturbed Areas Act (DAA). Under the DAA, Indian troops have extraordinary powers, including authority to shoot the suspected and to destroy structures merely on suspicions. TADA gives Indian troops special powers for the use of force, arrest and detention. POTA has equipped Indian troops with extraordinary lethal powers. According to it, any act committed with any weapon (even licensed) can be described as a terrorist act. The suspects can be detained for three months without charges being brought against them and three more months if allowed by a special judge. Following intense international pressure, TADA and POTA was repealed, however, cases are still filed under this draconian law. Glaring examples in this regard are those of the cases filed against prominent Kashmiri Liberation leaders, Syed Ali Gilani and Muhammad Yasin Malik.
AFSPA gives armed and paramilitary forces sweeping powers that facilitate arbitrary arrests and detentions and extra-judicial executions and reinforce the impunity of offenders acting under it. PSA permits administrative detention for a period of up to two years on vaguely defined grounds to prevent people "from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of the state or the maintenance of public order". Important legal and constitutional safeguards including the right to be brought before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest and to consult a lawyer of one's choice, are not available to anyone held under preventive detention legislation. Thousands of people over the years have been detained under the Act. Under the above-mentioned black laws, confessions made before police, and army officers have been described as admissible in the courts of law. The result has been that many Kashmiri youth like Muhammad Afzal Guru and Dr Muhammad Qasim Fakhtoo were awarded death sentences and life imprisonments on the basis of their so-called confessions recorded under severe torture during interrogation.
There are thousands of Kashmiris who for years have been searching for their missing kin in Indian troops' custody in every nook and corner of India and the occupied territory. During this time, most of them have also heavily greased the palms of Indian officials only to have a single look either of a missing son, father, husband, brother, mother or a sister. According to the data released by the Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP), the number of those missing in troops custody exceeds ten thousand. Among the missing are also included children less than 10-year old. Missing for over a decade, their mothers faintly hope them to have grown up as adults.
No day passes in occupied Kashmir without a forceful protest demonstration, sit-ins or strikes, in which decades-suppressed IOK people call upon International community to press upon India to stop its troops' ever-growing human rights violations. India needs to realize that it will have to take serious measures to improve human rights situation in the occupied territory such as repealing the draconian laws and pulling out of its troops from the towns and populated areas as the first phase of demilitarization from the occupied territory. The rights violations committed by Indian troops can indeed be done away with if the demilitarization of Kashmir as proposed in the four-point formula of Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf is implemented in its letter and spirit. As for International community, it should take cognizance of the unabated acts of Indian terrorism and press upon India to allow international human rights bodies to investigate into the massive acts on Human Rights violations to know the crude facts of the last 18 years.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Kashmiris to observe September 11 as Martyrs Day
Kashmiris to observe September 11 as Martyrs Day
The forum in a meeting held in Srinagar appealed to all the Imams to make “Philosophy of martyrdom” the topic of their Friday sermon on September 11 and organize special prayers for the martyrs.
The spokesman of the forum said that during the meeting it was decided to agitate peacefully against the occupation of land by Indian army an in this regard strategy would be announced soon. He also strongly condemned the use of force by Indian troopers and police personnel against the peaceful protestors in the Valley. (Writer-South Asia)
Srinagar, September 06 In disputed state of Kashmir, the forum patronized by senior Kashmiri Hurriyet leader, Syed Ali Gilani has said that September 11 will be observed as Kashmir Martyrs Day and September 18 as Youm-e-Qudus.
The forum in a meeting held in Srinagar appealed to all the Imams to make “Philosophy of martyrdom” the topic of their Friday sermon on September 11 and organize special prayers for the martyrs.
The spokesman if the forum expressed apprehensions over the recent meeting of puppet Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah and Indian Army corps commander, General Bikram Jeet Singh. He said that India was looking for legal means to justify the occupation of lakhs of kanals of agriculture and horticulture land by its army in the territory.
The spokesman of the forum said that during the meeting it was decided to agitate peacefully against the occupation of land by Indian army an in this regard strategy would be announced soon. He also strongly condemned the use of force by Indian troopers and police personnel against the peaceful protestors in the Valley. (Writer-South Asia)
Freedom Politics In Kashmir: Issues, Problems and Future Prospects
Freedom Politics In Kashmir: Issues, Problems and Future Prospects
By: Dr Syed M Inayatullah Andrabi,
This is a universally accepted fact that Kashmiri people do not want to live with India. With the emergence of a new post-colonial south Asia in 1947, Kashmir like all other Muslim majority states would have opted to become a constituent state of Pakistan, had it not been for the fact that India occupied the state by sheer intrigue and military force, and stopped the natural course of history.
India’s real achievement in Kashmir is not its successful military occupation, but cultivation of a proxy-puppet, but nonetheless, working political system. This puppet politics(commonly but wrongly termed as ‘mainstream politics’) is fake, a counterfeit product because it does not reflect peoples’ aspirations, nor is it based on any lofty vision where, in the face of its intrinsic merit, one would ignore its unpopularity. The puppet politics is rootless, but organized, structured and fully functional. On the other hand, the freedom politics is deeply rooted in genuine aspirations of Kashmiri masses. It has firm roots, but right from 1947 it is beset with problems of organization, resources and leadership. Its problems started when in early nineteen thirties Muslim Conference got infiltrated by forces of the so-called Indian Nationalism ultimately leading to the exit of the late Mirwaiz Maulvi Yusuf Shah from Kashmir which in turn gave National Conference a full sway over Kashmir’s political space. Being reflective of the popular political sentiment in occupied Kashmir, the freedom politics could not consolidate itself into a solid structure with a credible leadership and a clear strategic course of action. Although it represented the popular political sentiment, yet it could not successfully entrench itself in masses. Perhaps, freedom politics was at its best in the form of All J&K Plebicite Front when it functioned as a mass political party which in reality it is.
Present
In the recent past since 1989 things have not become any better. For the first time since 1947, the freedom politics had an underpinning of an armed movement which did favourably change the India-Kashmir power equation, and provided a higher pedestal for the freedom politics to operate from, but again the problems of organization, structure and leadership prevented any gains to change into successes. Although, one big factor why freedom politics could not consolidate itself as a solid political institution has been Indian repression and brute force right from the beginning, yet in recent times some other factors have also played a negative role in a big way. Because of these new factors, various groups with particular sectarian or political interests within the freedom politics have entrenched themselves, and have been busy in competing with each other within the space of freedom politics making the common cause of freedom a tragic casualty. Huge financial resources from a number of vested interests and dubious quarters around the world have aided and abetted this process. Given the time and the environment when it was formed, the All Party Hurriyat Conference (APHC) could have by now grown into a formidable political institution, which it unfortunately did not for two kinds of reasons, both complimenting each other: on one hand, it never had a clear sense of direction, and sense of common purpose, and on the other, it was the victim of outside interferences with particularist agendas. The net result is: freedom sentiment in Kashmir, undoubtedly the popular sentiment, still lacks, though not wholly, proper channels of articulation. It is a very powerful and genuine sentiment, but does not have an equally powerful vehicle for expression.
Current Topic:
Freedom Politics In Kashmir: Issues, Problems and Future Prospects
Looking Ahead
Nothing is more reassuring than the fact that the freedom sentiment has survived the test of time. The young generation is equally unwilling to live with India as were their forefathers in 1947. However the historic challenge remains:
How to ensure the existence of a dynamic, credible, and politically institutionalised freedom movement in Kashmir.
The assets are there as ever. The peoples’ sentiment is the core asset, and so is moral, political and strategic rightness of the Kashmir Cause. Changing world scenario, and power equations between Islam and the West particularly in the Middle East (where these are most significant) are again very favourable factors. Although the final objectives have not been achieved, yet there will be quite a few important gains that will have been made in the course of struggle for the past 19 years. These gains have to be identified, and consolidated.
If Kashmir Cause/Movement means complete end to India’s sovereignty over Kashmir, which it really does, then one has to look for a political movement sustainable for as long as it takes to deliver its goals, which should be very clearly spelt out. People cannot afford to go in circles, nor can they undergo trial exercises of the type that since Pakistan changed policy we had to stop at D, otherwise we would have gone up to B. People will say, if you had to stop at D, we would have not moved at all in the first place. People of Kashmir can, as do other people in the world, start at a point, and progressively move on the right direction without unnecessarily suffocating. At any point in time, it should be clear to a fair observer that they are nearer to the destination than they were at the preceding moment.
Credible movement has got to be independent in its decisions, flexible in its approach and general operation, and financially self-sufficient. Funds are always needed and, therefore, welcome, but a proper freedom movement in Kashmir can and should mobilise enough finances within Kashmir. This must be borne in mind that any political movement that seeks to liberate Kashmir from India’s occupation, and make it a part of wider Muslim fraternity, is essentially securing the future of Islam in Kashmir. As such, all those assets, which are related to Islamic heritage in Kashmir and Muslims’ attachment and loyalty to those, are actually the assets for the freedom movement. There is no reason why all the income from the shrines, particularly Dargah Sharif Hazratbal, should not be utilized for the cause of the freedom of Kashmir. So far, these assets have been exploited by puppet politics, and the puppet politicians continue doing this without shame.
Let us deliberate over these issues with the sole aim of making a contribution, doing one’s own bit, and not indulge in blame games and point scoring. May Allah(SWT) be our helper at all times, and in all situations.
PDP protested against Gen Sinha for his anti party remarks, burnt down his effigies at Srinagar, Ang and Inderwal-Doda
PDP protested against Gen Sinha for his anti party remarks, burnt down his effigies at Srinagar, Ang and Inderwal-Doda
Srinagar, July 5 - Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) today protested against former governor S K Sinha for his remarks against party. The PDP workers later burnt effigy of Gen Sinha at party headquarters, reiterating that the party will continue to represent the aspirations of Kashmiris. The party held similar protest demonstrations were held against Gen Sinha at, Anantnag and Inderwal in Doda
Reacting to Gen Sinha's remarks against the party and its patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, PDP district president Srinagar Ghulam Qadir Pardesi said, "Such remarks can only come out of a frustrated mind and these could not deter PDP from its duty towards the people." Pardesi added that Gen Sinha right from his taking over as governor of Jammu and Kashmir was not happy with PDP Mufti Mohammad Sayeed as the latter had proved a stumbling block in his scheme to communal polarization in the state.
Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Pardesi pointed out had questioned the former Governor's attempts to run the Shrine Board as an independent republic within the State for three years and Gen Sinha's anger is understandable against Sayeed was understandable. Pardesi said Sinha had a number of reasons to be annoyed by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed as the later had advised a realistic timeframe for the Yatra that would neither risk the life and comfort of pilgrims nor fiddle with its basic character. The effigies of Gen Sinha were also burnt at Anantnag and Inderwal as well. (Writer-South Asia)
Karra for immediate restoration of alternative links
Karra for immediate restoration of alternative links
Srinagar, July 06 – Senior Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader Tariq Hameed Karra has called for immediate operationalization of truck service on Srinagar- Muzafarabad and Poonch-Rawalakote roads to ensure availability essential commodities to the Kashmir valley in view of the economic blockade enforced by some fascist elements in Jammu.
In a statement issued here today, Karra said the continued enforced closure of the Pathankote-Jammu and Jammu-Srinagar highway by the BJP and its associates for the past one week has created acute scarcity of essential commodities and petroleum products in the Kashmir valley, Poonch, Rajouri and Doda regions and, unfortunately, the Government, instead of tackling the crisis is watching the situation like a mute spectator. "The enforced closure of the Srinagar-Jammu and Jammu-Pathankote highways is also adversely affecting the exports from Kashmir as hundreds of truckloads of fruit and vegetables are rotting in various parts of the Valley causing immense loss to the growers," he said.
Karra said in view of the continued economic blockade of the Kashmir valley, Poonch, Rajouri and Doda districts by the fascist elements, the only alternative to ensure smooth import and export of goods to and from these areas, is immediate operationalization of truck services on Srinagar-Muzafarabad and Poonch-Rawalakote roads. "If the fascist elements continue to run their writ, Kashmiris can't be left at their mercy and alternative links of communication and transportation to the Valley shall have to be restored, sooner the better," he said.
Acclaiming the unparalleled amity and harmony exhibited by Kashmiris during the recent protests against the diversion of land to Shri Amarnath Shrine Board by arranging free food for the Yatris, Karra said the BJP and its cohorts must learn a lesson in compassion and goodwill from the people of the Valley.
Quoting newspaper reports, Karra said the BJP, Shiv Sena and VHP activists are patrolling the Jammu-Srinagar highway to ensure that no Kashmir bound vehicle is allowed to pass through. He warned of dangerous consequences if the economic blockade against Kashmiris is not ended immediately. (Writer-South Asia)
PDP's record performance and its roadmap 'Self Rule' motivated me to join this party: Abbas Wani
PDP's record performance and its roadmap 'Self Rule' motivated me to join this party: Abbas Wani
SRINAGAR, Nov 18: National Conference youth block president Tangmarag Abbas Wani along with 20 senior NC delegates today joined Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in presence of PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed. These senior delegates include Munshi Abdul Hamid (secretary Block Tangmarag), and Bhkashi Abdul Ahad (block vice president).
PDP patron Sayeed welcomed the new entrants into the party fold, saying that their joining will add colours to the part activities in Pulwma district. "It is our pragmatic approach and political agenda which attracts people to our party folds," Sayeed added.
On this occasion, Abbas said that he was motivated by the PDP's three year performance and its concern for the resolution of Kashmir issue. "I have no words to count the performance of PDP. From development to fair recruitment, opening of Srinagar-Muzafarabad road to creation of conducive atmosphere for the ongoing peace process, establishing universities, to opening of new colleges, higher secondary schools and primary schools and above all bringing a significant change in the atmosphere of terror," Abbas added.
He said that he along with his workers would work hard to disseminate the PDP agenda which encompasses a message of peace and reconciliation. "National Conference believes in exploitation and this party has a long history of deceit and betrayal," Abbas said, and addedthat he found PDP's Self Rule as the best roadmap which can resolve the vexed Kashmir issue while taking into account the public aspirations. "The day I got the copy of the Self Rule I found it interesting and the only solution possible for resolving the Kashmir imbroglio," he said and added, that he will try his best to chennalize the public support this roadmap.
Abbas further remarked that it was the praiseworthy performance of the PDP which motivated him to join the PDP ranks. He added, "PDP said that it will open Srinagar-Muzafarabad road and it did. National Conference despite having a majority in the legislative assembly with a 60 years term, it could not do what PDP did in just three years of its rule in Kashmir," the new entrant said, and added that he will try his best to work for the betterment of people in his area. (Writer-South Asia)
Are Kashmiris At Fault ?
The people who have a good understanding should only read this post. Seriously, if you can’t put yourself into the situation, you won’t understand what I mean.
India was under the rule of the British Empire. Every Indian was trying his bit to liberate India from the colonial rule of British Empire. All the Indians were ready to lay their life down for their India because they wanted their land independent. India was being ruined economically. No Indian could see such a plight of their motherland. A lot of people died, but freedom was equally important so none really cared about life. Everyone wanted an end to oppression by the British. India had already become a part of British Empire, but British wouldn’t let them free. The British Empire thought that India was a part, rather a jewel, of their empire, but simultaneously they discriminated against Indians and booked them needlessly. Indians considered their rule as a rule of tyranny. All the evils in India were considered a gift from the British Empire. India repeatedly challenged the ruthlessness of the British Empire. This uprising made the British Empire to experience the traitorous attitude of India. But the British Empire still wouldn’t let them free. India desperately wanted to be independent, but the British Empire wouldn’t understand their sentiments.
All that you just read was not some usual yada-dada. Now, the twist arrives. In the above text, wherever you find India replace it with Kashmir and replace British Empire by India. The only difference would be that India was being ruined economically but Kashmir in terms of lives.
What Indians were doing at that time, Kashmiris are doing it now. How come Kashmir is wrong now while as India was right then.
All Indians complain that we Kashmiris are anti-nationals. India never gave us a reason to be Indians, patriots. Had India given us a chance, they would have seen what real patriotism is! They have killed us on every occasion. We demanded right to self-determination, but we were denied that. We demanded that road to AZAD KASHMIR for trade purposes, still we were suppressed. We demanded that all political prisoners be released, another demand overturned. The most draconian law, ARMED FORCES SPECIAL POWERS ACT (AFSPA), allows them to book, torture or kill anyone on mere suspicion. We wanted the Indian Government to abolish it, again they rejected the demand. Now when its too late, they are ready to fulfill our demands. Isn’t this injustice. Had India treated us at par with other citizens of the country, this problem would have never come up. Why would we ask PAKISTAN to help us, if India did no injustice to us. Independent India, actually never accepted Kashmiris as a part of their society. They themselves alienated us and then branded us as anti-national.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Saffron terrorisim in india
Saffron Terrorisim in India
By: Sheikh Gulzaar
Reports that Hindu militants may be involved in bomb attacks first blamed on Islamists may open a Pandora's Box for India's beleaguered security services and become a key voter issue before general elections next year.
At least 10 people, including a serving army officer and a Hindu monk and nun, have been arrested over alleged involvement in blasts in the Muslim-dominated town of Malegaon in Maharashtra that killed four people.
The same Indian army officer is being investigated over a bomb attack in February 2007 that killed 68 people on the Samjhauta Express, a train between Delhi and Lahore, police said. The attack killed mostly Pakistani and Kashmiri passengers.
The reports have proved an embarrassment for the main opposition Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as it prepares to take on the Congress-led government in both state elections this year and general elections in early 2009.
The BJP has been quick to criticise the Congress-led government for being soft on terrorism when it involves Muslims or Pakistan, but critics say it has been less willing to call for a clampdown on Hindu groups in the face of the latest allegations.
"In the wake of daily arrests of... (Hindu)... terror outfits, the BJP stood exposed," senior Congress leader Veerappa Moily told the Mail Today. "They cannot take a high moral ground."
While Islamists are suspects in many other attacks this year, the spectre of Hindu terrorist groups haunts many in India, which emerged from a traumatic partition in 1947 when hundreds of thousands were killed in religious clashes.
"Given India's diversity, a very delicate balance has been maintained," said security analyst C. Uday Bhaskar.
"If it is punctured, we will have very serious internal disturbances, aggravating the internal security of the country."
While many analysts believe this case could be isolated or limited to a small group, some believe it could signal something deeper and more sinister: a growing militant network that believes Muslims and a secular government are threatening what is basically a Hindu nation.
It is not just Muslims that are the target. In Orissa state, Hindu groups angry at reports of conversions were blamed for attacks on Christians in August and September. At least 38 people were killed.
"The Hindu terrorist ... has been formed to retaliate and they are functioning in the atmosphere of hatred politics which runs deep into the social system," said Amulya Ganguli, a political analyst.
But while an embarrassment, analysts are divided on whether any revelations about Hindu militants will hurt the BJP.
Some see it as an obsession of the chattering classes while millions worry more about inflation, an economic slowdown and a general perception that the government has struggled to bring anyone to justice for bombings, regardless of their religion.
Experts also say quick conclusions cannot be drawn by the arrests. There are reports of inconsistencies in the cases and nothing has been proved.
This is not an open and shut case, going by the record of investigating agencies," Major General Ashok Mehta, a security analyst, said.
As elections approach, the noise is unlikely to die down.
"Terrorism is definitely on the agenda of political parties and with elections round the corner everyone will talk about it," said Bhaskar.
By: Sheikh Gulzaar
Reports that Hindu militants may be involved in bomb attacks first blamed on Islamists may open a Pandora's Box for India's beleaguered security services and become a key voter issue before general elections next year.
At least 10 people, including a serving army officer and a Hindu monk and nun, have been arrested over alleged involvement in blasts in the Muslim-dominated town of Malegaon in Maharashtra that killed four people.
The same Indian army officer is being investigated over a bomb attack in February 2007 that killed 68 people on the Samjhauta Express, a train between Delhi and Lahore, police said. The attack killed mostly Pakistani and Kashmiri passengers.
The reports have proved an embarrassment for the main opposition Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as it prepares to take on the Congress-led government in both state elections this year and general elections in early 2009.
The BJP has been quick to criticise the Congress-led government for being soft on terrorism when it involves Muslims or Pakistan, but critics say it has been less willing to call for a clampdown on Hindu groups in the face of the latest allegations.
"In the wake of daily arrests of... (Hindu)... terror outfits, the BJP stood exposed," senior Congress leader Veerappa Moily told the Mail Today. "They cannot take a high moral ground."
While Islamists are suspects in many other attacks this year, the spectre of Hindu terrorist groups haunts many in India, which emerged from a traumatic partition in 1947 when hundreds of thousands were killed in religious clashes.
"Given India's diversity, a very delicate balance has been maintained," said security analyst C. Uday Bhaskar.
"If it is punctured, we will have very serious internal disturbances, aggravating the internal security of the country."
While many analysts believe this case could be isolated or limited to a small group, some believe it could signal something deeper and more sinister: a growing militant network that believes Muslims and a secular government are threatening what is basically a Hindu nation.
It is not just Muslims that are the target. In Orissa state, Hindu groups angry at reports of conversions were blamed for attacks on Christians in August and September. At least 38 people were killed.
"The Hindu terrorist ... has been formed to retaliate and they are functioning in the atmosphere of hatred politics which runs deep into the social system," said Amulya Ganguli, a political analyst.
But while an embarrassment, analysts are divided on whether any revelations about Hindu militants will hurt the BJP.
Some see it as an obsession of the chattering classes while millions worry more about inflation, an economic slowdown and a general perception that the government has struggled to bring anyone to justice for bombings, regardless of their religion.
Experts also say quick conclusions cannot be drawn by the arrests. There are reports of inconsistencies in the cases and nothing has been proved.
This is not an open and shut case, going by the record of investigating agencies," Major General Ashok Mehta, a security analyst, said.
As elections approach, the noise is unlikely to die down.
"Terrorism is definitely on the agenda of political parties and with elections round the corner everyone will talk about it," said Bhaskar.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Writer-South Asia
Kashmir Press International has renamed in October 25, 2007 as Writer-South Asia. Srinagar (The State of Jammu and Kashmir)We bring the South Asia to you. The state of Jammu and Kashmir’s leading news and information agency, Writer-South Asia (formerly Kashmir Press International) is established in Srinagar in 1992. Writer-South Asia subscribers include 52 newspapers in Pakistan, 23 in Middle East scores abroad. All major Jammu and Kashmir newspapers, news agencies, TV Channels, Cable channels, government departments and individuals receive the Writer-South Asia (Daily/Weekly/Fortnightly bulletin.
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