MIRPUR (Kashmir English): An eight-member delegation comprising Kashmiri leaders and human rights activists has left for Geneva to attend the 59th session of the Human Rights Council.
Led by the Chairman Kashmir Institutes of International Relations Altaf Hussain Wani, the high-level delegation is scheduled to brief Geneva-based diplomats of human rights council and world human rights groups about the unabated human rights violations perpetuated by Indian troops against civilians in the UN-recognized disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Wani said before leaving for Geneva early Sunday that besides highlighting the plight of long-suffering Kashmiri people, the delegation would host seminars, corner meeting and interactive discussions focusing on the serious challenges being faced by the Kashmiri people following the abrogation of Articles 370&35A by the Indian government.
He termed the Indian government decision highly controversial one that, he added, has drastically altered the region’s geographical, religious and political landscape.
Religious freedoms of Kashmiri people
The delegation would also seek the international Human Rights groups’ attention towards the Indian state’s infringement upon religious freedoms and rights of the Kashmiri people.
Moreover, the use and abuse of black laws such as AFSPA, UAPA and Public Safety Act against juveniles, arbitrary detention of political leaders, killing of unarmed civilians and the issue of un-named mass graves discovered in many areas within and outside the valley of Kashmir would be highlighted at the august forum to seek rights bodies’ urgent attention towards the simmering situation in the region.
The delegation is comprised of Ghulam Muhammad Safi the Convenor All Parties Hurriyat Conference AJK chapter, Sardar Amjad Yousaf Executive Director KIIR, Syed Faiz Naqashbandi, Mrs Shamim Shawl, Dr Saira Shah, Naila Altaf Kani and Ms Mehr-un-Nisa.
Currently, nearly a million Indian military and paramilitary troops are stationed in the region, which makes it the world’s highest militarized region.
Operating with immunity under black laws, the Indian forces are grossly involved in serious human rights violations. The human rights organizations have repeatedly classified their conduct as war crimes.
