By Asghar Ali Mubarak
ISLAMABAD: The internationally recognized disputed territory of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) has witnessed an upsurge in state-sponsored draconian oppressive laws and amendments against the innocent Kashmiri people to further suppress and deprive them from their basic human rights.
Almost all basic human rights of the Kashmiri people are violated through all possible means and measures from restricting mobility to communications and collective freedom to individual liberty.
Similarly, more cases of the arrest of political leadership, fake encounters and cordon-and-search operations, target killings, attacking educational institutions, media houses and journalists have been reported in the valley in wake of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution on August 05, 2019. The longstanding unresolved dispute of IIOJK has given birth to perpetual and systematic human rights violations. The ongoing deliberate horrific acts of violence, mental torture, aggression and ruthless brutalities have been directed to crush the spirit and freewill of the inhabitants of the valley. The situation has forced them to live and experience the worst nightmare of terror and trauma.
Their legitimate right of freedom has been suppressed through all possible means. It is wrong to term Kashmiris as separatists because the territory has never remained a legal part of India. The IIOJK is the only disputed territory whose solution is suggested by the parties (India and Pakistan) themselves. Similarly, Mahatma Gandhi has also said, “If the people of Kashmir are in favour of opting for Pakistan, no power on earth can stop them from doing so.
But they should be left free to decide for themselves” (Stanley, P. 247). During 1947-48 when the dispute erupted, almost all the leading countries including US, UK, China, France, Canada, Argentina, Belgium, Columbia have suggested that the dispute must be resolved in accordance with the wishes and aspirations of Kashmiris. Talking to media, Dr. Maria Sultan, President and Chairperson, South Asian Strategic Stability Institute (SASSI) University has said that along with the right to self-determination, the rights to identity had also been snatched overnight from the Kashmiri people through Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC).
“The internal strength and unity amongst the Kashmiri people will make their struggle for freedom victorious”, she added.
