Speakers assert Kashmiris deprived of fundamental rights despite UN declaration
Islamabad: On International Human Rights Day, speakers at a conference in Islamabad asserted that despite the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees fundamental rights to all individuals, the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir remain deprived of these basic rights to this day.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the conference titled ‘Gross Human Rights Violations in IIOJK’ was organized by the All Parties Hurriyat Conference Azad Jammu and Kashmir (APHC-AJK) chapter in collaboration with Jammu Kashmir Liberation Cell (JKLC) at Kashmir House, Islamabad.
The conference was chaired by the former Convenor APHC-AJK Mohammad Farooq Rahmani. Chairman Kashmir Committee Rana Qasim Noon was the chief guest at the event.
The speakers highlighted that the ongoing state terrorism by Indian forces in IIOJK has severely affected the fundamental rights of the Kashmiri people for decades. Due to the presence of Indian troops and their brutal actions in occupied territory, hundreds of thousands Kashmiris have been martyred, many have been abducted, and there is no information about whether they are alive or have been martyred.
The speakers also noted that under draconian laws in occupied territory, thousands of Kashmiris, including Hurriyat leaders and activists, have been imprisoned and subjected to physical and mental torture. The media and freedom of expression have faced the harshest restrictions in history, while journalists and human rights defenders are being targeted, attacked, and arrested through false cases.
They mentioned that human rights champion Khurram Parvez has been imprisoned for three years under false charges. In addition, properties and homes of Kashmiris demanding freedom are being confiscated. The speakers urged the United Nations and international human rights organizations to take action and address the serious violations of human rights in IIOJK and the increasing atrocities by Indian forces. They demanded an end to human rights violations in the region and the granting of the Kashmiri people’s fundamental right to self-determination.
The conference was addressed by Rana Qasim Noon, Mohammad Farooq Rahmani, Azad Kashmir Ministers Imtiaz Naseem and Mian Abdul Waheed, Secretary of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Cell Wajahat Rashid Bieg, Hurriyat leaders Altaf Hussain Wani, Syed Faiz Naqshbandi, Advocate Parvez Ahmad, Hassan-ul-Bana, Nida Islam, and Najeeb ul-Ghafoor Khan.
The conference was also attended by All Parties Hurriyat Conference Azad Kashmir chapter Secretary Information Mushtaq Ahmad Butt, Mohammad Husain Khateeb, Sheikh Abdul Mateen, Javed Jahangir, Manzoor Dar, Imtiaz Wani, Ejaz Rahmani, Syed Gulshan, Abdul Hamid Lone, Haji Mohammad Sultan, Zahid Ashraf, Zahid Safi, Sheikh Abdul Majid, Zahid Mujtaba, Adeel Mushtaq, Khurshid Mir, Abdul Majeed Mir, and a large number of students from different universities.
