UN urged to take action on worsening human rights situation in IIOJK
Geneva: Kashmiri representatives have called for urgent international intervention on the deteriorating human rights situation in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir during the General Debate on the High Commissioner’s update at the 61st session of the UN Human Rights Council.
According to Kashmir Media Service, Altaf Hussain Wani, speaking on behalf of the World Muslim Congress, voiced serious concern over arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances and the alleged misuse of anti-terror laws to suppress dissent in the occupied territory. He condemned systematic surveillance and a digital siege in the territory and urged intensified monitoring by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) along with concrete accountability measures.
According to Kashmir Media Service, addressing the Council on behalf of the International Action for Peace and Sustainable Development, Sardar Amjad Yousaf Khan presented statistics on the human rights situation since 2019, citing over 1,050 killings and tens of thousands of arrests. He highlighted restrictions on international access to occupied Jammu and Kashmir and strongly called upon the High Commissioner to issue a third OHCHR report to assess accountability gaps and ongoing violations.
Meanwhile, Shamim Shawl, representing the International Muslim Women’s Union, focused on the gendered dimensions of the conflict. She detailed decades of sexual violence, widowhood and psychological trauma faced by Kashmiri women and emphasized what she termed a prevailing climate of impunity. She urged the urgent publication of a dedicated OHCHR report addressing violations against women in the region.
ٓAPHC-AJK General Secretary Advocate Pervez Ahmad Shah highlighted specific cases emblematic of the crisis, including the enforced disappearances, stating that such tragedies underscore the urgent need for transparent investigations and an end to impunity.
ٓAPHC-AJK leader Sheikh Abdul Mateen also participated in the session via video link.
The speakers unanimously called for unimpeded international access to occupied Jammu and Kashmir and reiterated the need for a peaceful resolution of the dispute in accordance with the rights and aspirations of the Kashmiri people.
