Global action demanded as Kashmiri women continue to face victimization
Rape being used as weapon of war to break Kashmiris’ will: Activists
#AgoniesOfKashmiriWomen
Srinagar: Srinagar-based human rights and civil society activists have said that Kashmiri women continue to face systematic victimization at the hands of Indian troops in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the activists, while marking International Women’s Day, said the suffering and sacrifices of Kashmiri women remain largely ignored despite decades of grave human rights violations in the territory. They said Indian troops have committed shocking crimes against Kashmiri women during the past 37 years of occupation.
The activists said Kashmiri women are subjected to constant psychological trauma due to frequent cordon and search operations, house raids and the enforced disappearances of their loved ones. They added that women are routinely subjected to harassment and intimidation by Indian troops during such operations.
They said that since January 1989, Indian troops have raped 11,269 women in the occupied territory, while the ongoing conflict and Indian state repression have rendered at least 22,991 women widowed during the past 37 years.
The activists said the large number of widows and half-widows in the territory stands as testimony to the brutality of Indian forces. They maintained that rape and sexual violence have repeatedly been used as a weapon of war to break the will of the Kashmiri people.
On the occasion of International Women’s Day, the activists stressed the need to expose the crimes committed by Indian troops against Kashmiri women and demanded accountability for those responsible.
They urged international women’s rights organizations and global human rights bodies not to remain silent spectators to the plight of women in the occupied territory and called upon the international community to hold India accountable for its crimes against women in IIOJK.
