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ISLAMABAD, Nov 26 (APP):Speakers at a webinar organised by Friends of Kashmir International and Kashmir Media Service (KMS) on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women said that sexual violence continued to be used as a weapon to suppress the Kashmiri freedom movement in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).
The event, titled “Violence Against Kashmiri Women: A Tool to Suppress the Kashmir Movement,” brought together Kashmiri women leaders, human-rights defenders, academics, lawyers and journalists from both sides of the Line of Control and abroad.
Senior Hurriyat leader Shamim Shawl recounted what she described as the deliberate use of rape and sexual violence by Indian forces.
She cited the 1991 Kunan-Poshpora mass rape and other documented cases submitted to the UN and the European Parliament, saying no perpetrator had ever been punished.
“Thousands of widows, half-widows and orphans are living testimony to the culture of impunity,” she said, adding that the international community had failed to act despite extensive evidence.
Human-rights activist Mughiza Imtiyaz termed the violence “systematic and state-sponsored,” referring to Kunan-Poshpora and the Shopian double rape and murder case of Asiya and Neelofar.
“Half-widows live in perpetual agony not knowing whether their husbands are alive. Inaction amounts to complicity,” she said.
Journalist and activist Afshan Kiyani said that since 1989, thousands of Kashmiri women had been subjected to rape, torture and harassment during cordon-and-search operations. “When troops do not find male family members, they target women to break community resistance,” she added.
Other speakers, including Prof Dr Shagufta Ashraf, Barrister Sundas Malik, Dr Naila Altaf Kayani, Tayabba Khurshid (JKCISS), Nazneen Gillani, Sardar Um Kulsoom Dua, Sehrish Qamar, Samina Khan, Fareeha Idrees, Sadia Satar and Abdul Hameed Lone, stressed the need for Kashmiri women’s testimonies to be highlighted at all international platforms.
Chairperson of Friends of Kashmir International (US), Ghazala Habib, called for forming a small, dedicated “Friends of Kashmir” committee to lobby in world capitals without relying on governments.
Participants condemned India’s “false-flag operations” and demographic changes in IIOJK, urging the UN Human Rights Council to seek clarification from New Delhi over ongoing violations.
The webinar concluded with a call for more coordinated and sustained diplomatic efforts, including a proposed UN conference to present documented testimonies of Kashmiri women affected by violence.
Speakers also expressed gratitude to Pakistan for its political and moral support and appreciated KMS for amplifying Kashmiri voices.