MIRPUR, Jun 22 (APP): Speakers at a seminar held on the sidelines of the 56th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva have sought the Council’s proactive role to address the pressing challenges faced by women and children in areas afflicted by conflict and colonialism.
The seminar titled “Women and Children of Conflict” was jointly organized by the International Muslim Women Union and the Kashmir Institute of International Relations and attended and addressed by noted human rights activists, international law experts and academicians from different parts of the world, including Mrs. Shamim Shawl, permanent representative of IMWU, Ms. Carolyn Handschin Moser, Women’s Federation for World Peace International, Ms. Julie Ward, former Member of the European Parliament, Barrister Margaret Owen, Founder of Widows for Peace and Development, Ms. Ghazala Habib, Ahmed Bin Qasim, Ms. Maria Iqbal, Ms. Madiha Khan, Ms. Stella Harris, Member of the Women’s Federation, whereas, the event was moderated by KIIR Chairman Altaf Hussain Wani, said a press release received here Saturday.
While highlighting the woeful plight of Kashmiri and Palestinian people, the speakers regrettably noted that despite international humanitarian laws and numerous resolutions aiming at safeguarding their rights, these vulnerable populations continue to endure severe hardships.
Terming women and children as the worst victims of the ongoing conflicts in both war-torn territories, they said that women and children constitute a significant portion of civilian casualties in conflict situations.
The speakers made a passionate appeal to the international community, urging it to stand up for the rights of Kashmiri children, who have been the worst victims of the lingering dispute and Indian state terrorism.
Referring to the devastating impacts of the conflict on Kashmiri society, they stated, “Besides affecting the mental and physical health of women and children, the continued conflict violence has rendered their future bleak”.
The speakers, while highlighting the plight of women and children in Kashmir and Palestine, said that foreign occupation was the main cause and consequence of bloodshed and violence in both disputed territories.
They made a passionate appeal for the release of Kashmir women prisoners, including Asiya Andrabi, Nahida Nasreen, and Fahimda Sofi, who are facing false charges and have developed multiple ailments in Delhi’s Tihar jail.