India must stop human right violations in IOK: Sardar Masood Khan

MIRPUR (AJK), Dec 10 (APP):President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Sardar Masood Khan Sunday said that India must stop its human right violations and crimes against humanity in Indian Occupied Kashmir.
Addressing a seminar on the occasion of International Human Rights Day organized by the Kashmir Liberation Cell, President said that implantation of non-Kashmiri settlers in settlements in IOK were a violation of Articles 27 and 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention and a grave breach of Additional Protocol I. He said that India’s construction of
illegal settlements for Kashmiri pundits and former army personnel in orders to transform the demography of Jammu and Kashmir were a clear violation of international laws and conventions.
The President said that the tale of Kashmir was a tragedy and was the gravest human rights issue facing the world today. The planned massacre of Kashmiris at the hands of the Indian forces was synonymous to a genocide and was
tantamount to war crimes, he said, adding that Kashmiris had been made homeless in their native land.
“The word ‘violations’ is a euphuism considering the horrendous war crimes being carried out in Kashmir”, said Masood.
Masood Khan pointed out that India had been using chemical weapons in IOK and evidence in this regard had come forward of its use on the populations of Anantnag and Pulwama. The suffering of Kashmiris is not an event of yesteryear but the barbarity continues to this day.
The President commended the efforts of Jammu Kashmir Liberation
Cell and the Kashmir Media Services for helping document the atrocities and
violations committed in IOK. He said “We need to regularly update the data
and ultimately use it in enlightening the international organizations of horrendous
war crimes taking place in IOK.”
The President said that in near future effective steps would be taken to include the Kashmir issue in the syllabi of
schools and universities to enable the younger generations to better understand
the conflict.
Masood Khan said that India had taken up a three pronged war against Pakistan; firstly, by killing
our Kashmiri brothers and sisters in IOK; secondly, cross border shelling on
civilian population in AJK; and thirdly, engaging in a proxy war by carrying
out acts of terrorism in various territories of Pakistan. This year alone, he
said, India has committed over 1550 cross border violations killing over 60
civilians and injuring hundreds of others in Azad Kashmir.
President Masood Khan said that through 5000 village committees
comprising 30,000 armed RSS sponsored goons, India is terrorizing local
population of IOK and forcing them to evacuate their homes and properties. The
President added that the Muslims, especially the Gujjar population in
Jammu-numbering around one million-are the main victims of the genocide, forced
disappearances and evacuations carried out by Indian forces.
Lamenting the dual standards of International Community, the
President said that the world has intervened when it came to East Timur, South
Sudan and Yemen; but have yet to take a significant and concrete stance on
Kashmir due to various strategic, political and economic interests with India.
He said, “Upholding the rights of every human being in accordance
to UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights is the duty of every UN member
nation and India must be brought to justice for the serious human right violations
committed in IOK.”
The President said that people of Kashmir were the most unarmed
people and were not involved in any sort of terrorism. Their unarmed struggle,
he added, for their right to self-determination has been demonized by India as
an act of terrorism. The President said that the people of Kashmir have
sacrificed their lives not to maintain the status quo but to attain their
freedom through the exercise of their right to self-determination.
Masood Khan said that India was trying to create ill will and driving
a wedge between the people of Kashmir and Pakistan by trying to diplomatically
and politically demonizing the latter. He said, “A symbiotic relationship
exists between the people of Pakistan and Kashmir which cannot be weakened
through any
machinations”.
President Masood said that we should be unified among our ranks,
use modern and conventional media, make inroads into the international and
Indian civil societies and leverage the strengths of the Pakistani and Kashmiri
diaspora helping us approach various international forums and parliaments in
order to raise the profile of this crucial issue.
He said that Pakistan is our only consul and we must make every
effort to strengthen Pakistan and in turn strengthening the freedom struggle in
IOK. Masood Khan said that as a nation we have to prosperous through
upholding merit, focus on economic growth and guarantee the protection of our
citizens.
The world must know that this conflict is not of a bilateral issue
between Pakistan and India, as people of Kashmir are the main stakeholders and
will decide their political destiny in light of the resolutions of the United
Nation Security Council, said the President.
He urged the UN to implement its resolutions and the UN secretary
General must use his good office to mediate a peaceful, just and democratic
solution to the human rights crisis in Kashmir. The President said that the
world must realize that Kashmiris are not begging for their freedom but are
struggling for freedom as their fundamental right and in this regard they would
keep reminding the international community to fulfill their responsibility.
The President sent a clear message to India saying that their
efforts of sabotaging the freedom struggle will never succeed and the people of
Kashmir will never bow down nor will the freedom struggle be subdued through
India’s use of force. The people of Kashmir, he said, have made a solemn vow to
continue their struggle and will attain their freedom at any cost.