IOK rights abuses affront to conscience of humanity: Zakaria

LONDON: Pakistan High Commissioner to the UK, Mohammad Nafees Zakaria, has said the tragic human rights situation and the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Indian occupied Kashmir (IOK), particularly since August 5, constitute an affront to the conscience of humanity.

Zakaria said this while briefing British parliamentarians at the House of Commons on humanitarian crisis in Indian occupied Kashmir, said a statement issued by the High Commission on Thursday.

The High Commissioner held a meeting with a large number of UK parliamentarians facilitated by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Kashmir (APPKG) at the House of Commons on Wednesday.

Briefing the participants on the human rights situation and the ongoing humanitarian crisis in occupied Kashmir, Zakaria said since August 5, in particular, and for the past seven decades Indian governments had been perpetrating grave human rights’ violations in the occupied territory unabatedly with impunity.

“Indian governments’ atrocities, such as mass killings, fake encounters, abductions, forced disappearances, use of prohibited weapons such as pellet guns and cluster munitions against the unarmed Kashmiris have caused incalculable sufferings to the Kashmiri nation and these atrocities come under the ambit of crimes against humanity under all human rights and humanitarian conventions, statutes and United Nations resolutions,” he said.

“Since there is no access to media in occupied Kashmir, the actual scale of atrocities could be much more given the Indian governments’ track record of torture, killings in fake encounters, forced disappearances, and other in human treatment,” he remarked. The High Commissioner noted that all these human rights’ violations were taking place in the 21st century and amidst protectors of human rights by a so-called world’s largest democracy.

He called for an immediate and unconditional end to the bloodshed of Kashmiris in occupied Kashmir; delivery of justice to the victims; and accountability of the perpetrators as demanded by international human rights bodies and NGOs of international repute and members of the civil society, such as Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission (IPHRC), Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, US Human Rights Report on India and International People’s Tribunal.

The High Commissioner reiterated that Pakistan would continue to extend its moral, political and diplomatic support to the oppressed people of occupied Kashmir in realisation of their inalienable right to self-determination and do everything in its capacity to ensure delivery of justice to the Kashmiris in held territory. He lauded all the British parliamentarians for becoming voice for the oppressed people of occupied Kashmir.

The British parliamentarians noted with concern the tragic situation of human rights as well as Indian government’s blockade of occupied Kashmir, which has led to severe humanitarian, political and security crisis in the occupied territory.

Acknowledging that the Kashmir issue was an internationally recognised dispute awaiting implementation of UNSC resolutions, they agreed to continue to work towards ensuring alleviation of human sufferings faced by the people in occupied valley. They agreed to find a way forward to bring an end to the ongoing human tragedy.