UN commissioner forced to do ‘remote monitoring’ of LoC

GENEVA: United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said that his office has been forced to undertake “remote monitoring of the human rights situation in Kashmir on both sides of the Line of Control (LoC).

In his update presented in the 36th session of the UNHRC, the High Commissioner for HR said both India and Pakistan have shown reluctance to “engage with my office on the human rights concerns  raised in recent months” and refusal “to grant access to Kashmir on both sides of the Line of Control to verify the worrying developments that continue to be reported there”. 

Replying to comments by the Human Rights Commissioner, Pakistan’s permanent representative at Geneva said that Pakistan never had any objection to any international body visiting its side of the border and was more than willing to facilitate any such visit but asked why the High Commissioner was continuously comparing Indian-Held Jammu Kashmir with Azad Kashmir where the masses enjoy full liberty and don’t have human rights issues like in the IHK. 

“The High Commissioner needed to base his oral update on accurate facts. Reports repeatedly highlighted that there was no parallel between IHK and Azad Kashmir. Pakistan outlined that contrary to the situation prevailing in IHK, Pakistan allowed total access for United Nations mechanisms to Azad Kashmir,” said Pakistani representative. 

The UN High Commissioner said his office was undertaking remote monitoring “with a view to making the findings public in the near future”. Making intervention, Sardar Amjad Yousaf representing World Muslim Congress asked the UNHRC as to how long will the people of Jammu and Kashmir wait for this council to get permission from the  India to facilitate UN fact-finding mission to investigate the disappearances of thousands of people and those who have been killed extrajudicially in fake encounters and blindedby the pellet guns. He appealed to the UNHRC to help in revoking the Draconian law such as Armed Forces Special Power Act (AFSPA), Public Safety Act and Disturbed Areas Act which allow Indian occupation forces to maim and kill Kashmiris. 

Sardar Amjad Yousuf, who hails from a town at LoC in Azad Kashmir, told the Council that the people living near the villages at LoC in Azad Kashmir are being killed and injured on daily basis because of unprovoked Indian firing across the LoC. 

He welcomed the statement made by Pakistan for facilitating UN mission to AJK but added that India is not ready to facilitate UN mission to IHK. In its reply, the Indian representative made a speech about the merits of democracy but didn’t respond to the UN commissioner’s annoyance at the non-cooperation by Indian side with regard to the LoC situation monitoring. While Pakistan has extended help to India to facilitate the LoC observes, India has either refused permission for monitoring or remained totally non-cooperative.