MEP Sajjad Karim raises issue of atrocities in IHK with EU commissioner

BRUSSELS: Member European Parliament (MEP) and Trade Chief Sajjad Karim on Thursday raised the use of pellet guns in Indian-held Kashmir (IHK) against Kashmiri youth with the EU’s Trade Commissioner.

While replying to a question during an International Trade (INTA) Committee meeting within the European Parliament, Dr Karim gave an update on the stalled EU-India Free Trade talks in relation to the atrocities being committed by the Indian forces in occupied Kashmir.

Speaking in the committee, Dr Karim said, “First of all, some months ago President Juncker (Commission) and Tusk (Council) made their way to India to try and revive the EU-India Free Trade Agreement. Ever since then things have fallen absolutely silent and when things fall silent, it worries me because it means either nothing is happening or something is happening that I don’t know about.

“The fact is that you’ve been silent today on this as well prompts me to put that question to you, but one thing I must say is my mailbag is absolutely full of representations about the situation that’s unfolding in Kashmir at this stage, where pellet guns are being used in order to blind, maim and kill people.

“International human rights organisations are giving a lot of accounts of what is happening, but they are being denied access there, so it is particularly important that we have an update as to where those talks have arrived at,” he said.

Commissioner Malmstorms, while responding, addressed all the issues raised by the British MEP on EU-India Free Trade talks except on the most important point of Kashmir and the human rights abuses. She said, “Progress is being made” and that there is “constructive willingness” from the Indians, but the two sides are still not at “the same level of ambition”. The British MEP further said, “There is a very strong feeling in the EU that British Kashmiris weakened Europe by supporting Brexit. This is a false assertion peddled by Brexit supporters who ultimately are harming the Kashmir issue here.”

Dr Karim has been a prominent voice on the Kashmir issue over the years, co-hosting an annual conference, “Kashmir-EU Week” in conjunction with the Kashmir Council-EU, a Brussels based NGO, which aims at raising awareness about the issue each year.

He also chairs the South Asia Trade Monitoring Committee within the European Parliament and was the parliamentary rapporteur for the EU-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in 2006 and 2009, where specific clauses were added and adopted by a full plenary session of the parliament at the time, as well as chairing the Friends of Pakistan Group, says a press release.