Srinagar: Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL) comprising Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Muhammad Yasin Malik on Tuesday said that as every form of peaceful means of protest against human rights violations has been “crushed”, “hartals are the only option available.”
The JRL strongly condemned the “cycle of worst human rights violations being committed in Kashmir by the rulers.”
In a joint statement, the leadership said that as December 10 globally was observed as human rights day and it was decided to commemorate a human rights week to bring focus on the grave violations here and highlight them globally.
“Even organising peaceful events to register protest against the grave abuses taking place here such as candlelight protest becomes an eye sore for the perpetrators as they immediately launched a massive crackdown on leadership and the pro-freedom activists to scuttle even the peaceful programs,” the JRL said.
The leadership said that authorities arrested all those who took part in candle light protest including leaders include Noor Muhammad Kalwal, Shokat Ahmed Baskhi, Abdur Rasheed, Muhammad Yasin Bhat and Sheikh Abdur Rasheed.
The leadership said these leaders were detained during nocturnal raids on their residences, which reflects the ultimate “frustration and the worst form of authoritarianism.”
The leadership said that while Syed Ali Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq remain “illegally caged” in their homes, other leaders that include Muhammad Ashraf Sehrai and Bilal Sidique too have been placed under house detention while as JKLF chairman Muhammad Yasin Malik has been lodged in police custody since the commencement of so called panchayat elections where his health has deteriorated since past one week after which he has been hospitalised.
“Every form of peaceful means of protest against HR violations or expression of dissent is crushed or forcibly disallowed making hartals the only option available,” the leadership said.
They said while all peaceful means of protest stands choked whosoever raises voice is rewarded punishment in the form of draconian PSA.
“Because of the fact that every space for youth has been squeezed, they fell pushed to the wall and many forced to pick up arms to fight this state aggression and terrorism.”
The leadership made it clear that by detaining the leaders, lodging them in jails, and scuttling peaceful means of protests won’t break the resolve of neither the resistance leadership nor the people of Kashmir. They urged every segment of the society to follow the programs announced by the JRL in connection with the ongoing HR week in a bid to wake up the international community.
The Leadership urged the world peace organizations, international community, Amnesty International Asia Watch, UNHRC and ICRC to take note of the urgent Kashmir situation where innocent people are subjected to repression and even babies not spared the pellets and build pressure on New Delhi to stop the grave human rights violation forthwith.
