Mirpur (ajk)::Veteran Kashmiri Rights Activist and Chairman Kashmir Institute of International Relations (KIIR) , Altaf Hussain Wani Tuesday said that despite its international commitments to respect and protect human rights, the Indian state had stifled dissenting voices, curtailed media freedom and criminalized independent journalism in the held territory.
In a statement issued on the world human rights day, the KIIR chief said, “The day serves as reminder to our collective responsibility to support and safeguard human rights at all levels of society”.
Establishing a solid human rights culture where respect for human rights takes precedence over anything else, he said required holding human rights violators accountable for their actions.
Referring to dire human rights situation in occupied Kashmir, he regrettably noted that currently there was no effective means or mechanisms in place to ensure that those who violated human rights were held responsible.
“India, which keeps boasting its democratic and s
ecular credentials on the global stage, has an alarming human rights track record”, he said, adding that India had been violating every article and provision of the UDHR in the held valley without any accountability or fear of international repercussions.
“The Human Rights Day is being celebrated with great pomp and show all over the world but the fact remains that innocent people in Kashmir are being humiliated, tortured and massacred endlessly most brutally and brazenly”, Wani remarked.
He further said that it was imperative that influential governments acknowledge that lasting global peace was inescapably tied to resolving age-old conflicts and recognizing the universally accepted principle of the right to self-determination.
“A sustained human rights culture cannot thrive in a vacuum. Selective justice, uneven law enforcement, and violations of citizens’ rights sow anarchy, lawlessness, instability, and political disorder”, he added.
While seeking the global community’s attention towards the simmering
situation in the occupied Kashmir, the KIIR chairman said that the unresolved Kashmir dispute was the root cause of violence and human rights violations in the region .