A Story of Failure of Peacekeepers

On April 21, 1948, the UN Security Council passed a resolution to have a fair and impartial plebiscite in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) to let the Kashmiris decide whether they want to join Pakistan or India. However, despite the fact that the Security Council has passed about 2603 resolutions of similar effect as of October 29, 2021, the people of Indian-occupied Kashmir are still looking for the day when such resolutions would be implemented in form and content.

On the other side, for the last 74 years, the Kashmir Valley has been subject to unremitting barbarism and unrelenting atrocities at the hands of Indian security forces, who continue to oppress the unarmed Kashmiris without restraint. It is imperative to mention here that the Indian occupying forces are hell-bent on displaying their military aggression in its worst form against the freedom loving civil population of Kashmir and that too under the guise of search operations.

Human rights violations in the Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJK) have been going on unabated for decades, however, since August 5, 2019, Indian military aggression has been escalating into its worst form, imprisoning all inhabitants of the occupied valley in their own homes.

Indian forces, under the fascist regime of Narendra Modi, are carrying out the worst state-sponsored terrorism in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJK), turning the valley into the world's most militarize zone as well as the largest prison on the face of the earth. To make things worse, a litany of demographic changes are being hatched by fascist Modi regime to turn native Kashmiris into a minuscule minority.

In addition to the foregoing, Indian forces evict the unarmed Kashmiris from their homes and torture them to the extent of extrajudicial killing. Despite this, the criminalized silence of the international community and global humanitarian organizations on the plight of Kashmiris is regrettable and reprehensible, while putting a question mark on the world’s conscience.

In the latest fake military operation in IOJK, the Indian military forces martyred 4 more people, including a Kashmiri businessman and a doctor in Srinagar. Among those martyred in yet another India’s state terrorism are: Sameer Ahmed Tantray of Tral, Amir of Banihal, Altaf Ahmed Bhat (a cement dealer) of Hyderpora and Dr. Mudasir Gul. The security forces also refused to provide the bodies of the martyrs to their families, after which the family members staged a protest for the return of the bodies of their beloved ones. The fake encounter once again has exposed India’s modus operandi to fulfil its nefarious agenda under Hindutva Ideology.

It seems to me that if the United Nations and other international bodies have to rise to the occasion by taking strict actions against India if they are really serious about the human rights violations going on unabated in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, since there is no valid reason for the occupying security forces to persecute unarmed Kashmiris.

It is worth mentioning that since October 1, 2021, the Indian forces have killed about 25 unarmed Kashmiris in fake encounters during the so-called search and raid operations. As to the ground realities, extrajudicial killings, illegal detentions along with the hardships of detention, regular harassment and restrictions on fundamental rights have become a commonplace phenomenon in IOJK. It is high time for the international community to hold India accountable for gross violations of human rights and international law.

In addition to that, the international community needs to understand that the lasting peace in South Asia hinges on a just solution to the Jammu and Kashmir issue. Peace and harmony in the region can never be achieved without resolving the Kashmir issue. In this regard, the international community must grant the people of Indian-occupied Kashmir their legitimate and inalienable right to self-determination in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions passed for the final settlement of the Kashmir dispute.

Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs needs to advance his efforts to bring the Kashmir issue to the forefront and a dedicated Kashmir desk should be set up in Pakistan embassies and consulates-general worldwide. Also, events on every important day related to Kashmir should be held to shape the international public opinion on this very important issue. In a similar vein, a full-blown campaign must be launched in various digital forums to make people aware of the Kashmir cause.