This report by an independent 11-member civil society group from India summarizes a fact-finding mission to Kashmir. The group sought to see first hand ground realities in the true spirit of a democratic society and to hold the government accountable for their actions. The report draws attention to the history of Jammu and Kashmir while understanding the events just before and after August 5, 2019. Along with the collective aspirations of the people of Kashmir, the ongoing committed resistance of the people, the resulting structured state violence on them and the systematic denial of legal recourse and justice to the people, it traces the judicial trends to peoples’ issues.
Topics: history of broken promises, new normal in Kashmir, restricted mobility, communication blockade, government services discontinued, disruption of livelihood and commerce, The People’s Hartal in the face of the siege, state oppression, mass militarization, night raids as collective punishment, torture, arbitrary arrests, deaths, pellet gun injuries, forced labour, religious freedom trampled on, violations of law, unwelcome presence of reporters, high courts, district courts, TADA/UAPA court, J&K State Human Rights Commission (SHRC)
Terms: Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act 1078 (PSA), Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967 (UAPA), Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA), violation of right to movement, arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings, information and communication blockade, legal impunity, violation of habeas corpus, excessive use of force, collective punishment, custodial killings, maiming, use of non-lethal weapons, use of pellet guns, failure of accountability, harassment of human rights defenders, violation of right to freedom of religion, judicial failure, denial of due process, denial of access to justice, lack of redress, custodial torture, forced labour, violation of right to healthcare
Prior to August 5, 2019 there were approximately 200 habeas corpus petitions pending, now there are more than 600. From August 5, 2019 more than 330 Habeas Corpus petitions had been filed till September 30, 2019. There are countless detentions that are unlawful, hence, no one except the State knows how many persons are illegally detained. The people said there are reports that more than 13,000 people have been unlawfully detained. In many instances the draconian PSA is slapped arbitrarily on people. Many detenues are being transferred outside the State of J&K, which, the lawyers said, was intentionally done in order to prevent family members and lawyers appearing for those detailed from having access to them.
Alarmingly, the advocates informed us that they are operating in an atmosphere of terror since most of their elected representatives in the Bar Associations of the High Court and the districts were arrested and detained under PSA while others have been threatened with the same fate if they speak against the Central Government's unilateral decisions to abrogate Article 370.
Since August 5, 2019, armed forces are conducting raids on villages and localities in the city almost every night, and most definitely if there is any protest or incident of dissent on the part of the people. We heard that the villages were rendered sleepless because of the nightly raids, harassment, humiliation and torture. It appears that the modus operandi of the raids is more or less similar whether they are conducted jointly by the army, paramilitary forces and the police, or by any of them independently.
Recommendations to Indian Government:
1. Recognise that a dispute exists between peoples of Jammu and Kashmir and the Indian government.
2. Repeal the Jammu & Kashmir Public Safety Act 1978 and the Armed Forces (Jammu & Kashmir) Special Powers Act 1990.
3. Withdraw all army and paramilitary forces from civilian areas of Jammu and Kashmir.
4. Open a transparent unconditional dialogue with the peoples of Jammu and Kashmir and their representatives so as to address peoples' aspirations to determine and define their own destinies through democratic means and to ind a political solution that respects the democratic will of the people in accordance with human rights and international law.
November 2019
Originally published
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