India rejects UN report on human rights in J&K

New Delhi, June 14 (IANS): India on Thursday rejected as “fallacious, tendentious and motivated” the first ever report on human rights in Kashmir released by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (OHCHR). “India rejects the report. It is fallacious, tendentious and motivated. We question the intent in bringing out such a report,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said in response to a question. The 49-page report issued by the OHCHR “details human rights violations and abuses on both sides of the Line of Control, and highlights a situation of chronic impunity for violations committed by security forces”, a statement issued from Geneva on Thursday said. “The political dimensions of the dispute between India and Pakistan have long been centre-stage, but this is not a conflict frozen in time. It is a conflict that has robbed millions of their basic human rights, and continues to this day to inflict untold suffering,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said in the statement. Noting the continuing serious tensions in recent weeks, including those stemming from a series of incidents in Srinagar, he called on Indian security forces to exercise maximum restraint, and strictly abide by international standards governing the use of force when dealing with future protests, including ones that could well occur this coming weekend. It also called upon India to “urgently repeal” the AFSPA; establish independent, impartial and credible investigations to probe all civilian killings since July 2016 and all abuses committed by armed groups; and provide reparations and rehabilitation to all injured individuals and to the families of those killed in the context of security operations. Similarly, the PSA should be amended to ensure its compliance with international human rights law, and all those held under administrative detention should either be charged or immediately released. According to the report, the UN Human Rights Office - which, despite repeated requests to both India and Pakistan over the past two years, has not been given unconditional access to either side of the Line of Control - “undertook remote monitoring to produce the report, which covers both Indian-Administered Kashmir and Pakistan-Administered Kashmir”. Among the issues highlighted in the report is the constitutional relationship of the two distinct territories of “Azad Kashmir” and Gilgit-Baltistan with Pakistan. The “Azad Kashmir” has effectively been controlled by Pakistan throughout its entire history. Pakistan’s federal authorities also have full control over all government operations in Gilgit-Baltistan, and federal intelligence agencies are reportedly deployed across both regions. The report said India should “urgently repeal” the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act 1990 (AFSPA) and “establish independent, impartial and credible investigations to probe all civilian killings since July 2016 and all abuses committed by armed groups; and provide reparations and rehabilitation to all injured individuals and to the families of those killed in the context of security operations”. “Pakistan is in illegal and forcible occupation of a part of the Indian state through aggression. We have repeatedly called upon Pakistan to vacate the occupied territories,” he said. Stating that terrorism is the most egregious violation of human rights, the spokesperson said that yet the authors have conveniently ignored the pattern of cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan and territories under its illegal control. “Cross-border terror and incitement is aimed at suppressing the will of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, disrupting its political and social fabric and undermining India’s integrity,” he stated. He said India’s protest and views in the matter have been conveyed unequivocally to the OHCHR.