Daily Times

London-based rights watchdog, Amnesty International, urged the Indian government to end repression of human rights in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

According to Kashmir Media Service, the Amnesty International on Friday released a new briefing titled ‘We are being punished by the law’, Three years since of abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu Kashmir. The briefing documents “how civil society at large and journalists, lawyers, human rights defenders in particular have faced relentless interrogations, arbitrary travel bans, revolving door detentions and repressive media policies while blocking access to appeals or justice in courts and human rights bodies.” Amnesty International in the briefing said the Indian government has drastically intensified the repression of rights in IIOJK in the three years since the change in status of the region. “For three years now, civil society and media in Jammu and Kashmir have been subjected to a vicious crackdown by the Indian government, which is determined to stifle dissent using draconian laws, policies and unlawful practices in their arsenal,” said Aakar Patel, chair of the board of Amnesty International India.

“By harassing and intimidating critical voices, authorities are targeting all credible, independent sources of information in and about Jammu and Kashmir. There is a silence achieved on all dissent through heavy handed repression which has spread fear and uncertainty in the region,” he said. Assault on freedom of expression and movement Amnesty International, in the report, has recorded at least 60 instances of crackdown on journalists and human rights defenders since August 2019.

A Kashmiri journalist who has been harassed by the authorities, was quoted by Amnesty International as saying, “They (security forces) tell you in so many ways – subtle as well as brazen – that the cost of pursuing journalism in Jammu & Kashmir is huge.” The Amnesty International said that the Indian government had total control on information coming out of the region after passing restrictive media policies such as the 2020 Revised Media Policy and 2021 Film Policy. And that, after an initial six-month internet shutdown, the Indian authorities still often suspend internet services in various parts of Kashmir often without any prior notice. In addition, the sudden forced closure of the Kashmir Press Club in 2022 by the Indian government was a big blow to the already disintegrating media pool.

The rights watchdog also found that in the last three years, at least six individuals including journalists, human rights activists and academics were stopped from travelling abroad (despite having requisite travel documents) in violation of their right to freedom of movement through arbitrary executive actions not backed by any court order or warrant or even a written explanation.

Abuse of security laws and agencies

According to the data gathered by Amnesty International, at least 27 journalists have been arrested and detained by the Indian authorities since 5 August 2019. Several journalists including Fahad Shah, Aasif Sultan and Sajad Gul have been subjected to ‘revolving door’ arrests. In a continuing pattern, they have been arrested under one law, granted bail by the court, and then re-arrested almost immediately under draconian law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), keeping them perpetually detained. A lawyer who handles such cases in southern Kashmir told Amnesty International, “Since 2016, the increased malicious use of anti-terror laws makes it difficult for people to secure bail. [It] provides more flexibility to the police in keeping the person in pre-trial detention for 180 days even though the charge sheets filed by the police [reads] nothing less than a fiction book or novel.”

Amnesty International said that it reviewed 1346 cases available on the website of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir. It found that by 1 August 2022, the number of writ petitions have increased by 32%, indicating an increase in unlawful detention in the last three years.

Amnesty International also reviewed the data published by National Crime Record Bureau and found that there has been a 12% increase in the use of UAPA in Jammu & Kashmir since 2019. It said that this emerging trend of using the draconian UAPA in addition to the much-abused Public Safety Act (PSA) is also evidenced by an analysis of information on the High Court’s website. Other intimidation tactics include malicious investigations and raids by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), and the Enforcement Directorate, it added.

Further, Amnesty International said that the people of IIOJK, in particular the Hindu minority community, have faced unlawful killings by unidentified persons which have recently increased. An analysis of the official data by the Government of India shows that unlawful killings of civilians have increased by 20% in the past three years. Additionally, the Indian government recently revealed that IIOJK recorded more deaths involving the police (police encounters) than Indian states between April 2020 and March 2022. There is a lack of accountability for use of force in the region by the police due to the continued enforcement of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) which grants them additional powers and impunity and falls short of international human rights standards, said the human rights organization. Amnesty International called upon the Indian government “to immediately release those arbitrarily detained under administrative detention and other repressive laws and ensure that they are tried promptly and fairly in a regular court.” Amnesty International also urged “the international community to hold the Government of India accountable for its grave human rights violations in Jammu & Kashmir and ensure its cooperation with United Nations Mechanisms and facilitate immediate and independent investigation in the region.”