Zubair Qureshi
Children of the detained Kashmiri leaders of Indian-Held Kashmir (IHK) have termed the unjust Domicile Law and attempts on changing the demography of occupied territory as the most disturbing aspect of the occupation for the Kashmiri people.
They shared these thoughts with the participants at an online dialogue ‘One year of forced annexation of Kashmir; A longer tale of atrocities’ organized by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) here on Wednesday.
Ruwa Shah, student of cinema and TV in Turkey, who is daughter of Altaf Ahmed Shah; Kashmiri activist detained in Tehar Jail of Delhi since the year 2017, while sharing her views with the participants, said that the children in occupied territory never had a normal life. However, August 5, 2019 worsen everything further with a complete lockdown imposed by Indian government in Kashmir.
“It has just accelerated the colonial designs further,” Shah said while adding further that the resistance leaders in IHK have always been highlighting it from decades that Indian government was planning it since long.
Ahmed Bin Qasim, student of International Relations and Post Colonialism, who is the son of political prisoners Dr Qasim Faktoo and Aasiya Andrabi, Kashmir’s longest serving political prisoner, informed the participants that more than 13,000 Kashmiri men and women at present are detained in jails for raising voice against the occupation. He says the judiciary is proved to be an instrument of colonialism as far as the cases of political prisoners are concerned.
He said that India has used all kinds of oppression in IHK during the last 70 years and still failed to enslave the Kashmiris. Hence, now it has resorted to use Domicile Law to change the demography and introduce a culture of ‘settlers’ colonialism’ to snatch identity from the Kashmiri people.
Dr Shafqat Munir, Senior Policy Advisor, SDPI, in his opening remarks earlier said that one year of illegal actions by the Indian government has been completed that were aimed to change the fate of Kashmiri people. He said that Article 370 was scratched by the Indian government against the aspirations of Kashmiri people and in violation of the resolutions of UN Security Council.
“The legislative forums in IHK are also being changed in addition to efforts on demographic changes.” Munir highlighted and said that these conspiracies against the Kashmiris would be resited at every platform.
Nasir Qadri, Human Rights Lawyer, was of view that rule of law itself has become a victim in India as draconian laws are being used against the political prisoners in IHK. Ms Ayesha Ilyas from SDPI, while moderating the session highlighted various aspects of post -5 August 2019 atrocities committed by the Indian government in IHK and said Kashmiri people have always ut a remarkable resistance against the illegal occupation.
