Senator A. Rehman Malik
(Sitara-e-Shujat, Nashan-e-Imtiaz)
Today is 5th February which is observed as “Kashmir Solidarity Day” to show solidarity with the oppressed people of Jammu and Kashmir who are struggling and sacrificing for their legitimate right of self-determination since 1947. The whole Pakistani nation is worried about the miserable condition of Kashmiris and it is unfortunate to note that the world is silent on the longest curfew of 187 days and nobody is listening to the voice of oppressed Kashmiris. The Military troops under Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are continuously violating human rights and international laws in Indian Occupied Kashmir.
The Human Rights reports demonstrate sheer violations of human rights in Kashmir and have reported that Indian forces are committing unprecedented brutalities against the innocent Kashmiris in terms of mass murders, mass blinding, enforced disappearances, torture, rape, political repression and suppression of freedom of speech. Kashmiris have been deprived of the basic amenities of life and been caged in their own homes without any access to groceries, food, water, medicines and even the baby food.
Indian Prime Minister Modi while violating the international law scrapped the special status of Kashmiris by revoking the Articles 370 and 35-A, in violation of 11 resolutions being passed by UNSC on Kashmir wherein the status of Kashmir cannot be changed. The Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 passed by India is another example of Modi’s anti-Muslim mindset.
The Modi’s government by one after another action is sidelining the Muslims and other minorities to convert India into a Hindu State alone which is the ideology of RSS. United Nations Commission for Human Rights in its report dated 14th June, 2018, has highlighted in detail the brutalities committed by Indian government. According to available statistics the details alone, since January 1989 till 31st January 2018, 94,644 innocent Kashmiris have been killed, 7,099 were killed in custody, 11,042 women were gang-raped and 7,485 were injured by pellets.
Kashmir Day is aimed at to extend full support and express solidarity with the people of Indian Occupied Kashmir. It is the day to highlight the Kashmir issue, expose before the world the Indian Forces ongoing brutalities, and to pay homage to the Kashmiri martyrs for their supreme sacrifices. PM Modi had crossed all limits of brutality and is not feeling any guilt in ordering aggression against the peaceful people of Kashmir.
The international community is turned to be a silent spectator of the worst form of aggressions against civilians where even for the first time in the human history, pellet guns were used for mass blinding. India is unleashing ethnic cleansing of the Muslim majority in Kashmir; by murdering and settling the RSS trained families in Kashmir to reduce Muslims as a minority there.
Despite of all these clear crimes against humanity, violations of human rights and international laws, nothing serious so far have been taken done for the oppressed people of Kashmir. Pakistan should continue broadening its political and discretionary help to the people of Kashmir and should keep this issue alive.
No doubt, all measures are taken in Pakistan to highlight the Indian brutalities on media, seminars, processions, speeches, strikes, sit-downs, etc. but all these will not bring any relief to the oppressed people of Kashmir till the government doesn’t take concrete moves on diplomatic fronts and filling petitions against India in International courts i.e. International Court of Justice (ICJ) and International Criminal Court (ICC). I appreciate the Minister for Justice, Republic of Gambia who took the initiative for filing a lawsuit in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against the leadership of Republic of Myanmar for the crimes against humanity and genocide of Rohingyan Muslims.
The verdict came in their favor with salient features that the Republic of the Union of Myanmar shall, in accordance with its obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, in relation to the members of the Rohingya group in its territory, take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of all acts within the scope of Article II of this Convention, in particular (a) Killing members of the group; (b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to the members of the group. (c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; and (d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group.
It also stated that the Republic of the Union of Myanmar shall, in relation to the members of the Rohingya group in its territory, ensure that its military, as well as any irregular armed units which may be directed or supported by it and any organizations and persons which may be subject to its control, direction or influence, do not commit any acts described in point (1) above, or of conspiracy to commit genocide, of direct and public incitement to commit genocide, of attempt to commit genocide, or of complicity in genocide.
The verdict directs that the Republic of the Union of Myanmar shall take effective measures to prevent the destruction and ensure the preservation of evidence related to allegations of acts within the scope of Article II of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
The Republic of the Union of Myanmar shall submit a report to the Court on all measures taken to give effect to this Order within four months, as from the date of this Order, and thereafter every six months, until a final decision on the case is rendered by the Court.
I have been consistently writing articles, letters to the Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and other International Forums including UNO and Human Rights Commission for dragging PM Modi as International war criminal replicating the model of Abu-Bakr, Attorney General of the Republic of Gambia.
A small country in Africa namely the Republic of Gambia has been able to drag Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi as a war criminal and for her crimes against humanity in ICC and ICJ. I don’t think that we will be able to achieve anything to help the Kashmiri and to block the brutalities of Prime Minister Modi until and unless we move to the International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court under the Rome Convention.
There has been a debate in our government that perhaps we may lose this case at the international forum during the trial bringing embarrassment to Pakistan. I disagree with the Foreign Office and other supporters of this idea as the nations have to take calculated risks to protect the vanity and the sovereignty of the country. I wish the today Solidarity Day was marked by submission of lawsuit against Indian government and PM Narendra Modi in ICJ and ICC.
Although the UNSC repeatedly passed the resolutions on the Kashmir for its peaceful solution however the physical arrangements have not so far been initiated. Both India and Pakistan acknowledged the UN resolutions but India never provided the environment for the peaceful conduct of the plebiscite.
Previous secular Indian governments could not take a bold decision owing to the enormous rigidity wave in India particularly from the followers of Hindutva provoked by the RSS and the like-minded organizations in India. Pakistan has always assured its commitment to the peaceful conduct of plebiscite to decide the Kashmiris about their fate while exercising their right to Self-determination. Unfortunately, India has been acting against Pakistan and Kashmir as per its own given policy and schedule and there has been no real tough deterrence in the form of legal and diplomatic resistance at the international level.
Pakistan must now realize that we have one enemy at present and that is Narendra Modi who is aggressive and has an anti-Pakistan syndrome and he can go to any extent to directly inflict Pakistan. His previous involvement in East Pakistan, terrorist financing and other terrorists’ activities in Balochistan, violations across LoC and the open challenge of BJP to eliminate Pakistan is no more a secret.
In the meantime, he has also put the Muslim population under pressure by bringing Citizenship law where the Muslims will be declared as the second citizens. India’s Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha passed a controversial amendment to its 1955 citizenship law which naturalizes non-Muslim refugees as Indian citizens but excludes Muslims despite the national and international furor against it. It is evident now that Prime Minister Modi is our number one enemy.
Hence we as a nation at all levels have to hit him and to ensure to take him on all the international, local and diplomatic fronts. In case there are too many apprehensions of losing the case at government level let there be a lawsuit by eminent lawyers, NGOs, Freedom organizations of IOK or victims of Indian aggression can become a party in both the ICC and ICJ under Rome convention.
It is time not for speeches and display of plans within Pakistan but it is the time to fight against the Indian brutalities, genocide, mass killings on the international, local and diplomatic fronts. I wish the government will adopt my suggested aggressive policy by dragging PM Modi and his abettors to ICJ and ICC for their crimes against humanity.
I have also requested time and again that Pakistan must demand investigation by ICJ for the delay for in the implementation of Resolutions of UNO on right of self-determination for Kashmiris.
—The writer is Former Interior Minister of Pakistan, Chairman Senate Standing Committee on Interior and Chairman of Think Tank “Global Eye”.
