Women’s Parliamentary Caucus (WPC) on Friday stated grave concern at the illegal and immoral decision by the Indian government to revoke the special Constitutional status of Jammu and Kashmir.
The removal of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status would allow non-Kashmiri Indians to settle and buy property in the state. This is a deliberate, methodical and unashamed violation of India’s obligations under Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention; which prohibits the transfer or deportation of persons in Occupied Territory. Kashmir is currently India’s only Muslim-majority state; thus, these illegitimate actions can change its demographic make-up which is exceptionally alarming.
In the past, women and girls, in IOK, have been a perpetual target of different forms of abuses. We are seeing an imminent multi-layered crisis where women and girls, sadly, would be the first to be harmed and last to be heard.
WPC expects from all champions of human rights, women rights, child rights and people-centric approach, with their wealth of experiences, to demonstrate their solidarity with visible empathetic actions.
All global influencers on peace, equality and rights including the decision makers within UN system are urged to look into the issue with humanitarian lens and make every effort to ensure safety of Kashmiri people.—INP