PRESS RELEASE
HCBA/PR/09-59/11 DATED:08/02/2010

His Excellency

The Secretary General,
United Nations Organization, (UN Head Quarters), New York U.S.A.,
Present Mr. Banki Moon.

Ref : Kashmir dispute and UN Resolutions dated 05.01.1949 read with UN Resolution dated 13.08.1948 for holding plebiscite in Jammu and Kashmir.

Sub : Memorandum of appeal for and on behalf of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

Your Excellency,

With regards, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association Srinagar for and on behalf of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, submit, this memorandum of appeal today, on 05.01.2010, to your Excellency for UN intervention in resolving the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the relevant UN security council Resolutions dated 13.08.1948 and 05.01.1949 for settlement of the Kashmir dispute. As your Excellency is well aware of the disputed legacy of Jammu and Kashmir which is pending solution before the United Nations since 01.01.1948, the people of Jammu and Kashmir are eagerly waiting for a free, fair and impartial plebiscite in accordance with the aforementioned UN Resolutions past 62 years.

Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association while condemning the killing of 13 year old student Zahid Farooq of Brain Nishat who was killed by the CRPF Personnel on 05.02.2010, and describes the killing as unabated spate of killings of the youth especially of tender age, bring to your knowledge that these killings are taking place as a process of genocide perpetuated by the Indian forces according to the set genocide policy devised by the Govt. of India to subjugate the will of the people of J&K fighting for freedom of the state of J&K. Zahid Farooq’s killing by the Indian occupational forces is seventh incident since 1st January 2010 till date in which young boys especially school going children have been targeted to death by the occupation forces. The Bar Association views the situation as grave and provocative and calls upon the Indian Govt. to desist from perpetuating the policy of genocide of Kashmiri Muslims.

It is a serious development with regard to rights violations, the soil of the graves of the martyrs including college student Anayat-ul-lah of Dalgate and Wamik Farooq of Rainawari are yet to dry, the CRPF personnel have killed Zahid Farooq a 13 year old school boy at Brain. The Bar Association expresses its concern on the health of Abdul Basit and Shabir Ahmad of Safa Kadal Srinagar and bring to your knowledge that these two civilians were injured in Tear Gas Shelling at Safa Kadal and are struggling for life in the SKIMS. These killings are condemnable and Bar Association appeals the international community especially to your Excellency, to intervene and force the Govt. of India to desist from perpetuating the policy of genocide in J&K. in this regard the Bar Association is writing this SOS to your Excellency and other international leaders and prevent the genocide of Kashmiri Muslims at the hands of the Indian Occupation Forces.

The Bar Association is concerned about the random arrests and detentions of the youth fighting for the liberation of their motherland. The Bar Association is in receipt of reports across the state in view of which more than 500 young boys and Hurriyat Activists have been arrested and tortured in police stations, interrogation centres and other concentration camps. Round about 100 among them have been detained under the Public Safety Act in preventive detention and have been sent for lodgment to different jails outside the valley. The Bar Association express its concern on the arrest and detention of pro-freedom leaders including Shabir Ahmad Shah, Nayeem Ahmad Khan, Bilal Sidique, Firdous Ahmad Shah, Rafiq Ahmad Ganai, Mushtaq-ul-Islam and others and warns the Govt. of India that these arrests will not deter the people of Jammu and Kashmir from their chosen path for liberation of their motherland.

The condition of the Kashmiri detainees in Indian jails and concentration camps is worst in all respects and serious apprehensions are being expressed by the respective families about the life and heath of their imprisoned kiths and kins. It is worthwhile to mention that the Indian Govt. hanged the profound leader of the freedom struggle Advocate Mohammad Maqbool Bhat in Tihar Jail on 11th of February 1984 and since then his corpus has not been delivered to the family for final burial ceremony. It is imperative on the Govt. of India under international law to hand over the corpus of the martyred leader to his family and the people of Jammu and Kashmir are consistently appealing for handing over of the corpus to the family members.

The world community is conscious about the fact that the people of Jammu and Kashmir are in Intifadah and are giving resistance to the Indian occupation without guns by and large. However, the Bar Association is equally disgusted with the attitude of Indian National Electronic and Print Media for their non-professional journalistic ethics as the Electronic and Satellite news channels and the Indian Print Media is blacking out the Kashmir coverage though their respective correspondents are regularly feeding their respective news agencies. As such the Bar Association deems it necessary to apprise your Excellency with these developments.

Your Excellency, the people of Jammu and Kashmir have shown faith in the United Nations Organization and have accepted the principle of people’s right to self determination as the guiding factor for resolution of the Kashmir dispute and this faith is unbridled and unshaken till date and the people of Jammu and Kashmir are since the inception of these resolutions awaiting for independent and impartial plebiscite to be conducted under the UN auspices in accordance with the relevant UN Resolutions which provide the ideal and simple mechanism for resolution of the Kashmir dispute.

India and Pakistan have failed to resolve the Kashmir issue bilaterally through peaceful and democratic means since past 63 years despite their proclamations in this regard. The pendency of the Kashmir dispute has forced India and Pakistan to three armed confrontations in 1947, 1965 and 1971. In the year 1999 both the countries were on the threshold of nuclear confrontation during the Kargil War which by no means can be described as a limited armed confrontation.

The hostilities between the two countries on Kashmir issue are deeply rooted in the people and state apparatus of both the countries and these hostilities are bound to lead full-fledged armed confrontation which may include a nuclear clash in the sub continent. Both the countries are preparing for a war in the name of peace which fact is evident by the conventional and non-conventional arms buildup in the sub continent besides a pursuit of nuclear race by both the countries. In all circumstances the people of the Jammu and Kashmir are the sufferers and the principle stake holders on the receiving end. The reluctance by the Govt. of India in resolving the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the mandate of UN Resolutions has resulted in mass sufferings in the state of Jammu and Kashmir which is a divided nation by the seize fire line drawn by the United Nations Organization in 1948.

The people of Jammu and Kashmir despite having full faith in the United Nations, are equally feeling dismayed as this world body is showing indifference in implementing it’s own resolutions for the settlement of the dispute on Jammu and Kashmir since 1964. When the United Nations is expanding it’s role in addressing fresh political problems across the globe, it is not expected that this world body will leave behind it’s long pending obligation for finding a solution to the Kashmir dispute which is accepted by the global strategists as a nuclear flash point in international relations and a cause of uncertainty in the sub continent. Therefore, it is the high time for this world body to discharge it’s responsibility towards the people of Jammu and Kashmir and removing the clouds of war and nuclear clash which are looming large in the sub continent on account of the dispute on Jammu and Kashmir between India and Pakistan.

The people of Jammu and Kashmir are suffering since 1947 and the denial by the Govt. of India in accepting the ground realities and perform it’s international obligation to hold a free, fair and impartial plebiscite in Jammu and Kashmir have cost honour, dignity and life of a nation. Since 1947 the Indian Occupational Forces in their operations to subjugate the voice of freedom have killed more than 5 lac people. The state repression in the Indian held Kashmir is marked by gruesome killings, extra judicial murders, random arrests, illegal detentions and custodial disappearances, sexual abuse and exploitation of women as a weapon of war besides arson and destruction of the civilian property. All these operations are sought to be legalized with impunity by enforcement of draconian occupational laws which are by all international standards unreasonable and inviolation of UN Charter of Human Rights. The people of Jammu and Kashmir are deprived of their political, social and economic rights and the basic human rights.

Sos, Today on 08th February 2010, when the people of Jammu and Kashmir are celebrating 61st year of UN Resolutions, on Jammu and Kashmir, appeal to your Excellency to intervene and hope the United Nations Organization under your able leadership shall discharge it’s international obligation in finding a permanent settlement of Jammu and Kashmir by holding a free, fair and impartial plebiscite under UN auspices in strict compliance to the resolutions dated 13.08.1948 and 05.01.1949 without any further delay. The people of Jammu and Kashmir appeal to your Excellency to call upon India to desist from its policy of genocide of Kashmiri Muslims and call upon the Govt. of India and its occupation forces not to target the young school going children of the state of Jammu and Kashmir to target killings in continuance of its policy of genocide.

Sincerely yours,
People of Jammu and Kashmir through

G.N.Shaheen,
Secretary,
J&K High Court Bar Association.
Dated : 07-02-2010