09.08.2006 - Source: Reporters Sans Frontières

Photojournalist Muhammad Maqbool Khokar (aka Maqbool Sahil) imprisoned without evidence since 18 September 2004 under emergency security law ("Kashmiri photographer in prison without evidence or trial for nearly two years") [ID 17613]

Document(s): Open document

25.05.2006 - Source: BBC News

India 'will halt Kashmir abuses' ("India 'will halt Kashmir abuses'") [ID 15479]

Document(s): Open document

23.05.2006 - Source: Amnesty International

Annual Report 2006 ("Annual Report 2006") [ID 17222]

"Politically motivated violence slightly decreased but torture, deaths in custody and “disappearances” continued to be reported. At least 38 people were reported to have died in custody. In January, the Minister of State for Home Affairs stated that some 600 people, including 174 foreigners, were held under the Public Safety Act (PSA), a preventive detention law. In October 44 detainees were released but new detentions were reported. Several people had been held under the PSA for over 10 years under successive PSA detention orders. Farooq Ahmad Dar was detained in November under his ninth consecutive PSA order. He had been in continuous detention under the PSA since 1991. Civilians were repeatedly targeted by state agencies and armed groups. In May, armed fighters threw a grenade just as children were leaving their school in Srinagar, killing two women who had come to pick up children and injuring 50 others, including 20 pupils. In July, four juveniles aged between 11 and 15 were shot dead by paramilitary Rashtriya Rifles in Kupwara district. Local people said that the boys had participated in a marriage party and gone for a stroll but ran away when ordered to stop. They said that the army had been informed of possible movements of people attending the party late at night. In September, the State Human Rights Commission, which had registered 3,187 cases of human rights violations since its inception in 1991, reiterated its earlier complaint that government departments failed to implement its recommendations."

Document(s): Open document

15.05.2006 - Source: Reporters Sans Frontières

Kaschmir: Drohungen verschiedener separatistischer Gruppen gegen Kabel-TV-Betreiber brachten Betreiber zum Absetzen einiger Unterhaltungskanäle ("Separatist threats against cable TV operators in Kashmir") [ID 15729]

Document(s): Open document

23.02.2006 - Source: BBC News

Kashmir: Thousands of people protested for second day against shooting of 4 young boys in Handwara, allegedly by Indian army ("Protests in Kashmir over shooting") [#44919],  [ID 7175]

Document(s): Open document

14.02.2006 - Source: ReliefWeb

Kashmir: Indian army builds new bridge connecting Indian and Pakistani Kashmir after an earlier one was damaged in last year's earthquak ("India connects Kashmiris with new "peace bridge" (Reuters)") [#44159],  [ID 7210]

Document(s): Open document

30.01.2006 - Source: ReliefWeb

Kashmir: Second opening in the Line of Control (LoC), in Chakan Da Bagh, will link two sides of divided province opening on 31 March ("India/Pakistan: Second road link on LoC to open on 31 Mar 2006 (The Times of India)") [#43085],  [ID 7209]

Document(s): Open document

08.2005 - Source: Freedom House

Kashmir: Annual survey of political rights and civil liberties 2004 ("Freedom in the World 2005") [#41621],  [ID 7176]

Document(s): Open document

10.2004 - Source: UK Home Office

Human rights concerns in Kashmir ("Country Report - October 2004") [#28325],  [ID 7177]

"[...]6.219 According to an Amnesty International report February 1999, “Human rights violations, including arbitrary arrests, torture leading to hundreds of deaths in custody, and extra-judicial executions perpetrated by State police and armed and paramilitary forces, soared in the early 1990s. Armed opposition groups were reported to have taken hundreds of civilians hostage and to have tortured and killed hundreds of unarmed civilians.” [3f](p5)

6.220 The Amnesty International report 1999 states that reliable figures of the number of deaths in Jammu and Kashmir as a result of the conflict are impossible to obtain. But according to official reports and figures obtained in September 1998, 19,866 people had died in Jammu and Kashmir since January 1990. This included 9,123 members of armed opposition groups; 6,673 victims of armed opposition groups; 2,477 civilians killed by Indian security forces and 1,593 security personnel. These figures do not reflect the number of victims who were deliberately or arbitrarily killed or died as the result of torture inflicted in the custody of State agents. [3f](p7) [...]

6.224 According to an article published in The Times of India, dated 22 August 2004, the Indian government withdrew future patronage from European Parliament (EP) visits to Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian government was reported to be furious with an allegedly biased and interventionist report by a EP delegation, whose leader, John Cushnahan, called Jammu and Kashmir “the world’s most beautiful prison”, India reacted to the criticism by withdrawing official patronage to such visits. India has already stopped extending official patronage to the annual visit by the European Union following criticism of the government’s human rights record in the state. The EP report branded Jammu and Kashmir as “Indian Occupied Kashmir,” and criticised the Indian government’s failure to curb human rights abuses by its security forces, which it believes is contributing towards feeding the cycle of violence. The report also highlighted the fact that the huge Indian military presence in Kashmir amounts to one soldier to every 10 civilians. [13d]
[...]"

Document(s): Open document

10.2004 - Source: UK Home Office

Disappearances ("Country Report - October 2004") [#28325],  [ID 7178]

"[...]6.225 According to a United Nations report dated January 1998, there have also been disappearances, most of which occurred between 1983 and 1995. They were attributable to the police authorities, the army and paramilitary groups acting in conjunction with, or with the acquiescence of, the armed forces. In Kashmir numerous people are said to have disappeared after "shoot outs" with security forces. [6d](p38) As reported in an Amnesty International report 1999, abduction and hostage taking of unarmed civilians has also been used by armed opposition groups to seek to free arrested associates or to frighten or harass the population. Amnesty International report that the victims of disappearance belong to all ages, including children and juveniles, and all professions and most appear to be ordinary civilians who have no connections with armed opposition groups operating in Jammu and Kashmir. [3f](p3)

6.226 As reported by the UN in 1998, the fate of the victim remains unknown in many cases. Investigations into cases of disappearances were rarely carried out and when they were, they were usually conducted by police or army officials rather than by an independent body. Police often failed to register detentions or file arrest warrants, and they were then able to deny holding a detainee. [6d](p39)

6.227 Amnesty International reported that during 1998 there were fewer disappearances in Jammu and Kashmir than in previous years, but many of the early cases remain unresolved. Amnesty also reported that no effective measures had been taken to end disappearances and to investigate the fate of hundreds of people who had disappeared, including the more than 100 cases submitted by Amnesty in its 1993 report. [3f](p32-33)

6.228 According to the USSD 2003, it was reported in an AI report released in 2000, that there have been between 700-800 unsolved disappearances in Kashmir since 1990. In June, the Jammu and Kashmir state government announced that 3,931 persons remained missing in the state since 1990. However the Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons, puts the figure in excess of 8,000. In April, the Jammu and Kashmir judiciary established that 500 accounted for disappearances in custody. [2c](p7)

6.229 As reported by the USSD 2003, “According to AI, in May [2003], the NHRC asked the Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir for specific information on the systems used by the state government to record and investigate allegations of enforced or involuntary disappearances. In addition, the commission requested the number of such allegations recorded and the measures taken to prevent their occurrence. It recommended compensations relief for 719 persons who disappeared, and relief was paid for 61.”[2c](p7) [...]"

Document(s): Open document

27.09.2004 - Source: Committee to Protect Journalists

Kashmir: 2 photographers of the national newspaper The Tribune were beaten by police while covering a violent demonstration in Srinagar ("India: Police beat two photographers covering Kashmir unrest") [#26019],  [ID 7179]

Document(s): Open document

29.07.2004 - Source: South Asia Human Rights Documentation Centre

Article on the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), arbitrary arrests, executions, torture ("Losing hearts and minds. It’s easy when you use laws like the AFSPA (HRF/102/04)") [#24547],  [ID 7180]

Document(s): Open document
Open document

26.05.2004 - Source: Amnesty International

Annual Report 2004 (covering 2003) ("Annual Report 2004") [#22668],  [ID 7181]

"Security legislation

The Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) continued to be used to detain political opponents and members of minority populations. The lapsed Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act continued to be used to arrest people in Jammu and Kashmir by linking them to cases filed before 1995. Preventive arrest and detention provisions contained in other security laws as well as in the Codeof Criminal Procedure were also misused against political and human rights activists.

There were grave concerns about recommendations of the Malimath Committee to incorporate into criminal law several provisions of the POTA which violate international human rights standards or which, if implemented, would lead to a heightened risk of human rights violations. For example, the Committee recommended that confessions recorded by a Superintendent of Police (or higher rank) which was also audio or video recorded should be admissible as evidence. Concerns that the provisions of the POTA could encourage the use of torture and ill-treatment by admitting such confessions appeared to have been realized in practice. In Gujarat several detainees alleged in court that their confessions were extracted under duress. Preventive arrests and detention continued to be used against political opponents using state legislation similar to the POTA in a numberof states including Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Karnataka and New Delhi Union Territory. Only a handful of high-profile releases had been made by the end of the year despite a promise to review all cases of detainees held without trial for long periods under security legislation made under the Common Minimum Programme adopted by the new state government in Jammu and Kashmir. [...]

Members of the security services continued to enjoy virtual impunity for human rights violations. [...]

In Jammu and Kashmir the state government kept its promise made in the Common Minimum Programme to assimilate the Special Operations Group (SOG), a paramilitary divisionof the police accused of human rights violations, into the regular police. However, the SOG continued to operate as a cohesive unit and despite disciplinary action being taken against a few of its members, there continued to be regular reports of human rights violations being committed by the SOG. In May, the NHRC asked the Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir for specific information on the systems used by the state authorities to record and investigate allegations of “disappearances” and on measures taken to prevent further “disappearances”. A substantive response to the Commission’s request remained outstanding at the endof 2003.

Civilians continued to be targeted for gross human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir and scores of allegations of human rights violations were made against the security forces, paramilitaries and “renegades” (former members of armed opposition groups working with the security forces)."

Document(s): Open document
Open document

24.05.2004 - Source: US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants

Annual report on conditions affecting refugees and asylum seekers in 2003 ("World Refugee Survey 2004") [#22816],  [ID 7182]

"At least 650,000 persons were internally displaced in India. Among the displaced were 250,000-450,000 Kashmiris, an estimated 250,000 members of tribal groups in northeast India, an unknown number of persons, mostly Muslims, in Gujarat State in western India. The government impedes international access to internally displaced persons, and labels them migrants.

About 17,000 Kashmiris from the Indian-controlled area of Kashmir remained in Pakistan. [...]

Displacement in Kashmir region On November 26, Pakistan and India entered into a ceasefire agreement and agreed to talks raising hopes for peace in the Kashmiri region, racked by ethnic, religious and secessionist conflict for decades. Although this reduced violence in the border area when Pakistan and Indian troops stopped shelling each other, violence and fighting continued in India’s northern province of Jammu-Kashmir. Both India and the rebels stated ceasefire between Pakistan and India did not affect their operations inside Jammu-Kashmir. A total of 185 persons died from conflict in Kashmir between the date the ceasefire and the end of the year.

Before the ceasefire, Indian security forces killed hundreds in targeted and indiscriminate violence, and continued to detain individuals without trial or charge. Kashmiri militants extorted money from the civilian population in the region. Rebels killed, tortured, and raped hundreds more during the year. In Nadimarg village in March, suspected Islamic militants wearing Indian army uniforms dragged 24 Hindu civilians (known as Pandits), including two children, from their homes and shot them to death in front of a temple. Frightened survivors tried to flee to safety but police and civilian officials prevented them from leaving the area they said."

Document(s): Open document

04.05.2004 - Source: BBC News

Kashmir, Jammu: Election Commission has asked police to charge head of the state's ruling People's Democratic Party, after she unveiled a Muslim woman during voting in Srinagar ("Kashmiri politician in veil row") [#21929],  [ID 7183]

Document(s): Open document

11.03.2004 - Source: BBC News

Kashmir: a strike has been called in protest against a controversial bill, under which Kashmiri women who marry non-residents of Kashmir lose their resident status ("Anger at Kashmir residency bill") [#20367],  [ID 7184]

Document(s): Open document

03.03.2004 - Source: UN Human Rights Council (formerly UN Commission on Human Rights)

Report focused on violence against women - individual cases documented ("Violence against women: Report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women its causes and consequences, Yakin Ertürk E/CN.4/2004/66/Add.1") [#21425],  [ID 7185]

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: US Department of State

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003 ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003") [#19765],  [ID 7186]

"Arbitrary and unlawful deprivations of life by government forces (including deaths in custody and faked "encounter" killings) continued to occur frequently in the State of Jammu and Kashmir and in several northeastern states, where separatist insurgencies continued. Security forces offered bounties for wanted militants. Extrajudicial killings of criminals and suspected criminals by police or prison officers also occurred in a number of states. Militant groups active in Jammu and Kashmir, several northeast states, and parts of Andhra Pradesh, killed members of rival factions, government security forces, government officials, and civilians.
[...]
According to press reports and anecdotal accounts, persons killed in disputed encounters typically were detained by security forces, and their bodies, often bearing multiple bullet wounds and marks of torture, were returned to relatives or otherwise were discovered shortly afterwards. For example, in May, Mohammed Ashraf Malik was taken into custody by the Rashtriya Rifles (RR) allegedly for assisting the guerrillas. Several days later, the RR unit advised Malik's family to collect his remains from the forest, claiming that he had stepped on a landmine. By year's end, an inquiry had been ordered in this case.

There reportedly was no action taken against members of the security forces responsible for the following killings in Jammu and Kashmir: The January 2002 "encounter" killing of Ali Muhammad Bhat, and the March 2002 alleged custody killing of Mubarak Shah in Dushar Gool.
[...]
The Jammu and Kashmir state government took numerous initiatives to hold violators of human rights accountable. In June, the Government announced that 118 of the security forces had been punished for having committed human rights violations, including 44 Border Security Force (BSF) members, 47 from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), and 27 police officers. A Senior Superintendent of Police was suspended by the Jammu and Kashmir government for allegedly falsifying the DNA samples of five civilians killed in fake encounters in Chattisingpora, Anantnag District in March 2000; he was appealing his case at year's end. A ministerial subcommittee headed by the Deputy Chief Minister had recommended severe punishment for three police officers and two doctors for tampering with the evidence.

According to local press reports, the number of persons killed in encounter deaths varied widely throughout the country. In March, the Home Ministry reported that there were 116 complaints of alleged encounter deaths in 2000-2001, and 92 complaints of alleged encounter deaths from 2002 until year's end. In 2002, the NHRC called for all alleged encounter deaths to be investigated immediately and asked state governments to compensate the families of the victims. The NHRC's call in 2002 for all alleged encounter deaths to be investigated immediately was not heeded, and no such body was formed during the year. The NHRC issued instructions to all state governments to take appropriate preventive measures and recommended that compensation of $22,000 (1,600,000 Rs) be paid to the families of persons killed in such cases from 1993 until year's end. In most cases reported during the year; however, $7,350 (500,000 Rs) was the amount awarded.

In addition, the NHRC issued guidelines to state governments with the goal of helping to prevent encounter deaths. However, members of the security forces rarely were held accountable for these killings. The NHRC may ask for a report from a state government, but does not have the statutory power to investigate such allegations. Human rights activists maintained that the Government increasingly substituted financial compensation to victims' families for punishment of those found guilty of illegal conduct. In some cases, victims or victims' families distrusted the military judicial system and petitioned to transfer a particular case from a military to a civil court. The authorities generally did not report encounter deaths that occurred in Jammu and Kashmir to the NHRC.
The security forces also killed many civilians during military counterinsurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir. A December Amnesty International (AI) paper indicated that security forces had reportedly killed over 250 civilians during the year. According to the Home Ministry, security forces killed 28 civilians from April 1 until June 30, and the NHRC recommended payment of compensation in 11 of these cases.

The Armed Forces Special Powers Act and the Disturbed Areas Act remained in effect in several states in which active secessionist movements exist, namely, in Jammu and Kashmir, Nagaland, Manipur, Assam, and parts of Tripura. The Disturbed Areas Act gives police extraordinary powers of arrest and detention, which, according to human rights groups, allowed security forces to operate with virtual impunity in areas under the act. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act provides search and arrest powers without warrants (see Section 1.d.).

Accountability remained a serious problem in Jammu and Kashmir. Security forces committed thousands of serious human rights violations over the course of the 14-year conflict, including extrajudicial killings, disappearances, and torture (see Sections 1.b. and 1.c.). Despite this record of abuse, only a few hundred members of the security forces have been prosecuted and punished since 1990 for human rights violations or other crimes. Punishments ranged from reduction in rank to imprisonment for up to 10 years. In a December letter to Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, AI wrote "the state government needs to be seen to make the security forces more accountable for their actions."
[...]
Vehicle checkpoints, at which Border Security Force (BSF) routinely searched and questioned occupants, were a common feature throughout most of Jammu and Kashmir. It also was common for police to block entry and exit points in preparation for gathering young males for police lineups. These searches tended to focus on troubled areas, as opposed to the mass searches that were common in the past. According to a credible source, such search operations seldom yielded any results. There were frequent curfews in areas of conflict, including in New Delhi, in recent years. The Government also expanded construction of a security barrier along the LoC in disputed Kashmir, causing difficulties for Kashmiris and Pakistanis and isolating residents. The barrier was to be completed by June, 2004. The Government claimed that the barrier was necessary to prevent terrorism.

[...]The U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture has reported that the security forces systematically tortured persons in Jammu and Kashmir to coerce confessions to militant activity, to reveal information about suspected militants, or to inflict punishment for suspected support or sympathy with militants. [...]"

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: US Department of State

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003 ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003") [#19765],  [ID 7187]

"[...]In Jammu and Kashmir, the judicial system barely functioned due to threats by militants against judges, witnesses, and their family members; because of judicial tolerance of the Government's heavy-handed antimilitant actions; and because of the frequent refusal by security forces to obey court orders. Jammu and Kashmir were reluctant to hear cases involving terrorist crimes and failed to act expeditiously on habeas corpus cases, if they acted at all. There were a few convictions of alleged terrorists in the Jammu High Court during the year; many more accused militants had been in pretrial detention for years. The number of militants in pretrial detention is in the hundreds; however, the exact number is unknown. During the year, the Government announced plans to release 274 such detainees, as a result of court orders. By year's end, only 24 militants had been released under instructions of the government-appointed Review Committee. [...]"

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: US Department of State

USDOS: Torture victims & impunity of security forces ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003") [#19765],  [ID 7188]

"[...]In Jammu and Kashmir, torture victims or their relatives reportedly had difficulty in filing complaints because local police were issued instructions not to open a case without permission from higher authorities. In addition, the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act of 1990 provides that unless approval is obtained from the central Government, no "prosecution, suit, or other legal proceeding shall be instituted...against any person in respect of anything done or purported to be done in exercise of the powers of the act." This provision allowed the security forces to act with virtual impunity. [...]"

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: US Department of State

USDOS: Countermilitants/Special Operations Group (SOG) ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003") [#19765],  [ID 7189]

"[...]Killings and abductions of suspected militants and other persons by progovernment countermilitants continued to be a significant problem in Jammu and Kashmir. Countermilitants were members of police auxiliary units consisting of former separatists who surrendered to government forces, but who retained their weapons and paramilitary organization. Government agencies funded, exchanged intelligence with, and directed the operations of countermilitants as part of the counterinsurgency effort. Allegations of violations by the Special Operations Group (SOG), special anti-insurgency police units which in the past have operated outside the law, continued throughout the year. For example, on November 12, the SOG entered the home of Bashir Ahmad Sheikh, who was allegedly killed in an "encounter" in July, and beat his mother and sisters. In March, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Muhammed Sayeed told the Legislative Assembly that the SOG was disbanded; however, at year's end, there has been no sign that disbandment of the SOG had taken place. SOG members who earlier acted independently had been subordinated to regular police units. Fifty-three members of the SOG had been charged with human rights violations and 25 were removed from duty but have not been arrested or charged with any crime. In December, there were reports of protests in several districts in Jammu and Kashmir after former SOG members were appointed to positions in the uniformed police. Countermilitants searched persons at roadblocks (see Section 2.d.) and guarded large areas of the Kashmir Valley. The Government, through its sponsoring and condoning of extrajudicial countermilitant activities, was responsible for killings, abductions, and other abuses committed by these groups. According to journalists in Srinagar, as many as 1,200 countermilitants continued to operate in Jammu and Kashmir, particularly in the countryside. [...]"

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: US Department of State

USDOS: Unexplained / involuntary disappearances ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003") [#19765],  [ID 7190]

"[...]According to a December AI report, unexplained disappearances continued during the year. According to an AI report released in 2000, there have been between 700 and 800 unsolved disappearances in Kashmir since 1990. In June, the Jammu and Kashmir state government announced that 3,931 persons remained missing in the state since 1990. This figure contrasts with that given by the Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons, which puts the number at more than 8,000. In April, the Jammu and Kashmir judiciary established that 500 of these were disappearances in custody.

According to AI, in May, the NHRC asked the Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir for specific information on the systems used by the state government to record and investigate allegations of enforced or involuntary disappearances. In addition, the Commission requested the number of such allegations recorded and the measures taken to prevent their occurrence. It recommended compensation relief for 719 persons who disappeared, and relief was paid for 61. [...]"

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: US Department of State

USDOS: Arbitray Arrest & Detention ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003") [#19765],  [ID 7191]

"[...]Authorities in Jammu and Kashmir continued to keep in detention persons who had been arrested under TADA in the past, despite the fact that the Act lapsed in 1995.[...]TADA courts used abridged procedures. For example, defense counsel was not permitted to see witnesses for the prosecution, who were kept behind screens while testifying in court. Also, confessions extracted under duress were admissible as evidence.
[...]The PSA, a law that applies only in Jammu and Kashmir, permits the detention of persons without charge and without judicial review for up to 2 years. In addition, detainees do not have access to family members or legal counsel.[...]"

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: US Department of State

USDOS: Jammu and Kashmir: Restrictions for women enforced by Muslim militants ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003") [#19765],  [ID 7192]

"[...]In Kashmir, the Lashkar-e-Jabbar militant group required all Muslim women to wear a burqa (a garment that totally covered the face and body) when in public or risk retribution. A significant number of women in the Kashmir Valley appeared to be complying with the order, frightened by the threat of being attacked with acid, beheaded, or killed. Lashkar-e-Jabbar also further ordered Hindus and Sikhs in the valley to wear identifying marks and told transport companies to reserve 50 percent of their seats for women in an effort to separate men and women in public spaces. At year's end, the Home Ministry reported that no women police officers had to quit their jobs as a result of the 2002 militant threat that ordered all women police officers in Rajouri District of Jammu and Kashmir to quit their jobs by January 2003. [...]"

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: US Department of State

USDOS: Jammu and Kashmir: Restrictions and attacks on human rights activists ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003") [#19765],  [ID 7193]

"[...]A wide variety of domestic and international human rights groups generally operated without government restriction, investigating abuses and publishing their findings on human rights cases; however, in some states and in a few circumstances, human rights groups faced restrictions. Human rights monitors in Jammu and Kashmir were unable to move around the state freely to document human rights violations due to fear of retribution by security forces and countermilitants. Several individuals closely involved in the documentation of violations in Jammu and Kashmir, including lawyers and journalists, have been attacked in past years and in some cases killed. [...]"

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: BBC News

Kashmir: moderate Kashmiri separatists have threatened to pull out of peace talks with the Indian government over alleged human rights violations commited by Indian soldiers ("Kashmir moderates in talks threat") [#19661],  [ID 7194]

Document(s): Open document

23.02.2004 - Source: BBC News

Kashmir: a man killed by the Al-Mansurin militant group in the district of Budgam, allegedly for running in the elections/4,000 people protest in Tral against the alleged custodial killing of a civilian by Indian troops ("Violence ahead of Kashmir vote") [#19643],  [ID 7195]

Document(s): Open document

08.02.2004 - Source: BBC News

Kashmir: police opened fire and used tear gas to break up a massive demonstration against the killing of five civilians they say Indian troops used as human shields during an operation against militants, in the town of Bandipora ("Kashmir 'shield' dead spark demos") [#19227],  [ID 7196]

Document(s): Open document

01.01.2004 - Source: Asian Centre for Human Rights

Analysis of the POTA (Prevention of Terrorism Act) judgement and POTA Amendment Bill 2003 ("Interpreters of the Draconian: An analysis of the POTA judgement and POTA Amendment Bill 2003 (ACHRF/01/2004)") [#18832],  [ID 7197]

Document(s): Open document
Open document

04.12.2003 - Source: BBC News

Kashmir: separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani called for a strike to protest at the government decision to stop his supporters from marching in the state's summer capital, Srinagar ("Kashmir separatist rally denied") [#18002],  [ID 7198]

Document(s): Open document

02.12.2003 - Source: Amnesty International

Open letter on the failed Common Minimum Program, aimed to restore the rule of law in Jammu and Kashmir and to protect the people of the state from violence ("Open Letter to the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir on the failed promises of the Common Minimum Program") [#17967],  [ID 7199]

"[...] November 2003 marked the first anniversary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) - Congress coalition government coming to power in Jammu and Kashmir. During the election the PDP - Congress promised the Kashmiri people that there would be an end to human rights violations in the state and offered a remedy to their problems through a Common Minimum Program published soon after the elections. A fundamental objective of the Common Minimum Program was to restore the rule of law in Jammu and Kashmir and to protect the people of the state from violence. The much publicized "healing touch policy" generated a new era of hope for the Kashmiri people and all those in the international community concerned with protection and promotion of human rights that there would be a possible end in sight to illegal arrests, custodial killings, "disappearances," torture; and rape and the prospect of relief for the victims of violence in the state.

No serious cases of human rights violations were reported from the state during the first month in power of the PDP - Congress administration, raising hopes that human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir would be a thing of the past. However, soon afterwards there were reports from Baramulla district that security forces opened unprovoked and indiscriminate fire killing one person and injuring two others. Since then, human rights abuses by the security forces and police have continued to be reported almost daily.

Over the last year human rights abuses by armed political groups have also persisted at a high level in Jammu and Kashmir with a reported 344 civilians killed in a targeted and indiscriminate way. Torture, including rape, and beatings of the civilian population by members of armed opposition groups also continued to be reported throughout the year. Armed opposition groups failed to abide by standards of international humanitarian law and many civilians were killed as a result of indiscriminate violence during attacks on security forces. Militants were also reportedly involved in criminal activities including extortion. Amnesty International condemns without reservations these serious human rights abuses and has called repeatedly on these groups to abide by international humanitarian law."

Document(s): Open document
Open document

17.07.2003 - Source: Amnesty International

Jammu and Kashmir: Mohammad Hussain Ashraf reportedly arrested by an army patrol in the town of Sampore/ his whereabouts are unknown ("India - UA 217/03") [#14396],  [ID 7200]

Document(s): Open document

24.12.2002 - Source: Reporters Sans Frontières

Jammu and Kashmir: Detained Kashmiri journalist Iftikhar Gilani, charged with "military espionage", found innocent by the military ("Indian military says detained journalist Gilani is innocent") [#10117],  [ID 7201]

Document(s): Open document

09.09.2002 - Source: Reporters Sans Frontières

Jammu and Kashmir: Formal accusation of "military spying" against journalist denounced/ he has been held in prison for the past 3 months ("Kashmiri journalist Iftikhar Gilani charged with spying for Pakistan") [#8624],  [ID 7202]

Document(s): Open document

09.08.2002 - Source: South Asia Human Rights Documentation Centre

India has so far rejected calls for international election monitoring of the Jammu and Kashmir State Assembly Elections / around 2000 National Conference workers alone have been killed across J&K in the last 12 years ("Illusion and Reality - The J& K State Assembly Elections (HRF/62/02)") [#8271],  [ID 7203]

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HRF062_L.doc

27.06.2002 - Source: Amnesty International

Jammu and Kashmir: Man reportedly receiving death threats after he agreed to testify against police officers allegedly responsible for deaths in custody in Srinagar ("India - UA 275/99") [#7637],  [ID 7204]

Document(s): Open document

11.06.2002 - Source: Reporters Sans Frontières

Jammu and Kashmir: Chief of the Indian daily Kashmir Times and also correspondent for the Pakistani daily The Nation, arrested/ in another incident Kashmiri journalist beaten by Indian police ("Official reason for Kashmiri journalist's arrest is challenged") [#7437],  [ID 7205]

Document(s): Open document

29.08.2001 - Source: Amnesty International

Around 1100 people have "disappeared" in Jammu and Kashmir since 1990/ "disappearances" are used by security forces and police to combat insurgency ("India: Day of the "disappeared" - still no justice for the victims") [#3809],  [ID 7206]

Document(s): Open document
dh1751_01958ind.htm

21.08.2001 - Source: Reporters Sans Frontières

Jammu and Kashmir: Attack by security forces members on editor and 3 employees of a weekly/ dozens of journalists beaten or threatened each year by soldiers of Indian paramilitary forces ("The editor and three employees of a weekly severely beaten in Jammu and Kashmir") [#3705],  [ID 7207]

Document(s): 00589ind.htm
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11.07.2001 - Source: Amnesty International

Azad Jammu and Kashmir: Over 100 people in arbitrary detention in the area under provisional Pakistani control/ hundreds of cases of torture, deaths in custody, extrajudicial executions and "disappearances" reported every year in Jammu and Kashmir ("Indo-Pakistan Summit: Plea to put human rights in Jammu and Kashmir firmly on the agenda") [#2537],  [ID 7208]

Document(s): 00246ind.htm
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18.06.2001 - Source: Amnesty International

Jammu and Kashmir: Arbitrary arrest and detention of those peacefully voicing dissent continuing: political activists detained and beaten last week following public protests over killing of 6 women ("Use of the Public Security Act in Jammu and Kashmir") [#2169],  [ID 7211]

Document(s): 0651ind.htm
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