Political News

Indian government slammed for barring Amnesty Director to visit Srinagar

March 25, 2011 | By Sikh Siyasat Bureau

Amritsar, PUNJAB (March 25, 2011): The Dal Khalsa slammed the Indian government for barring Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International’s South Asia Director to visit Srinagar for the release of the report on human rights abuses in the valley.

Blaming the Indian government for biased approach, party president Harchranjit Singh Dhami said while officials of Indian origin attached with Amnesty International were allowed to visit the valley, Sam being an American-Iranian was denied visa.

Lambasting the state forces for unleashing the reign of terror on the people of Kashmir, he said the report of the Amnesty was an eye opener for the international community and world powers.

“It is pity that UN, USA, UK and other western countries were keeping their eyes shut deliberately ignoring the sufferings of Kashmiri people and their cry for freedom”.

Analyzing the Amnesty report we have reached at the conclusion that “Kashmir is under siege. Every Kashmiri, conscious of his rights and even willing to die, lives in a climate of fear. Civil administration is virtually non-existent and whatever is there is subservient to the Indian armed forces. The armed forces, who with the assistance of a plethora of draconian laws like Public Safety Act, Armed Forces Special Powers Act, maim and kill with complete impunity. The elected government is merely a mask to shield and provide free run to the armed forces”.

In its renewed appeal to GOI to repeal controversial Public Safety Act (PSA), the leader of the Sikh group urged the Union Home Minister to instruct the state government to release all detainees booked under PSA.

Painting the human rights situation in the valley as grim and serious that warrants immediate end to the on-going state repression, he said the state was misusing the provisions of the law to keep the dissenters under detention for long.

He hailed the Amnesty report for declaring Shabir Ahmad Shah and Masarat Alam as prisoners of conscience and condemned the state for detaining them because of their beliefs.

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Related Topics: Amnesty International, Human Rights, Indian State, Kashmir Issue

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