Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai, Secretary General, ‘World Kashmir Awareness Forum’, made an imperative appeal for the world powers to recognize the long-standing wishes and aspirations of the Kashmiri people as they observe Martyrs Day, July 13th.
It was on July 13, 1931, that the foreign occupying Dogra troops shot dead 22 Kashmiris, in cold blood, in front of Srinagar Central Jail. Since that ominous day, Kashmiris have organized peaceful protests, seminars, and conferences throughout the world. They will observe Martyrs Day to reaffirm their resolve to continue their struggle for self-determination and pay homage to more than 100,000 innocent men, women and children killed brutally by Indian occupation forces within the past 33 years.
“In the annals of history, ordinary people make extraordinary contributions by inspiring people for well-defined objectives and high moral ground. Those unsung persons are our heroes. The people of Kashmir will never forget the selfless contribution and tireless efforts of these martyrs. Their efforts will remain forever a milestone in the history of the freedom struggle of Kashmir,” Fai reiterated.
Dr. Fai stressed that the people of Kashmir clearly have little faith in or respect for the so-called Indian democracy, and India hasn’t the slightest idea how to earn it. The New York Times wrote an Op-Ed on August 24, 2022, that ‘Modi’s India Is Where Global Democracy Dies.’ And Huffington Post wrote on August 5, 2019, ‘As Kashmir Is Erased, Indian Democracy Dies In Silence.’
The desire for self-determination is the one very big “element” India should be concerned about yet continues to pretend to the world that it does not exist. However long India refuses to acknowledge it, the decades-old movement in Kashmir will not simply die out. Even the 47-page report issued by the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights recommends to the Government of India to, “Fully respect the right of self-determination of the people of Kashmir as protected under international law,” Fai added.
Nevertheless, the people of Kashmir have sent a loud and clear message to the world community that the Kashmir issue is not about governance or economic packages, or financial incentives as proclaimed by Narendra Modi, the prime minister of India when he abrogated Article 370 & 35 A on August 5, 2019. They want the world to know that the youth of Kashmir are dying on the streets, not asking for jobs and roads, but asking the people’s right -- the right to self-determination.” As the slogan that has now become the talk of the town declares, “We want Aazadi (Freedom) and nothing else but Aazadi.”
Fai emphasized that the brutalities of the Indian government cannot and should not go unnoticed. The studied unconcern by the United Nations has given a sense of total impunity to India. It has also created the impression that the United Nations is invidiously selective about the application of the principles of human rights and democracy. It is the responsibility of the Kashmiri diaspora to be the voice of voiceless people in the corridors of power all over the world. Meanwhile, the U.S., the sole superpower in the world which must bear the responsibility for setting the moral tone through disciplined and rightful leadership, sits back and does nothing. Such behaviour poorly disguises the financial incentives that have opened India up to USD $500 billion in American investment during the coming five years.
Otherwise, how can one explain the vision of President Biden who said, ‘I have taken concrete steps to put human rights back at the centre of our foreign policy and reassert our moral leadership on the global state’ and conveniently ignored to tell Narendra Modi, the prime minister of India on June 22, 2023, that Kashmir was at the brink of genocide at warned by Dr Gregory Stanton, the Chairman of the Genocide watch.
The people of Kashmir ask the people of the world to stand up and speak up for the freedom of Kashmir. Our appeal to Biden Administration is to seriously engage India, Pakistan and legitimate representatives of Kashmir in a results-oriented peaceful resolution of this most serious conflict of the world.
"We demand immediate and complete restoration of all basic human rights, including freedom of movement, assembly and speech, and access to all forms of communication, and unconditional release of all political prisoners, including Mohammad Yasin Malik, Shabir Ahmed Shah, Masarat Aalam, Aasia Andarbi and release of an internationally known human rights defender, Khurram Parvez who was put by Time Magazine among the 100 most influential people of 2022 and about whom, Mary Lawlor, UN Special Rapporteur on Human rights Defenders said, ‘Khurram Parvez is not a terrorist. He is a human rights defender.’