The day has been commemorated annually on 13 July to mark the incident of 13 July 1931, when 22 Kashmiris were shot dead in their attempts to complete the call for prayer outside the Srinagar jail, by soldiers of Dogra ruler Maharaja Hari Singh.
The people rose against Dogra rule and protested against the prosecution of sympathizer of Kashmir struggle, Abdul Qadeer Khan Ghazi. It was the beginning of Kashmir freedom struggle which has different phases including political struggle as well as civilian protests Kashmiris living on both sides of the Line of Control as well as rest of the world observe the Kashmir Martyrs Day with a pledge to continue their struggle for achievement of their birthright to self-determination and freedom of Kashmir from the Indian yoke. After abrogation of the article 370 on 27 Dec 2019, BJP dropped Kashmir Martyrs’ Day from its list of public holidays for 2020, while ironically 26 October was added to be observed as ‘Accession Day’ which was in fact the Day of Occupation of the J&K.
saffron Hindus in India are asking the Modi government to declare September 23 as a gazette holiday on birth anniversary of Maharaja Hari Singh – the killer of Kashmiri Muslims.
The deplorable trend is aimed at derogating and dismissing the long struggle of the Kashmiris for freedom that has withstood decades of suppression and has grown stronger consistently. Though the IOJK has been brutalised for years, but since the lockdown in August last year, Indian security forces have become even more inhumane / brutal for the 8 million caged Kashmiris. Amid the increased militarization (900,000 Indian occupation forces), dehumanization of Kashmiris after annexation of IOJK, the frustration, anger and resentment masses in IOJK is rising. Since the Indian National Congress has been replaced by the saffronised BJP government, the latter’s religious-nationalism has tried make an internationally dangerous conflict a national political issue and change the complexion of conflict by drastic and illegal actions on 5 August 2019 that preclude peaceful and just resolution.
▪Under BJP’s fascist regime, a comprehensive enslavement plan, encapsulating sweeping administrative changes aimed at altering the demographic structure of IOJK and stripping its people of their rights was devised and enforced brutally.
▪BJP government has attempted to change the demography of IOJK through ‘constitutional terrorism’ followed by flooding of the Muslim majority region with Hindus to palestinise Kashmir.
▪Under the new Domicile law, India has issued domicile certificates to hundreds of thousands of outsiders since May 11. It would facilitate non-Kashmiris to settle in the state to rob it of its Muslim identity.
▪The transgressions by India in IOJ&K constitute blatant violation of the UNSC resolutions on Kashmir, bilateral agreements between India and Pakistan, 4th Geneva Convention.
▪India’s atrocities in IOJK and the mainland India reflect systematic cleansing of Muslims to achieve a long cherished objective of RSS to establish a ‘Brahminical State’ purported by Sadhvi Saraswati that India would be ‘Hindu Rashtra’ by 2023.
KASHMIR FACT FILE 2022
- 98 EXTRA-JUDICIAL KILLINGS (JUNE 2022)
| HR VIOLATIONS JAN 2021 TO DEC 2021 | |
| KASHMIRI MARTYRED | 210 |
| WOMEN WIDOWED | 17 |
| CHILDREN ORPHANED | 44 |
| PEOPLE INJURED | 487 |
| PEOPLE ARRESTED | 2,716 |
| STRUCTURES DAMAGED | 67 |
| HR VIOLATIONS SINCE AUG 5, 2019 TO DEC 2021 | |
| KASHMIRI MARTYRED | 515 |
| WOMEN WIDOWED | 33 |
| CHILDREN ORPHANED | 82 |
| PEOPLE INJURED | 2,172 |
| PEOPLE ARRESTED | 17,139 |
| STRUCTURES DAMAGED | 1,058 |
| INDIAN CRIMES AGAINST BESIEGED KASHMIRIS SINCE 1989 | |
| KILLINGS | 96,046 |
| WIDOWS | 22,940 |
| RAPES/MOLESTATION | 11,246 |
| ORPHANS | 107,855 |
| HOUSES & INFRASTRUCTURE DESTROYED | 110,451 |
▪New Delhi’s heavy handedness and use of torture / violence to quell the freedom movement of the Kashmiris have badly failed.
▪Moreover, the unprecedented internationalization of Kashmir and loss of face has further frustrated India.
This has induced many reckless actions including the frequent unprovoked violations of the LoC to divert public attention.
The despicable move to exclude the historic day of Kashmiris martyrs from the gazette by mad Modi speaks of his intrinsic fear of / disdain for the freedom fighters. But the Kashmiri martyrs are immortal and they are writing a new history of human resilience with their blood that cannot be erased by such moves. It is high time that the world realizes why over 100,000 Kashmiris martyrs sacrificed their lives at the hands of occupation forces. The Kashmiris’ spirits cannot be dampened through repressive tactics including arbitrary detentions, torture, extra-judicial killings by Indian brute forces. Kashmiris are determined and destined to achieve freedom from the oppressor – India; which is their undeniable destiny.
Pakistan, as ever, is steadfastly extending moral, political and diplomatic support to their cause. 13 July shall be commemorated as Kashmir Martyrs Day in the length and breadth of Pakistan.
Kashmir – Extra Judicial Killing
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
- Right of Life: Article 3 of the UDHR: “Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person”.
- Prohibition of Arbitrary Arrest: Article 9 of the UDHR: “No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile”.
- Fair Public Hearing: Article 10 of the UDHR: “Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.”
- Innocent until Proven Guilty: Article 11 of the UDHR:
“1. Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
2. No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed.”
- International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)
- Right of life: Article 6 (1) of the ICCPR – Ratified by India: “Every human being has the inherent right to life. This right shall be protected by law. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his life.”
- Geneva Conventions, 1949
- Non-International Armed Conflict: Common Article 3 to the four Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949: Strictly forbids the killing of anyone “taking no active part in hostilities, including members of armed forces who have laid down their arms and those placed hors de combat by sickness, wounds, detention or any other cause”.
- Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions (adopted by the United Nations Economic and Social Council in resolution 1989/65 of 24 May 1989)
- Principle 1: Governments shall prohibit by law all extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions and shall ensure that any such executions are recognized as offences under their criminal laws, and are punishable by appropriate penalties which take into account the seriousness of such offences.
Exceptional circumstances including a state of war or threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency may not be invoked as a justification of such executions. Such executions shall not be carried out under any circumstances including, but not limited to, situations of internal armed conflict, excessive or illegal use of force by a public official or other person acting in an official capacity or by a person acting at the instigation, or with the consent or acquiescence of such person, and situations in which deaths occur in custody. This prohibition shall prevail over decrees issued by governmental authority.
- In order to prevent extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions, Governments shall ensure strict control, including a clear chain of command over all officials responsible for apprehension, arrest, detention, custody and imprisonment, as well as those officials authorized by law to use force and firearms. “Exceptional circumstances including a state of war or threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency may not be invoked as a justification of such executions. Such executions shall not be carried under any circumstances including, but not limited to, situations of internal armed conflict, excessive or illegal use of force by a public official or other person acting in an official capacity …”
- Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court– India is not a signatory – customary prohibition
Article 7: For the purpose of this Statute, “crime against humanity” means any of the following acts when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack” including Murder, Imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty in violation of fundamental rules of international law, torture, persecution (intentional and severe deprivation of fundamental rights contrary to international law), enforced disappearance of persons, apartheid, intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health.
- General Assembly Resolutions
- Resolution 2993 (XXIII) of 26 November 1968: the Assembly invited Governments to ensure that in countries where the death penalty could be imposed, persons accused of capital crimes were given the benefit of the most careful legal procedures and the greatest possible safeguards.
- Sixth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders condemned “the practice of killing and executing political opponents or suspected offenders carried out by armed forces, law enforcement or other governmental agencies or by paramilitary or political groups” acting with the support, tacit or otherwise, of official forces or agencies.
- Special Rapporteur – Commission on Human Rights (resolution 1997/61): Mandate – to continue to examine situations of extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions.
