Islamabad, November 02 (KMS): The All Parties Hurriyat Conference Azad Jammu and Kashmir (APHC-AJK) chapter has expressed deep concern and anguish over the prolonged and inhuman detention of Kashmiri Hurriyat leaders and activists languishing in Indian jails for decades, terming their solitary confinement and ill-treatment a grave violation of human and international laws.
According to Kashmir Media Service, APHC-AJK Convener Ghulam Muhammad Safi, in a statement issued in Islamabad, declared that “the only ‘crime’ of these leaders is their unwavering demand for their people’s inalienable and internationally recognized right to self-determination — a right explicitly guaranteed by the United Nations itself.”
He reminded the world that it was India that took the Kashmir dispute to the United Nations 77 years ago and pledged before the international community that the people of Jammu and Kashmir would be given the opportunity to decide their political future through a free and impartial plebiscite. Safi recalled that India’s first Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, had publicly declared in Srinagar that India’s military presence was temporary and would finish once peace was restored, after which Kashmiris would be allowed to determine their destiny through a plebiscite.
The APHC-AJK Convener deplored that India not only reneged on its international commitments but has also kept those Kashmiri leaders, who remind it of those broken promises, behind bars on fabricated charges. He declared most of the detained leaders are suffering from serious ailments yet are being denied medical treatment, in blatant violation of the UN Human Rights Charter and the Nelson Mandela Rules.
The APHC-AJK urged the United Nations, European Union, Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and all international human rights organizations to immediately:
Press India to release all detained Hurriyat leaders and activists.
End political repression and exploitation in occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
Ensure the implementation of UN resolutions granting Kashmiris their right to self-determination.
“Demanding one’s right is not a crime — it is a basic entitlement guaranteed by the UN Charter and international human rights conventions,” Ghulam Muhammad Safi stressed.
He warned that the continued silence of the United Nations and major powers is emboldening India to intensify its repression in occupied Jammu and Kashmir, posing a grave threat to peace and stability in South Asia and beyond. “The Kashmir issue is not a mere territorial dispute,” he declared, “it is a question of self-determination, justice, human dignity, and global peace. How long will the world remain a silent spectator?”
Concluding the statement, the APHC-AJK strongly appealed to the international community to take urgent steps for the release of the imprisoned Kashmiri leaders and activists and play its role in resolving the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN resolutions and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people.
“Seeking one’s right is no crime — it is a right granted by the United Nations.”
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