Following the visit of UN special Rapporteur Margaret Sekaggya last year, UN Rapporteur, Christof Heyns arrived in Kashmir on a one and a half day visit.
His mandate is to form a report on extra judicial, summary or arbitrary killings that are in violation of international human rights law including excessive use of force. The report on the issues of impunity, accountability, compensation of killings will be presented to the United Nations General Assembly.
After briefing the press about his mandate he held meetings with different delegations including Bar council, academicians, various civil society groups including APDP and CCS, some renowned Journalists, representatives of minority Pandits and various victims of the turmoil including kin of the victims of major fake encounters- Pathribal, Ganderbal, Machil, Kupwara and Chattisinghpora Massacre besides the families people killed during 2010 summer unrest. He was also updated on the killing of Jalil Andrabi a human rights defender and lawyer, abducted and killed in 1996.
President APDP, Parveena Ahanger urged the Rapporteur to persuade the Government of India to make the whereabouts of missing people in Kashmir, public. And she submitted a report including copies of the cases of Enforced Disappearances submitted by APDP to the UN WGEID in 2008. The CCS (Coalition of Civil societies) has also submitted a detailed report related on fake encounter killings, custodial killings, enforced disappearances and killings of peaceful protesters by police and troops.
Heyns is on a two-week visit to India in which he will visit seven cities. He said his purpose to visit a country is to propose specific and constructive reforms to reduce killings and to promote transparency and accountability.
The Boy from SOUTH
Mystery surrounding death of 27 years old Mohammad Abbas Dar of Chursoo village who was killed in a car explosion near Police Station Bijbehara has deepened as Police found nothing “adverse” against the slain boy.
According to police the driver of the vehicle was a local student and had no past record of any militancy related links. Under the circumstances he cannot be classified as militant as he has no background of militancy. The police also said that they cannot rule out the possibility of his being a fresh recruit.
Initial investigations revealed that the car which blew into pieces near Police Station Bijbehara, killing the driver and injuring 14 others, does not belong to Mohammad Abbas, “it could be a stolen car”. Police are waiting for expert reports to confirm the use of material for the explosion. A relative of Abbas told reporters that he left for the hospital where a relative was admitted. Abbas had been attending to the patient for several days before the blast.
According to police the victim was an under-graduate student and belonged to a middle class family with five siblings, one sister and four brothers. Most of the people in his family are government employees.
Sub-district police officer Bijbehara stated that Mohammad Abbas might have been intending to carry out a suicide attack or park the vehicle to target the army convoy which passed only a few minutes after the explosion.
Sons and NEPHEWS
The kin of politicians occasionally make it to the newspapers usually for the wrong reasons. Last week a minister’s son and another ones nephew made news when police arrested them in separate cases. Nephew of the Minister for State Roads and Buildings, Javed Ahmad Dar was arrested in a case of alleged eve teasing in Sopore area of Baramulla district. While in Ladakh region Stalzin, son of Tourism Minister along with his friend was arrested for allegedly thrashing a shopkeeper in Leh. Various newspapers reported the duo were drunk.
Two girls had lodged a complaint against Gowhar Habib, nephew of Javaid Ahmad Dar that he had ‘misbehaved’ with them and threatened them of dire consequences. But what actually had came as a shocker to two girls, who are sisters, was when Gowhar had allegedly told them he “had killed their brother Mohammad Yasin Mir”, whose body was recovered from an under construction sewage tank after 20 days. People in Ladoora village held a protest against Gowhar. Police arrested Gowhar and registered an FIR under section 294 of RPC against him. He was later released on bail after spending a night in custody.
In Leh, Stalzin had parked his vehicle in front of a shop as he had come for shopping. The shop owner had asked the minister’s son to remove the vehicle as it was blocking entry to his outlet. The shopkeeper, in his written complaint has alleged Stalzin and his friend thrashed him, the police said, adding that the accused were arrested based on the complaint. And the duo was kept in custody for three consecutive days.
The Boy from NORTH
Shops and other business establishments in Sopore town of Baramulla district remained closed over the custodial death of a youth detained under controversial Public Safety Act (PSA) in January this year.
According to reports Sajad Ahamd Dar, son of Ghulam Nabi Dar, resident of Sangrampora Sopore, who was a contractual employee with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), was shifted to SKIMS by Sub-jail authorities Kupwara after he complained of pain in head. The youth was initially treated at Kupwara district hospital from where he was shifted to SKIMS Srinagar as his conditioned deteriorated. He died two hours after his arrival at SKIMS and his postmortem was conducted at Police Control Room Srinagar.
The family of the youth alleged that he was denied timely treatment by jail authorities at Kupwara jail. They alleged that Sajad Ahamd Dar died because of the negligence of the police as he had complained of headache two weeks ago. But they did not allow him to take treatment on time, leading to his untimely death.
The family members of Sajad told reporters that he used to report about the health problems especially the severe pain in his head. He developed the ailment because of torture, they said.
The police records maintain that Sajad a contractual employee of the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) was arrested by Sopore police on December 22, 2011 for providing SIM cards allegedly on fake names to militants in Sopore town.
Wait For PATHRIBAL
Last week the Supreme Court of India was informed by the union government that it needed four months to decide on sanction to produce the army officials charged with killing seven people in fake encounter at Pathribal 12 years ago, saying the matter involved the sensitive issue of human rights.
“It is the joint stand of Home and the Defence Ministries that prior sanction is needed to institute legal proceedings against Army officers as per AFSPA,” an affidavit filed by the Ministry of Defence before a bench of Justices B S Chauhan and Swatanter Kumar said.
The apex court, which is examining the immunity to Army personnel for encounter killings under Section 6 of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), was told by CBI that the protection granted in the law cannot be allowed to be “misused” in discharge of official duty.
The agency had earlier said it was “cold-blooded murders” and the accused officials deserve to be meted out “exemplary punishment” and should not be protected by AFSPA.
“It was a fake encounter with a motive…it can’t be termed as discharge of duty by the army and these army officials should not be protected by AFSPA,” senior advocate Ashok Bhan, appearing for CBI, had said.
Another Additional Solicitor General Harin Rawal, appearing for CBI, had also insisted that they were “fake encounters.” Rawal had earlier argued though the right to immunity under 197 CrPC was available to the officers but in the present case it has not been sought by the accused but by senior Defence Ministry officers, which was contrary to the law.
At an earlier hearing, irked by the Centre’s diverse views, the bench had said “you cannot say that an Army man can enter any house and commit a rape and say he enjoys immunity as it has been done in discharge of official duties.”
The CBI had said no prior sanction was required for prosecuting the Army officials and the need to ensure “public confidence in the rule of law and dispensation of justice” warranted their prosecution.
The apex court had asked the Centre to convey its stand as to whether five officials, including a Major General, can be tried under the Army Act.
Mission MIRWAIZ
Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Chairman Hurriyat Confrence (M) was successful in getting the attention of Organization for Islamic Countries (OIC) towards Kashmir. OIC has decided to appoint a special advisor for Kashmir who will highlight the political importance of the Kashmir issue and for better coordination with the Kashmiri separatists. And this is for the first time that the Independent Human Rights Commission of OIC will publish a detailed report on the human rights and political scenario in Jammu and Kashmir.
The decision was made public during a meeting between OIC representative on Kashmir, Abdul Aleem, and moderate All Parties Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq in Saudi Arabia’s capital Jeddah. Aleem has favored peaceful resolution of Kashmir issue as per wishes and aspirations of people of Jammu and Kashmir.
OIC Secretary General, Prof Ekmeldin Eshanoglu while agreeing to the suggestion of Mirwaiz has said, “The OIC needs to be more proactive on Jammu and Kashmir issue as per the spokesperson of Hurriyat (M) group.” There are representatives of four countries- Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Niger- in the OIC contact group on Kashmir. “We suggest that OIC should expand the Kashmir contact group and have representatives from Africa, Asia and Middle East in It.” But India has always taken exception to OIC’s intervention in the past in the Kashmir problem saying “it has no locus standi on the issue”.
The OIC Secretary General, according to the spokesman, said: “Political, diplomatic, developmental and human rights aspect of the conflict in Kashmir need to be addressed seriously. The region is expecting new developments in the times to come in which Kashmir resolution becomes more crucial. It is vital for the OIC to strengthen the bonds of goodwill between India, Pakistan and the people of Jammu and Kashmir and put its weight behind a result oriented peace process. Any ultimate result has to be in accordance with the genuine aspirations of Kashmiris.”
OIC is a group of 57 Muslim countries and its Secretary General has been invited by Mirwaiz to visit Kashmir.
