Kashmir - a message from Sound Vision to reflect upon

In the last few days, India bombed Pakistan, and now Pakistan has struck back. Both countries have nuclear weapons.

While the media is focusing on the two countries, what is being ignored or underreported is the core of the issue: Kashmir, Kashmiris, their rights, and their aspirations for freedom and peace.

The latest conflict began after a Kashmiri freedom fighter attacked a convoy of Indian soldiers, killing at least 40. This came on the heels of 2018, when Kashmiris faced the worst year in a decade of human rights abuses by the Indian army, according to Human Rights Watch, which has called for international investigation. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, even asserted that in Kashmir Indians have “… almost total impunity for enforced disappearances….”

The horrific case of Asifa Bano, an eight-year-old girl gang-raped and strangled to death in a Hindu temple by eight men in Indian-occupied Kashmir, including four police officers is just one example of what Kashmiris face.These criminals were supported by two ministers from the ruling Indian Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Now there is war hysteria in India against Kashmiris as well as against Pakistan. Kashmiris are being hunted throughout India. Thousands of Kashmiris are beaten on the streets or detained in India. Kashmir itself has been locked down and India has suspended internet service to the Kashmiris.  

A former chief of the Indian Navy, Admiral Laxminarayan Ramdas, in his letter to Indian President Ram Nath Kovind asserts that there is “…unprecedented outbreak of harassment, mob violence, attacks, insults and abuse levelled at many Kashmiris across the country.”

A cycle of revenge, counter-revenge, attacks and counter-attacks have begun between the two nuclear powers, bringing them closer to war.

Talking Points
It is critical to respond to media reports and social media conversation which are essentially ignoring Kashmir and Kashmiris’ struggle for freedom and justice.

  • The UN must grant Kashmiris what the UN promised, and Indians and Pakistanis agreed to: A right to self-determination. Allow a vote to decide if they want to remain in India, join Pakistan, or become an independent nation
  • India should allow an international investigation of human rights violations in Kashmir as requested by Human Rights Watch
  • Here are some statistics from the last 20 years of India’s oppression in Kashmir:
    • Kashmiris Killed by the Indian army: 94,479
    • Custodial killings by Indian army: 7,048
    • Disappearances of Kashmiris at the hands of Indian police: 10,125
    • Gang rapes by Indians in Kashmir: 10,283
    • Kashmiris blinded by Indian firing: 188
    • Kashmiri children orphaned: 20,085
    • Kashmiri women widowed: 20,005
    • Kashmiri buildings destroyed: 106,071
  • Kashmiris must be part of all talks, not just Indians and Pakistanis
  • 70 years of Indian subjugation of Kashmiris has proven that no amount of force can quell their freedom movement
  • Kashmir, according to the Indian scholar Arundhati Roy, was never a part of India
  • The world must differentiate between terrorism and legitimate freedom movements by oppressed peoples
  • The rise of Hindu fascism called Hindutva is fueling the fire. As a February 2019 report by Human Rights Watch noted, “In 2018, the government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) harassed and at times prosecuted activists, lawyers, human rights defenders, and journalists for criticizing authorities.
  • Indian law provides soldiers effective immunity from prosecution for serious human rights abuses in Kashmir
  • India has stripped the citizenship of 4 million Indian Muslims from the state of Assam which has the second highest concentration of Muslims in India. It has resulted in Washington based Genocide Watch to issue a genocide watch for India.
  • Muslims, Christians, Dalits, and Sikhs, all Indian minorities, are facing serious challenges in India at the hands of the Hindutva government, which many translate consider a form of Hindu fascism that attacks minorities with armed militias                                             
India bombing Pakistan and Pakistan bombing India in retaliation will not bring peace or help Kashmiris. It will only divert attention from the real issue: Their right to self-determination enshrined in human rights law and promised by the UN.

Thinking Points
  • Why does the world ignore India’s violence in Kashmir?
  • While there are many human rights issues, can some of you adopt the Kashmir issue for education and advocacy?

  • Struggling against oppression is a duty (Quran 4:135). Speaking the truth is an obligation. This is why we must not remain silent about this.
  • Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, always prayed and strived for peace and justice. In his last sermon, he assigned us the Prophetic mission of peace and justice.


So, let’s pray for peace.
Let’s strive for justice.

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