Islamabad, July 29 (IANS) As unrest in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) continues to escalate, a human rights documentation and monitoring body has called on the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to intervene following reports of lethal firing by Pakistani forces on peaceful protestors in the occupied territory that left over 40 civilians dead and dozens injured.
In its urgent appeal to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk, the PoK-based group Jammu Kashmir Human Rights Observatory (JKHRO) stated that the killings occurred after the peaceful Long March organised by Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) resumed from Rawalakot towards Muzaffarabad on July 27.
Citing JAAC, it said that large numbers of civilians participated in the march, estimating that the wider mobilisation may have involved more than 100,000 people.
“The combination of a mass civilian gathering, reported security-force deployment, alleged indiscriminate firing, restricted communications, limited media access and obstructed emergency coordination creates an immediate risk of further casualties. This is no longer a situation that can be addressed through statements of concern alone,” the JKHRO stated.
The group called on the UN human rights chief to intervene immediately by publicly calling for an end to the firing by Pakistani forces, seeking assurances that live ammunition would not be used against peaceful protesters, and ensuring emergency medical and humanitarian access in PoK.
It also appealed for the urgent deployment of relevant Special Rapporteurs or an OHCHR assessment mission, while urging the facilitation of credible negotiations to prevent further loss of life in the occupied territory.
Highlighting the humanitarian abuses by Pakistani authorities in PoK, the JKHRO said, “The international community has advance warning. The gathering is large. Security forces are reportedly deployed. Communications remain restricted. Fatal force has allegedly already been used. Initial accounts refer to more than 80 wounded, while other witnesses allege more; there is not yet a reliable final injury figure.”
“The essential question is no longer whether there is a risk of escalation. The essential question is whether the United Nations system will act quickly enough to help prevent the next death,” it added.
Earlier on July 17, the OHCHR raised serious concerns about infringements on the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association in PoK amid escalating unrest in the occupied territory that has left dozens of people dead and injured.
In a statement issued, Spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Jeremy Laurence, said that “the criminalisation of a civil society organisation and imposition of strict limitations on gatherings raise serious concerns about infringements on the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association. Detained JAAC leaders must have access to legal representation and their families. Their rights to due process and fair trial must be fully guaranteed.”
–IANS
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