In Indian occupied Kashmir (IoK), massive protests and silent sit-ins erupted against the unabated human rights violations by Indian armed forces with protestors seeking UN intervention for stopping the rights abuses in the region.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the protests were staged in various parts to mark the world human rights day. The call for the march to UN office at Sonwar was given by the joint resistance leadership comprising Syed Ali Gilani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Muhammad Yasin Malik. While Syed Ali Gilani continued to remain under house arrest at his Hydepora residence, Mirwaiz was confined to his Nigeen residence in Srinagar.
APHC and JKLF took out a joint protest rally in a bid to reach UN office at Sonwar. The witnesses said that hundreds of activists have started a rally from Kokerbazar area, in Srinagar. The protestors were, however, stopped at Lal Chowk by the police.
There was already a huge deployment of police in Lal Chowk and Kokerbazar to foil the march. Police have detained many APHC and JKLF leaders and activists including Sheikh Abdul Rashid, Umer Adil, Muhammad Irfan, Ali Muhammad Butt, Ali Muhammad Mir, Nazir Ahmad Hajam and Muhammad Altaf Raina.
The leaders while talking to media persons before they were detained said that today’s march to the UN office was being organised to highlight the human rights abuses in Kashmir. “Kashmiris are being subjected to worst form of atrocities for the past 70 years. Even in case of large scale wars, blinding people has never been witnessed. Today, we have hundreds of blind youth whose vision was snatched with lethal pellets,” they said.
The activists of the Mirwaiz-led Hurriyet also staged a protest at Nowhatta outside Jamia Masjid in Srinagar. Hurriyat leaders and workers including Shahidul Islam, Mushtaq Ahmad Sofi, Muhammad Shafi Khan, Advocate Yasir Rouf Dalaal, Farooq Ahmad Saudagar, Sahil Ahmad War, Abdul Rashid Tanki, Advocate Moulvi Muhammad Ashraf, Javed Ahmad Zargar and Abdul Majeed Wani led the peaceful protest march from Jamia Masjid.