India using rape of women as a weapon of war in IIOJK: APHC leaders

In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, the All Parties Hurriyat Conference leaders have deplored that India is using rape of Kashmiri women as a weapon of war to humiliate the Kashmiris and suppress their struggle for securing freedom from its illegal occupation.

The APHC leaders strongly denounced the Kunanposhpora mass rape of 1991 and termed it the most tragic incident of the history of Jammu and Kashmir. They demanded impartial investigations into all such incidents to punish the involved Indian troops.

Around a hundred women were gang-raped by the troops during a cordon and search operation in Kunanposhpora area of Kupwara district on the night of February 23, 1991.

The APHC Vice Chairman, Ghulam Ahmad Gulzar, in a statement issued in Srinagar said that Kunanposhpora mass rape by the Indian troops is a shameful act which must be condemned by one and all human beings of the world. He said the culprits of such incidents deserve the capital punishment. He said the people of IIOJK have lost faith in the Indian judiciary and they do not expect justice in such gory incidents.

Ghulam Ahmad Gulzar expressed solidarity with all the victims of the mass rape and reaffirmed the Kashmiris’ resolve to take the ongoing resistance movement to its logical conclusion. He urged the United Nations Human Rights Council and International Criminal Court to take serious action against India over the heinous war crimes and crimes against humanity like Kunanposhpora mass rape perpetrated by its troops in IIOJK and bring the culprits to book at the earliest.

Illegally detained senior APHC leader, Nayeem Ahmed Khan, in a message from New Delhi’s infamous Tihar Jail demanded international probe into mass rape incidents committed by Indian troops in IIOJK. He stated that the Kashmiri women have been the worst victims of the Indian belligerence. He said that the horrific incident of Kunanposhpora mass rape was a blot on the face of Indian democracy and the state that has been using rape as a weapon of war against the Kashmiris. He lamented that it was disgusting to see that the Indian rulers and their henchmen in the territory have shamelessly tired to cover up and conceal the facts to save the culprits of this beastly act.

Nayeem Khan said, use of force, harassment and humiliation, violence and sexual abuse against the Kashmiri women were amongst the worst war tactics the Indian Army has been applying to suppress the Kashmiris’ legitimate struggle for right to self-determination. He urged the world human rights organizations to play their role, the incarcerated APHC leader said it was high time that culprits involved in this gruesome act should be held accountable.

APHC leader, Molvi Bashir Ahmad Irfani, in a statement in Srinagar deplored that the victims of Kunanposhpora tragedy were not provided justice even after the passage of more than three decades. He said India has institutionalized the rape of women in IIOJK to intimidate the Kashmiris into submission.

Molvi Bashir Irfani paid rich tributes to the brave people of Kashmir for their unprecedented sacrifices in the ongoing freedom struggle. He appealed to the international community to fulfill its obligations regarding the resolution of the Kashmir dispute to save the Kashmiris from the Indian oppression.

APHC leader, Mohammad Yousuf Naqash, in his statement in Srinagar said that the Kunanposhpora mass rape was a well-planned conspiracy hatched by the Indian authorities to keep the Kashmiri women away from the freedom movement. He described the Kunanposhpora mass rape as an unforgettable tragedy, which depicted the ruthlessness of the Indian troops against the Kashmiri women. He said, through such inhuman acts India will not succeed to stop the Kashmiris from pursuing their freedom struggle.

APHC leader, Zamruda Habib, in a statement in Srinagar expressed deep sorrow and pain over the gory incident and demanded reopening of the Kunanposhpora mass rape case so that the perpetrators of the heinous crime are punished. She urged the United Nations to initiate investigation into the gruesome incident through its War Crimes Tribunal to provide justice to the victims.

APHC leader, Yasmeen Raja, in her statement said that the Kunanposhpora mass rape was a glaring example of Indian state terrorism and fascism in occupied Kashmir. She demanded impartial international investigations into the Kunanposhpora mass rape and other such incidents to punish the involved Indian troops.

APHC leaders, Khadim Hussain and Syed Sibte Shabbir Qammi, in a joint statement issued in Srinagar termed the tragic incident of Kunanposhpora mass rape as a disgraceful blot on the face of the so-called Indian democracy. They said India, instead of bringing to book those involved in heinous crimes against Kashmiris, has been giving them promotions and medals. They said despite using all its brutal actions, India, has failed to suppress the Kashmiris’ freedom movement. They urged the international community to renounce criminal silence and hold India accountable for war crimes in IIOJK.

APHC leader, Abdul Samad Inqilabi, in a statement in Srinagar said that the women of occupied Kashmir faced horrors of rape, sexual assault and molestation at the hands of Indian forces’ personnel. He said the criminal silence maintained by the United Nations on the matter has emboldened the Indian troops to commit the crime again and again.

APHC-AJK leader, Shameem Shawl, in a statement in Islamabad expressed solidarity with the victims of Kunanposhpora mass rape and said every year February 23 reminds the Kashmiris a ghastly act committed by Indian troops in IIOJK. “This day will always remain itched in our collective memory as blackest day of subjugation and illegal occupation when Indian forces’ personnel dishonored the chastity of scores of our mothers, sisters and daughters in Kunanposhpora,” she said.