Residents of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) held a protest in Islamabad on Sunday (February 5), ironically on the annual Kashmir Solidarity Day observed by the Pakistan government, against alleged human right violations in the region by the country's authorities. They have been conducting anti-Pakistan protests for weeks now in PoK.
Also read: PoK remains a thorn in our flesh even today: IAF chief Arup Raha
The protestors claimed that the Pakistani government is committing atrocities against innocent citizens through its intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and administration. The residents in the area have been rankled over unemployment and disappearances.
The residents were forced to take their protest up to Islamabad, accused of denying basic human rights to the residents of the region. They also alleged that no civil liberty and fundamental rights exist in PoK as the ISI is in-charge of the administration.
PoK locals stage a protest in Islamabad; Claim that Pak govt, via ISI and administration, is committing atrocities on innocent citizens. pic.twitter.com/iRXTruty79
— ANI (@ANI_news) February 5, 2017
PoK locals stage a protest against Pakistan’s atrocities in Islamabad. pic.twitter.com/oDhFubFNhE
— ANI (@ANI_news) February 5, 2017
Dissenters are persecuted and tortured by the authorities, the protestors said. Journalists, bloggers and civil right activists are reportedly muzzled for speaking up against the atrocities.
In August 2016, top activist Baba Jan was detained with many other youths who demanded political rights and withdrawal of the Pakistani Army from the Gilgit-Baltistan region of PoK. In October 2016, the residents of Kotli protested against the ISI and the Pakistan Army for extra-judicial killings, fake encounters and brutalities committed against pro-Azadi leaders.
Pakistan, which pulled up India for its use of force during protests in mid-2016, has been doing the same in the area occupied by it. There have been an increase in protests in the region since the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor was announced as residents of the people believe that it would not benefit them at all.
On the eve of the Kashmir Day on Saturday (Feb 4), Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan is one of the oldest conflicts in the United Nation Security Council. He said that progress in the region can not be a reality until the dispute is resolved.
