ISLAMABAD – Pakistan has strongly condemned the arrest of noted humanrights activist Khurram Parvez by Indian armed forces in the IndianIllegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
Islamabad urged the international community to hold India accountable forsystematic clampdown against human rights organizations and activists forundertaking their duty.
A statement issued by Foreign Office spokesperson Asim Iftikhar statedarbitrary arrests of human rights activists on orchestrated charges byIndian occupation forces are clear evidence of India’s state-terrorism andtrampling of fundamental human rights in occupied Kashmir.
It added that the reprehensible unwarranted searches by the Indian NationalInvestigation Agency at the offices and residences of Kashmiri activistshave also been condemned by international human rights organisations.
“The world is aware that it has become increasingly difficult for humanrights organizations and activists to continue their work in India andoccupied Kashmir due to incessant witch hunt by the Hindutva driven RSS-BJPcombine over unfounded and motivated allegations,” it said, adding that theAmnesty International had to shut all its operations in India in September2020 when its bank accounts were frozen by India in an act of reprisalbecause of their independent reporting on the IIOJK.
MOFA spokesperson mentioned that the UN human rights machinery, independentNGOs, and global media have regularly reported on and expressed concernsover increasing intimidation, harassment, and reprisal attacks by Indianoccupation forces against Kashmiri human rights defenders, journalists, andcivil society actors since 5th August 2019.
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Parvez’s arrest by the Indian authorities has evoked sharp criticism whilea social media campaign for his release has also been launched.
On Tuesday, activist organizations including the United Nations havecriticized the arrest of the acclaimed human rights activists. The UNSpecial Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders Mary Lawlor termed New Delhi’smove as ‘disturbing’. “He’s not a terrorist, he’s a human rights defender,”she wrote in a tweet.
India’s top investigation agency has arrested prominent Kashmiri humanrights defender Khurram Parvez under a draconian terror law following aday-long raid at his office and residence in Indian-administered Kashmir.
