It has been nearly three months since India lay siege to the people of Kashmir. As some of the communications begin to open up, we are now able to hear from several activists, academics, psychiatrists, and women’s groups, who have been traveling extensively in Jammu and Kashmir over the past few weeks, talking to people from all walks of life. They all speak uniformly about the anger, helplessness, and depression of a people who have been targeted by the mighty state of India for collective punishment. They speak particularly about the desperate state of mothers and children, as scores of young children as young as 9-year old have been detained as a ‘security risk’ to the state.

We at Hindus for Human Rights (HfHR) brought you a report from a women’s fact-finding group a few days back titled “#KashmirCivilDisobedience.”  Today, we are able to share with you reflections from several members of at least three fact-finding groups. Their videos speak for themselves.

We once again urge the Government of India to release all political prisoners in the valley, restore ALL communications and press freedoms, and remove all restrictions on travel, so we can hear directly from the people of Kashmir. The future of Indian democracy demands no less.

We also urge those from India and overseas who have had any ambivalence at all about what is happening in Kashmir to take a few minutes to hear these eye-witness reports and take a moment to think about how they would like the world to respond if they and their families were subjected to such an inhuman siege in pursuit of a state’s political goals. 

• Annie Raja, General Secretary, National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW)

“A mother used to pray that her child should come back safe. Today, a mother feels that she may be seeing her child for the last time.”

• Syeda Hameed, Social Activist, former member of the Planning Commission

“Kashmiris are quiet, depressed, alone and totally demoralized”

• Pankhuri Zaheer, JNU Women’s Studies Department

“Only the police stations were working; only BJP voices were allowed.”

• Vimalbhai, Activist, National Alliance for Peoples Movements (NAPM)

“People feel deceived. Governor Malik’s claims of normalcy is B*S* Every single area we went we saw the military and we saw the pain”

• Kavita Krishnan, Secretary, All India Progressive Women’s Association (AIPWA)  

“9-10 year olds picked up as a way of controlling their parents” “Immense militarization as if the land does not belong to them” “Hindutva leaders using the rhetoric of sexual violence on Kashmiri women”

• Shabnam Hashmi, Social Activist, Founder of Anhad

“What previous governments and separatists could not accomplish in 70 years, BJP has managed to do with the stroke of a pen: alienate the people of Kashmir as never before.” “People who believed in India are angrier” “Kashmiris are finding the strength of peaceful resistance”

• Dr. Amit Sen, Psychiatrist

“Dozens of youth subjected to violence of the army” “Breakdown of trust even with doctors who’ve been serving the community” “PTSD!” “Hard to predict the final outcomes of the unfolding trauma”

HfHR would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all the members of the various fact-finding missions, who took it upon themselves to go to Kashmir and engage with a people under siege. They bear witness to the notion that human rights knows no faith, no boundaries, and no gender. We would also like to extend our specials thanks to Shabnam Hashmi of Anhad, Delhi, for her extraordinary dedication to communal harmony and for her effort to capture on video for us the reflections of several members of the missions.

Other sources:

1.    Kavita Krishnan on Democracy Now https://www.democracynow.org/2019/8/26/kavita_krishnan_india_kashmir_special_status

2.    Vimalbhai at the National Press Club (Hindi): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kVkJUFZZEQ

3.    https://indianculturalforum.in/2019/08/14/kashmir-caged-a-fact-finding-report/

4.    Interview with Dr. Amit Sen

“Imprisoned Resistance: 5th August 2019 and its Aftermath”

Kashmiri Children & Women Most Affected Psychologically 1 Nov, 2019

Psychiatrist Dr Amit Sen who recently returned from Kashmir says there is 'acute distress' in mental health of Kashmiri citizens due to being exposed to violence for too long and women & children are the most affected. (Interview in Hindi on GoNewsIndia)

5.    Full Report of the 11-member fact-finding group in the Valley Sep 28 to Oct 4:

https://sabrangindia.in/article/new-report-lifts-veil-fabricated-normlcy-post-article-370-kashmir