The United Nations on Wednesday sought release of Kashmiri human rights activist Khurram Parvez and asked for amendment in Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and a probe into the Hyderpora civilian killings.
바카라We are deeply concerned at the arrest of Kashmiri human rights defender Khurram Parvez바카라 under Indian counter-terrorism legislation, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA),바카라 UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Rupert Colville said in a statement issued on Monday.
The UN has. raised concern over civilians killed by security forces in the course of anti-militancy operations including in Hyderpora recently, and disposal of their bodies in secret.
Parvez, who has now been in custody for more than a week, is accused of terrorism-related offences. 바카라We are unaware of the factual basis of the charges. He is known as a tireless advocate for families of the disappeared and has been targeted before for his human rights work. In 2016, he was detained under another controversial law, the Public Safety Act, for two and a half months after being prevented from travelling to the Human Rights Council in Geneva. He was released after the Jammu and Kashmir High Court declared his detention illegal,바카라 Colville said.
The UAPA, Colville said, empowers the authorities to designate individuals and organizations as terrorists based on imprecise criteria, contains a vague and overly broad definition of 바카라terrorist act바카라, allows people to be held in lengthy pre-trial detention and makes securing bail very difficult. 바카라It raises serious concerns relating to the right of presumption of innocence along with other due process and fair trial rights. The Act is also increasingly being used to stifle the work of human rights defenders, journalists and other critics in Jammu and Kashmir and other parts of India,바카라 the UN statement added.
바카라In view of this context of previous reprisal for legitimate conduct, we call on the Indian authorities to fully safeguard his right to freedom of expression, association and personal liberty and to take the precautionary step of releasing him,바카라 he said.
바카라We reiterate our calls for the UAPA to be amended to bring it into line with international human rights law and standards, and urge the authorities, pending the law바카라s amendment, to refrain from using this or other laws unduly restricting freedom of expression in cases involving civil society, media, and human rights defenders.바카라
Against this backdrop, the UN Human Rights Office, said it is increasingly alarmed by the rise in killings of civilians, including members of religious minorities, by armed groups in Kashmir this year. 바카라At the same time, civilians have been killed by security forces in the course of counter-terrorism operations, and their bodies on occasion disposed in secret. One of these incidents happened on 15 November when four people were killed in a reported gunfight in Srinagar바카라s Hyderpora area, including two civilians.바카라
바카라There should be prompt, thorough, transparent, independent and effective investigations into all killings of civilians, and families should be allowed to mourn their loved ones and seek justice.바카라
바카라We acknowledge the need to prevent violence, but we are concerned at signs of a wider crackdown on civil society actors in Jammu and Kashmir. The use of sweeping counter-terrorism measures risks leading to further human rights violations and deepening discontent.바카라
바카라We call on the security forces and armed groups to exercise restraint, and to ensure that the rise in tensions in Jammu and Kashmir in recent weeks does not lead to further violence against the civilian population.바카라Â
