Geelani wants HRW to raise heat on India

Srinagar: Hurriyat Conference (G) chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani Tuesday said the Human Rights Watch’s (HRW) letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was timely and encouraging but the international rights body must apply effective pressure on India for an “end to human rights violations in Kashmir.“Even though  protest on draconian laws like AFSPA and PSA is encouraging and timely, there will be no change in ground situation or relief for common Kashmiris until the HRW applies effective pressure on India,” Geelani said in a statement issued here to Press Bureau of India.“We have seen New Delhi’s arrogant response to Amnesty International’s report which describes the Public Safety Act as a lawless law and preventive detention as the worst kind of human rights violation. Intoxicated under the influence of its power and military might, India ignored the report and refused to release any political prisoners. In fact, three months after the report was released, people continue to be sent to jails under this draconian law,” Geelani said in a statement to Press Bureau of India.“Therefore, I doubt whether India is going to take any notice of a mere protest,” he said.Geelani said AFSPA was a license to “Indian soldiers for killing innocent Kashmiris while the Public Safety Act is a draconian law which allows the state to detain any person without charge or trial for years.”Geelani also urged HRW to send a team to Jammu and Kashmir for an “on spot assessment of the ground situation and unabated human rights violations.”HRW recently shot a letter to Singh, urging India to repeal the Armed Forces Special Power Act and the Disturbed Areas Act in Kashmir, among other things, for “ensuring accountability for human rights abuses.”Meanwhile, reiterating his call for a complete shutdown on June 11, Geelani announced that he would offer special prayers at Mazar-e-Shuhada Eidgah for the “martyrs of last three years” on the day.