The United Nations expressed on Wednesday its deep concern with the situation surrounding the India-administered Jammu and Kashmir region, particularly the restrictions on its telecommunications networks and the possible human rights abuses that could follow due to the blocking of free access to information
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th August, 2019) The United Nations expressed on Wednesday its deep concern with the situation surrounding the India-administered Jammu and Kashmir region, particularly the restrictions on its telecommunications networks and the possible human rights abuses that could follow due to the blocking of free access to information.Earlier in the day, Indian President Ram Nath Kovind announced that Article 370 of the constitution, which had guaranteed Jammu and Kashmir's special status since the late 1940s, had been revoked as of Tuesday. Following the move, a telecommunication blackout has ensued in the region, leaving citizens without access to the internet, and land-line and mobile services, media reported.
"We are deeply concerned that the latest restrictions in Indian-Administered Kashmir will exacerbate the human rights situation in the region. ... The fact that hardly any information at all is currently coming out is of great concern in itself," Rupert Colville, the spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said at a UN news conference.
The spokesman added that restrictions in the region on free information and the right to assemble would limit the citizens' ability to fully participate in a democratic debate on the future status of the Jammu and Kashmir state.
Colville also referenced the July 8 Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights report in which it raised serious concerns about abuses committed by state security forces and armed groups in both India and Pakistan-administered parts of the Kashmir region.
Article 370 of the Indian constitution protected the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, requiring the mandatory approval of most of the laws adopted by the Indian parliament in the local assembly. On Tuesday, the Indian government voted in favor of splitting the Ladakh region from Jammu and Kashmir, making it a union territory under direct Federal control.
India and Pakistan have contended for the Kashmir region, the southern part of which lies in India's Jammu and Kashmir state, since the end of British rule in 1947. Despite a ceasefire being reached in 2003 following several armed conflicts, instability has continued, leading to the emergence of various extremist groups. Tensions spiked earlier this year when the Indian military conducted airstrikes in the region in response to an attack orchestrated by a terrorist group based on the Pakistani side of Kashmir.
