PM should back Kashmiri people, claims city MP
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has a responsibility to support the people of Kashmir, according to Birmingham MP Khalid Mahmood.
He said the crisis in Kashmir was receiving “relatively little news coverage and political attention” in the UK, the EU and Western countries generally.
But he said the UK helped create the current dispute over the status of Kashmir, which followed the end of British rule over India and the Partition in1947 which created modern India and Pakistan.
Mr Mahmood said: “The UK, having been the architect of the geo-political arrangements at the time of Partition, has a particular responsibility to the Kashmiri people to act.
“Moreover, more than 1 million British citizens of Kashmiri descent anxiously await our Prime Minister’s response.
“The choice is simple: whether he offers his support to the voiceless, subjugated people of Kashmir or instead stays silent about the illegal, inhumane and undemocratic actions of the current Indian Government.
“Without co-ordinated and decisive intervention, I fear that the situation will have far reaching
implications beyond.”
The Indian government has revoked Kashmir’s special status, in a move seen by some as an attempt to annex Kashmir.
Known as Article 370, the special status granted autonomy to Kashmir in exchange for joining the Indian union after independence in 1947.
The controversial move by India’s Hindu nationalist prime minister, Narendra Modi, has led to fears of widespread unrest and paralysed normal life as tens of thousands of extra troops and security personnel were dispatched to add to the estimated 500,000 already present, making it one of the world’s most militarised zones.
Mr Mahmood pointed out that the people of Kashmir were prom
for
the
region
and ised a referendum to decide their future 70 years ago, but this had never happened.
He said: “The situation in Kashmir has been escalated exponentially into the complete suppression of the freedoms and civil liberties of its people.
“Despite this, Kashmir is receiving relatively little news coverage and political attention. This effectively indicates that the UK, EU and other Western countries champion democracy and human rights with partiality.
“The focus on the current situation in Hong Kong – where there is wall to wall media coverage and scrutiny about a potential change to one law – lays bare the complacency that the international community is exhibiting towards Kashmir.
“UN resolutions promised the Kashmiris a plebiscite to determine their own future – a promise that has been disregarded for over 70 years. India continues to inflict human rights abuses on the Kashmiri people and has now arbitrarily revoked Kashmir’s Special Status.”
Restrictions are continuing in much of Indian-administered Kashmir, despite India saying it was gradually restoring phone lines and easing a security lockdown that has been in place for nearly two weeks.