World Powers Are Granting Impunity to the Violator of Human Rights: Dr Fai
Baltimore, Maryland: An informative and educational session on “Countering and dismantling Islamophobia, locally & globally” was organized during 48 th Annual ICNA-MAS Convention, held at the Baltimore Convention Center, Baltimore, Maryland.
The topic included Kashmir, Palestine, and Islamophobia. Dr Hatem Bazian, well-known scholar on globalization and international relations, spoke on ‘Palestine: Century of Settler Colonialism; Dr Ghulam Nabi Fai, Secretary General, World Kashmir Awareness Forum, spoke on the ‘Situation in Kashmir;’ Joram Van Laveren, Dutch politician and author of ‘Apostate: From Christianity to Islam in Times of Secularization and Terror’ spoke on ‘The Rise of the Far Right in Europe’ and Edward Mitchell, Deputy Director of ‘Council on American Islamic Relations’ spoke on ‘The Ripple Effect of Islamophobia.’
Dr Ghulam Nabi Fai said that there is a phenomenon of unstopped and unpunished barbarities that is being witnessed in Kashmir. The irony is that the impunity that is thus being granted to the violator of human rights – India – is not in the context of a new dispute, or a civil war where the status, the positions, and the actions of the parties remain obscure for some time and international response lags behind in the situation. It is being done in a territory known to be disputed for 76 years. There is no alibi for the international communities’ inaction except that India with its major power pretensions maintains violent occupation of the territory. Furthermore, the dispute is known to have the potential of a large-scale international conflict with the possibility of nuclear confrontation. It has produced two wars between India and Pakistan and a third cannot be ruled out unless a resolution is sought to the satisfaction of all parties concerned.
Dr Fai felt ending the suffering of the people of Kashmir was vital and urgent. He wondered why such actions were forthcoming in Namibia, East Timor, Southern Sudan, etc. and not in Kashmir. Was the suffering of the people of Kashmir any less than that of East Timorese? He pointed out that Kashmir has been under military occupation for more than 76 years. The United States, he said, holds unique powers of moral suasion and it also has the capability of coming up with material and economic assistance to help Kashmir’s search for an enlightened solution. After all, the United States has made such efforts in other international conflict. How was Kashmir any different, he asked?
Dr Fai announced with immense pain and anguish the news that the Modi administration is asking High Court for a death sentence of the most popular leader of Kashmiri political resistance movement in Indian Occupied Kashmir – Mohammad Yasin Malik. Ambassador Kuldip Nayyar, former High Commissioner of India to Great Britain, has said that Yasin Malik has adopted the nonviolent movement and has become the follower of Mahatma Gandhi. As Shashi Tharoor, former minister of India has said ‘For much of his political career, Narendra Modi has been trained to dislike Mahatma Gandhi.’ Given this frame of mind, how can Narendra Modi like Yasin Malik to be the follower of Gandhi.
“Global initiative in Kashmir will not only end the bloodshed and suffering in Kashmir, but also have a direct positive effect on international security by eliminating regional fighting, and national tensions. It is in everyone’s interest to settle the Kashmir conflict peacefully without further delay,” Fai added. - gnfai2003@yahoo.com
