Influential U.S lawmakers express concern over situation in Occupied J&K

WASHINGTON, October 23: Influential American lawmakers have expressed concern over the situation in occupied Jammu and Kashmir, pointing to human rights violations like restrictions on freedom of movement and communications, detention of political leaders and activists and the internet blackout.
The lawmakers, including the first Indian-American lawmaker in the US House of Representative, Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, aired their concerns during a Congressional hearing on ‘Human Rights in South Asia: Views from the State Department and the Region’ on Tuesday.
India on August 5 abrogated Article 370 of the Constitution and bifurcated Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories in violation of international and bilateral agreements.
Jayapal said she has expressed her concerns over the human rights situation in Kashmir with the Indian government but also publicly and to the media. She referred to a report about detention of dozens of children in Kashmir and said detention without charges is unacceptable. She expressed her concerns about religious freedom in India and said that she proposes to bring a bipartisan resolution in the Congress.
Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who has been highly critical of India on Kashmir, said partnership with India is strategic but is also based on common values of human rights and democracy. The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP has threatened all these values, she said.
Congressman Brad Sherman, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific, and Nonproliferation of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, in his opening remarks said that the entire world is focused today on what is happening in Kashmir. Expressing concerns over the human rights situation in Kashmir, he said there are severe restrictions on freedom of movement and communications.
Responding to a question from Sherman about Senator Chris Van Hollen who was barred from travelling to Kashmir, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Alice Wells said that so far US government officials had not been able to visit Kashmir to get a first-hand information of the situation on the ground. In response to another question from Sherman, Wells said that the US regards the Line of Control (LoC) as the de-facto line of separation. As such, the US recognises the de-facto administration on both sides of the LoC, she said.-Sabah