Human Rights Violations in Jammu and Kashmir-IV

Dr M K Teng and Shri C L Gadoo

(In this last part of their pamphlet, Dr M K Teng and Shri C L Gadoo outline the approach of the UNO. to terrorism and obligations of states in this behalf: Editor).

UNITED NATIONS ON TERRORISM

There is a growing corpus of Municipal as well as International Law and precedent to deal with politically motivated terrorism. The civil jurisprudence and international law generally identify political terrorism as a crime, more serious than traditional civil and international crime. Murder of innocent people, torture deaths, kidnapping. abduction and rape of women are heinous crimes which do not come within the traditional definitions of crime. Many countries have extended their penal codes to most terrorist offences Legislation has also been undertaken to provide for special police powers and special judicial procedures to deal with terrorist crimes. New special anti-terrorist organisations have been created within police departments and other international security organisations. In many states military participation in police function has increased. Special military units for possible use in anti-terrorist operations have been created in a number of countries. All these measures have been necessary to combat terrorism and safeguard the lives of law-abiding citizens and innocent people and save states from being broken up by sponsored terrorism. Nations with long democratic traditions including the United States of America, one of the foremost super-states supporting human rights, have always demanded adoption of severely stringent measures to combat terrorism.

It is relevant to note that the United States of America proposed a set of highly stringent rules to deal with terrorism in the draft on an International Convention submitted by the United States Government to the ad-hoc committee of the United Nations on International Terrorism in 1973.

Understandably, most of the Muslim States disapproved of the draft convention.

The United Nations lists killing, kidnapping, torture and abduction as crimes. According to resolutions of the General Assembly of the United Nations on measures to prevent terrorism, the United Nations (a) Unequivocally condemns as criminal all acts, methods and practices of terrorism wherever and by whoever committed including those who jeopardise friendly relations between states; (b) Deeply deplores the loss of innocent human lives which results from such acts of terrorism; (c) Invites all states to take all appropriate measures at the national level with a view to speedy and final elimination of the problem of international terrorism such as the harmonisation of domestic legislation with existing international conventions, of asumed international terrorism such as the fulfilment of assumed international obligations, and the prevention of the preparation and organisation in their respective territories of acts directed against the states; (d) Calls supon all states to fulfill their obligations under International Law to refrain from organising, instigating, assisting or participating in terrorist acts in other states, or acquiescing in activities within their territory directed towards the commission of such acts; (e) Urges all states not to allow in any circumstances to obstruct the application of appropriate law enforcement measures, provided for in the relevant conventions to which they are party, to persons who commit acts of international terrorism covered by those conventions.

A number of other resolutions and conventions of the United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council, the Adhoc Committee on International Terrorism, various reports of the

Secretary General of the United Nations and the Covenants of various inter-state organisations on political and international terrorism, have urged the members of the international community to undertake stringent and effective legal and administrative measures to combat terrorism. The recommendations envisage institution of fresh political instruments and modified penal procedures to check terrorism. The Council of Europe produced a Convention on terrorism in 1977, which stipulated that amnesty available to political offences should not apply to terrorist rocket attacks and killings by other explosive devices, kidnapping, taking of hostages, hijacking and such other offences.

NATIONAL RESPONSE

The Indian State has an obligation under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations Covenants on Human Rights and the resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council, to undertake effective measures against international terrorism. The measures, specifically listed in the resolutions adopted by the General Assembly and the Security Council, include drastic amendments in municipal law and constitution of Civil Defence organisations to meet the challenge of international terrorism. These measures include:

(i) harmonisation of domestic legislation, with existing international conventions on terrorism; (ii) prevention of the preparation and organisation in their territories of acts directed against the states;

(iii) prevention of acts aimed to obstruct the application of appropriate law enforcement measures to persons who commit acts of international terrorism;

(iv) modification of penal procedures and institution of fresh political instruments to combat terrorism;

(v) withdrawal of amnesty in respect of terrorism, including assassination, bomb blasts, rocket attacks and kidnapping.

Neither the J&K Government, which is vested with powers to maintain law and order in accordance with the federal division of powers in India, nor the Government of India, which has assumed all powers of the government in the State in consequence to the promulgation of the President's rule has adopted any of the measures specified above to deal with any firmness with terrorist crimes. By and large, there is hardly any purposeful change in the existing penal law and the penal procedures, to deal with terrorism. No special anti-terrorist organisation, with special powers under law, has been instituted with the organisation of the security structures of the State. The amnesty available to the political offences continues to be extended to the terrorists.

The escalation in terrorist violence in the Jammu Division of J&K is also being dealt with in the same apathetic and evasive manner, in which the terrorist violence was dealt with in Kashmir. The selective killings of Hindus in Doda district and the exodus of several thousand people from there has evoked almost the same response from the Government of India as the killings of the Hindus in Kashmir evoked in 1990. A series of bomb-blasts, killing of several innocent people in Jammu city, has been almost overlooked. The reported warnings of the people of Doda on the increasing menace of terrorist violence in the interior of Jammu, strategically vital for the defence of India, and the remonstrations of the Hindus in the entire province to take effective military measures in the district and declare it a disturbed area, have fallen on deaf years. Exactly as it did in Kashmir, the Government of India, is harping on its old tune, that;

(i) the militant violence in the district is a military manoeuvre, which is not politically motivated;

(ii) it is not communal in character;

(i) the price to purchase peace from the Muslim militants and Pakistan must be paid by the Hindus.

APPEAL

We appeal to the conscience of the world, to prevail upon the Indian Government to

(a) put an end to political terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir so that the extermination and death of Hindu minorities and other innocent people is stopped immediately and hundreds of

thousands of refugees are able to return to their homes in Kashmir, and

(b) indict pan-Islamic fundamentalist organisations and terrorist organisations in Jammu and Kashmir, which are responsible for terrorist violence in Kashmir, and the State of Pakistan, which has sponsored these organisations by providing training, arms and funds to the terrorists in Kashmir, for crimes against humanity and International Law and crimes against Human Rights.

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Courtesy: Dr M K Teng and Shri C L Gadoo    and April-May 1995 Koshur Samachar