SRINAGAR: A prominent rights group in Indian-administered Kashmir on Tuesday described a communications blackout imposed by India following its scrapping of the disputed region’s semi-autonomy last year “collective punishment” and urged the international community to question New Delhi over what it called “digital apartheid.”
In a report, the Jammu-Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society described “harms, costs and consequences of the digital siege in Jammu-Kashmir from August 2019,” when New Delhi stripped the region of its statehood and the semi-autonomy that gave its natives special rights in land ownership and jobs.
The move, which set off widespread anger, was accompanied by a security clampdown and communications blackout in the region that left hundreds of thousands jobless, impaired the already feeble health care system and paused the school and college education of millions.
“The multi-faceted and targeted denial of digital rights is a systemic form of discrimination, digital repression and collective punishment of the region’s residents, particularly in light of India’s long history of political repression and atrocities,” said the report, titled “Kashmir’s Internet Siege.”
Several officials, including the region’s home secretary, Shaleen Kabra, who issues Internet regulatory orders, did not respond to requests for comment.
Indian officials have said the Internet ban was aimed at heading off anti-India protests and attacks by rebels who have fought for decades for the region’s independence or unification with Pakistan, which administers another portion of Kashmir. Both countries claim the landlocked Himalayan region in its entirety.
Officials have also argued that such security measures were necessary to better integrate the region with India, foster greater economic development and stop threats from “anti-national elements” and Pakistan.
Many Kashmiris, however, view the move as the beginning of settler colonialism aimed at engineering a demographic change in India’s only Muslim-majority region, a development that could increase the possibility of heightened conflict.
Although some of the communications restrictions have been removed and the Internet has been restored over fixed lines, mobile Internet speeds in most of the region remain painfully slow.
Digital rights activists have consistently denounced the Internet restrictions and some have called them ” far worse censorship than anywhere in the world.” The report said India leads the world in ordering Internet shutdowns and Kashmir “accounts for more than two-thirds of shutdowns ordered in the country.”
The conflict in Kashmir has existed since the late 1940s, when India and Pakistan won independence from the British empire and began fighting over their rival claims to the territory. The two rivals have fought two wars over Kashmir.
The Jammu-Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society said its report was based on field work, government documents, court files and media reports. It describes the consequences of the longest ever lockdown in the region’s turbulent history and its severe impact on livelihoods, education, health and media freedoms.
It said the digital siege led to “chilling effects of online surveillance, profiling and criminal sanctions, with police complaints registered” against some working journalists and over 200 social media users.
Some business in the region resumed following the partial lifting of the clampdown earlier this year. However, Indian authorities enforced another harsh lockdown in March to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
The Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industries pegged the economic losses in the region at $5.3 billion and job losses at half a million since August last year.
During the service blackouts, critically ill patients couldn’t access government health care or seek insurance reimbursements online, students couldn’t apply for fellowships or scholarships and distraught families couldn’t connect to relatives outside the region. Local tech companies had to close or relocate to other areas of India.
“While the Government of India may have succeeded in gagging the voices of people of Jammu and Kashmir with its longstanding communication blockade,” the report said, “it should not prevent the international community from speaking and calling out the Government of India for suppressing the fundamental rights of people.”
Kashmir group calls India’s Internet ban 'digital apartheid'
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Kashmir group calls India’s Internet ban 'digital apartheid'
- Kashmiris view this as the beginning of settler colonialism aimed at engineering a demographic change in the dispute region
- Digital rights activists call the Internet restrictions ‘far worse censorship than anywhere in the world’
Pakistan military details rescue operation days after deadly train hijacking by separatists
- BLA separatists targeted a passenger train in Pakistan’s southwest earlier this week, 21 passengers and four troops killed
- Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry accuses India of launching information warfare by using AI images of the attack
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s military spokesperson, Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry, slammed the Indian media on Friday for “glorifying” a separatist militant attack on a passenger train in Balochistan earlier this week, in which more than 200 people were held hostage, as he shared details of the rescue operation with the media.
The separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) bombed part of a railway track and stormed the train on Tuesday afternoon in Mushkaaf, a rugged area in the mountainous Bolan range of Balochistan. The hostage crisis was resolved a day later when the armed forces conducted a successful operation to rescue the hostages, killing 33 militants in the process.
The military spokesperson noted during a news conference that while militants were holding hostages and the armed forces were evaluating the situation to prepare an appropriate response, an information warfare campaign began, led by the Indian media.
“The Indian media was using videos shared by the internationally recognized terrorist group,” he said, referring to the visuals shared by the BLA, while showing clips from news reports by Indian outlets.
“They used images generated by artificial intelligence and old videos as well to glorify and promote the attack internationally,” he added.
Chaudhry maintained the Indian coverage of the event highlighted the nexus between New Delhi’s ambition to destabilize Balochistan and the activities carried out by the armed separatist outfit.
He noted this was also revealed by an Indian national, Kulbhushan Yadav, whom Pakistan said it captured from the same province in 2016 and accused of working as a spy for India’s leading intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing. However, the Indian foreign ministry says he was kidnapped from Iran and illegally rendered to Pakistan.
The military spokesperson played portions of Yadav’s “confessional video” recorded soon after his arrest, in which he said he was tasked by the Indian authorities with facilitating militant violence in Balochistan.
Chaudhry also described the action against BLA militants as “one of the most successful” rescue operations carried out in a hostage situation.
“Not even a single casualty of hostages took place during this process,” he continued. “The whole operation was done with extreme expertise.”
Balochistan is Pakistan’s largest province by land area and has long been the site of a low-level insurgency, with separatist groups accusing the government of exploiting the province’s natural resources while leaving its people in poverty.
Government officials deny the allegation and say they are developing the province through multibillion-dollar projects, including those backed by China.
PM presents Rs2.5 million cheque to struggling Pakistani footballer, promises government job
- A video of Muhammad Riaz frying popular street snack to make ends meet went viral on social media this month, drawing online criticism
- PM Shehbaz Sharif calls for a strategy to provide sustainable employment opportunities to athletes representing Pakistan internationally
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has met with Pakistani footballer Muhammad Riaz and handed him Rs2.5 million ($8,916) cheque and promised a government job for him in a federal department of his choice, Sharif’s office said on Friday.
Riaz, who represented Pakistan in the 2018 Asian Games, made headlines after a video of him selling jalebis, a popular street snack, went viral online, with netizens criticizing the government and sports bodies for ignoring the footballer.
Sports athletes in the subcontinent, including Pakistan, usually come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds before becoming household names overnight and attaining financial success.
In his meeting with the footballer, PM Sharif praised his courage and determination, and urged to continue playing football and an active role in promoting the game in the South Asian country.
“Pakistani youth are a valuable asset of the country,” Sharif’s office quoted him as saying. “Providing all kinds of facilities to Pakistani athletes and resources for them to compete at the international level is among the top priorities of the government.”
The prime minister instructed officials to provide Riaz with job in federal department of his choice.
“Steps should be taken to promote sports in the country,” he said. “A strategy should be formulated to provide sustainable employment opportunities to the athletes representing Pakistan at the international level and for their welfare.”
Riaz thanked the prime minister for the financial support and for taking steps for the welfare of players and the promotion of sports, according to Sharif’s office.
The plight of football in Pakistan is a tale of unfulfilled potential, administrative chaos and lack of investment. Despite a passionate fan base and a pool of talented players, the sport has suffered due to mismanagement by governing bodies, political interference and inadequate infrastructure.
The Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) has been marred by internal disputes and FIFA suspensions which have hindered the development of the game at all levels.
On Wednesday, the Pakistan Football League (PFL) also announced a cash prize of Rs1 million ($3,573) and a “prominent position” in the league for Riaz.
The PFL is a franchise league that says it is driven by a UK-based company with foreign investment solely committed to uplifting football from the grassroots to a professional level in Pakistan.
Blast in northwestern Pakistan mosque injures religious party leader, three others
- Attacks have been escalating in Pakistan’s border regions with Afghanistan in recent months
- Last month, a suicide bomber killed six worshippers during Friday prayers at an Islamic seminary
PESHAWAR: A blast tore through a mosque on Friday in northwestern Pakistan, police said, injuring a religious party leader and three others, including children.
Abdullah Nadeem, a local leader of the Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) political party, was believed to be the target of the blast and had been hospitalized with serious injures, said Asif Bahadar, a district police chief in South Waziristan. He said two children were among the injured.
It was not immediately clear who was behind the explosion.
Attacks have been escalating in Pakistan’s border regions with Afghanistan in recent months.
Last month, a suicide bomber killed six worshippers during Friday prayers at an Islamic seminary in northwestern Pakistan, known as a historic training ground for the Afghan Taliban.
This week in southwestern Balochistan, separatist militants hijacked a train and held passengers hostage in a day-long standoff with security forces.
Pakistan has vowed to crack down on growing militancy and has said the militants are finding safe haven in neighboring Afghanistan, a charge the ruling Afghan Taliban deny.
KSrelief distributes 50,000 winter relief kits across Pakistan
- The packages included quilts, warms shawls and winter clothing for protection against extreme temperatures
- Over 300,000 Pakistanis from 52 districts, including in Azad Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan, received the winter kits
ISLAMABAD: The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) has distributed 50,000 winter relief kits in all four provinces of Pakistan as well as the Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Kashmir regions, the Saudi charity said on Friday.
These kits were distributed as part of a large-scale humanitarian initiative, launched in January and aimed at assisting communities affected by severe winter conditions and natural disasters across Pakistan.
The Saudi charitable organization distributed the kits in collaboration with Pakistan’s national and provincial disaster management authorities, covering some of the coldest and most vulnerable regions in the country.
“The aid reached 17 districts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 10 in Gilgit-Baltistan, 11 in Balochistan, six in Azad Kashmir, six in Sindh and two in Punjab,” KSrelief said in a statement.
“Each comprehensive winter package included two high-quality polyester quilts, warm shawl kits for men and women, and winter clothing for children and adults, ensuring that families had the necessary protection against extreme temperatures.”
The distribution was carried out in close coordination with the government and it benefitted over 337,079 people, according to the statement.
Saudi Arabia’s KSrelief has implemented more than 200 projects, including emergency relief for natural disasters and initiatives to address food security, health care and education, to improve the lives of vulnerable communities in Pakistan.
In a Pakistan desert town, Holi and Ramadan come together
- Discrimination against minorities runs deep in Muslim-majority Pakistan, but those tensions are not to be found in Mithi, an affluent city of rolling sand dunes and mud-brick homes
- Ramadan is a month of prayer and reflection in Islam, and Hindus respected their Muslim neighbors would not join Holi celebrations with the usual fervor due to religious observance
MITHI: In a desert town in Pakistan, Hindus prepare meals for fasting Muslims, who in turn gather to welcome a Holi procession, a rare moment of religious solidarity in the Islamic nation.
Discrimination against minorities runs deep in Muslim-majority Pakistan, but those tensions are not to be found in Mithi, an affluent city of rolling sand dunes and mud-brick homes in southern Sindh province.
“All the traditions and rituals here are celebrated together,” Raj Kumar, a 30-year-old Hindu businessman told AFP.
“You will see that on Holi, Hindu youth are joined by Muslim youth, celebrating together and applying colors on each other,” he added.
“Even at the end of the Muslim call for prayer, the imam says ‘peace to Hindus and Muslims’.”
This year, the Hindu festival of Holi and the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan fell together. Both events move each year according to the lunar calendar.
Holi, the festival of color, has for centuries marked the arrival of spring and raucous crowds playfully throw colored powder and water over each other.
On Thursday, hundreds of Hindus held a procession through the streets of Mithi, one of the few towns where they form the majority, to be warmly welcomed at the city square by their Muslim neighbors.
“We have learnt to live together since childhood. This has come to us through generations, and we are following it too,” said local Mohan Lal Mali, 53, after arranging a meal for Muslims to break their fast.
Cows, considered sacred in Hinduism, roam freely through the streets of Mithi, while women wear traditional embroidered sarees embellished with mirror work.
There is no beef shop in town, as its meat is prohibited in Hinduism, and Muslims only sacrifice goats during festivals.
Mithi, a city of around 60,000 people, is predominantly Hindu — in a country where 96 percent of its 240 million people are Muslim and two percent are Hindu.
Fozia Haseeb, a Christian woman, traveled from the port city of Karachi, around 320 kilometers (200 miles) away, to witness the blended occasions.
“People following three religions are here: Christians, Hindus and Muslims,” she said.
“We wanted to see for ourselves whether this was correct, and there is no doubt it is.”
Ramadan is a month of peaceful prayer and reflection in Islam, and Hindus respected their Muslim neighbors would not join Holi celebrations with the usual fervor due to religious observance.
“Today, you might not see colors on me, but in the past, they would drench me in colors,” said Muslim cleric Babu Aslam Qaimkhani while applying powder to the face of local Hindu MP Mahesh Kumar Malani.
“If a Hindu runs for office, Muslims also vote for them, and vice versa,” said Malani, the only elected minority MP in the country’s national assembly.
As Hindus celebrated with processions and visits to temples, there was no armed security — a stark contrast to other parts of Pakistan.
Freedom of religion or belief remains under constant threat in the country, with religiously motivated violence and discrimination increasing yearly, according to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan.
State authorities, often using religious unrest for political gain, have failed to address this crisis, the commission said.
But in Mithi, 19-year-old Muslim laborer Amaan Ullah told AFP: “There are no divisions among us. We all are humans, and we all are equal.”
Local police and administration officials said the city has a low crime rate, with “no major security challenges,” allowing them to easily make arrangements for the major religious festivals.
“Their businesses, their daily lives, and their interactions have been together for centuries and they are still standing strong,” said local official Abdul Haleem Jagirani.
Locals say Mithi’s peaceful existence can be traced back to its remote location, emerging from the sand dunes of the Tharparkar desert, which borders the modern Indian state of Rajasthan.
With infertile soil and limited water access, it was spared from centuries of looting and wars, and the bloody Partition violence of 1947 when India and Pakistan were created, and many Hindus fled across the new border.
But several residents told AFP that in recent years the prosperous city has seen a rise in newcomers as a result of its growing infrastructure.
A major coal project nearby has brought laborers from other provinces to the city, and with it, supporters of a radical Islamist party.
On the city’s central square, a large banner hangs for Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), which put the explosive issue of blasphemy as its central concern.
“People coming from outside the city are causing some doubt and a slight sense of fear,” Padma Lodha, a 52-year-old Hindu headmistress at a local girls school, told AFP.
“But overall, things are still well-controlled and peaceful.”
