Indian Government Urged to Act Realistically on Kashmir
Referring to the ongoing crackdown on Kashmir Muslims, which has led to the deaths of tens of people, Laleh Eftekhari urged the so-called advocates of human rights and freedom to defend the rights of the oppressed people of Kashmir.
She also called on the Indian government to act realistically on the issue, noting that the people of Kashmir have no extraordinary expectations from the government.
The Kashmiri people just want their basic rights to be respected, Eftekhari stressed.
She went on to say that international circles, including the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), should also refuse to remain silent on the killings of the people of Kashmir.
Clashes in the restive region erupted on July 9, when thousands of protesters thronged streets in towns across the Kashmir valley to condemn the death of a popular secessionist leader at the hands of Indian security forces.
The violence has been among the worst in the region in years. Indian forces have shot dead at least 45 people since July 9, while thousands of others have been injured.
Protesters have also attacked police vehicles, security posts and other government property.
Security forces have been accused of using disproportionate force against civilians, a charge the state government has vowed to investigate.
Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan, and Indian-administered Kashmir has long been troubled, plagued by the aftershocks of an armed insurgency born in the late 1980s.
