Kashmiri-Americans gathered in front of the United Nations Headquarters on Monday to stage a demonstration protesting India’s decision to convene a meeting of G20 countries’ representatives in Indian Illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).
The protesters argued that the move was an attempt to create a false sense of normalcy in the restive UN-recognized disputed territory.
The demonstration featured rented digital trucks displaying a variety of messages, including advocating for the right of self-determination for the Kashmiri people. The gathering marked the first tourism meeting held in Kashmir since India unilaterally brought the region under its direct control in August 2019.
The messages projected on the trucks expressed strong opposition to the G20 meeting in Kashmir, stating that it legitimizes India’s illegal occupation and violates UN resolutions.
The demonstrators voiced concerns about the potential enabling of genocide and urged attendees to reject the meeting. Some signs targeted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, branding him as the face of fascism.
Other messages demanded the end of the occupation, demilitarization of Kashmir, and the release of political prisoners and human rights defenders.
A memorandum was submitted to the office of the UN Secretary-General, calling for various actions, including the unconditional release of individuals such as Khurram Parvez, Muhammad Yasin Malik, Shabbir Ahmed Shah, Masarrat Aalam, Aaasia Andrabi, and journalists Irfan Mehraj, Asif Sultan, Sajjad Gul, Fahad Shah, and Gowhar Gilani.
Dr. Ghulam Nabi Fai, Secretary-General of the World Kashmir Awareness Forum, emphasized that holding the G20 meeting in Kashmir violated over 16 resolutions agreed upon by both India and Pakistan.
He claimed that India intended to use the presence of G20 country representatives as an endorsement of Prime Minister Modi’s decision to annex Kashmir, which defied international law and UNSC resolutions.
Dr. Fai urged the G20 countries to consider the warnings of Professor Fernand de Vareness, the UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, who had cautioned against normalizing what he described as a military occupation.
Volker Turk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, had also expressed concern about the human rights situation in the Kashmir region during the UN Human Rights Council session.
Sardar Sawar Khan, former Member of the Kashmir Council and the main organizer of the peaceful protest, expressed hope that the G20 countries, as signatories to international human rights instruments, would adopt a pro-people stance. He called on them to refuse to be complicit in the disempowerment and subjugation of the Kashmiri people.
Several speakers participated in the rally, raising anti-India slogans. These included Raja Mukhtar of the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front, Sardar Zarif Khan, Secretary-General of the Kashmir American Welfare Association, Sardar Imtiaz Khan Garalvi representing the Jamaat-e-Islami Azad Kashmir, and Kashmiri activists such as Raja Razzak, Mirza Farooq, Sardar Sajid Sawar, Choudhary Muhammad Ishaq, Zahid Shahbaz, Sardar Mehmood, Ms. Aita Shahnaz, and Choudhary Rashid Masud.
