Kashmiris observe Black Day today
Kashmiris on both sides of LoC will observe October 27 as Black Day.
SRINAGAR/MUZAFFARABAD (Online): Kashmiris on both sides of the Line of Control (LoC) and the world over will observe on Sunday 27th October‚ as Black Day against the Indian aggression and illegal occupation of Jammu and Kashmir.
The ‘Day’ aims to convey to the international community that the Kashmiris reject the Indian illegal occupation of Jammu and Kashmir.
It was on 27th October in 1947 when Indian troops landed in Srinagar and forcibly occupied Jammu and Kashmir in total disregard to the partition plan of the Subcontinent and against the aspirations of the Kashmiris.
Every year, the day is marked as Kashmir Black Day by total strike. Different functions, protest demonstrations and anti-India rallies are taken out in the occupied territory, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and also in the world capitals. This year too, the Kashmiris are observing October 27th as the Black Day to demonstrate to the world that they will never yield to Indian repression.
Other accomplices in this greatest human tragedy were Maharaja Hari Singh, the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir and Cyril Radcliff, head of the Boundary Commission. In blatant violation the Partition Plan against the popular will of Kashmiri Muslims, India announced the accession of Jammu and Kashmir under a controversial Instrument of Accession. Though Jammu and Kashmir was a Muslim majority state and had a natural tendency to accede to Pakistan in view of its geography, people’s aspirations, culture, and religion. Right from the day one, the people of Kashmir did not accept India’s illegal occupation and started an armed struggle with the total support of the public in 1947.
The armed men from tribal areas entered into Jammu and Kashmir to support people’s movement, India on January 1, 1948, approached the UN Security Council to address the matter. The UN Security Council through its successive resolutions impliedly nullified Indian occupation of Kashmir declaring it as a disputed territory.
It approved a ceasefire, demarcation of the ceasefire line, demilitarisation of the State and a free and impartial plebiscite to be conducted under the supervision of the World Body. Although the ceasefire and demarcation of the ceasefire line were implemented but demilitarisation of the occupied territory and a free and impartial plebiscite under the UN supervision remain unimplemented till date and the Kashmir dispute keeps on lingering.
As a result of the demarcation, about 139,000 square kilometers area of Jammu and Kashmir remained with India while 83,807 square kilometers constituted the territory of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Indian rulers announced till 1957 that they would provide the Kashmiris the right to decide their future. The promise still remains unfulfilled and the struggle for Kashmiris inalienable right to self-determination continues.
After the failure of all peaceful means to settle the Kashmir dispute, the Kashmiris started a massive uprising in 1989 to end the status quo and secure their right to self-determination.
This public movement gathered momentum with the passage of time and forced India to come to the table of negotiations with Pakistan in 2004. The dialogue process between the two countries continues till date but without yielding substantive results with regard to the resolution of Kashmir dispute. The reason is India’s non-seriousness and its intransigence on the dispute. Since initiation of the peace process, New Delhi has been missing no opportunity to halt it on one pretext or the other.
The continued Indian State terrorism, particularly since 1989 -- when Kashmiris stepped up their liberation struggle -- has made the life of Kashmiri people miserable.
The occupation forces enjoying unbridled powers under the protection of draconian laws like Armed Forces Special Powers Act and Disturbed Areas Act in the occupied territory have broken all records of human rights violations. During the last 24 years alone, the trigger-happy forces have martyred 93,935 Kashmiris, widowed nearly 23,000 women, orphaned 107,461 children, and molested or gang raped more than 10,000 Kashmiri women.
Thousands of innocent youth have been subjected to disappearance in custody and their whereabouts remain untraced. Besides these cruelties, the occupation authorities have usurped all kinds of freedom and frequently impose restrictions on the people and pro-liberation leadership to suppress the sentiment of dissent in the territory.
India is hell bent upon changing the demographic composition of the territory and convert Muslims into a minority. These are the reasons that Kashmiris observe 27 October as Black Day. The observance is aimed at drawing the world attention towards the miseries of Kashmiri people and to appeal the international community to take cognizance of the urgency of resolving the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the Kashmiris aspirations.
It is also meant to sending a loud and clear message to India that Kashmiris reject its illegal occupation of their homeland and that they are determined to continue their struggle till getting rid of Indian subjugation.
