GENEVA: Altaf Hussain Wani, a prominent rights activist and chairman of the Kashmir Institute of International Relations (KIIR) has asked the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to take steps to facilitate unrestricted access to Kashmir. He said that the access is must for accurately reporting on human rights violations in the region.
He made the demand during a meeting with High Commissioner Volter Turk in Geneva, held on the sidelines of the 57th session of the UN Human Rights Council. He expressed his deep concerns regarding the lack of attention to the current Kashmir situation in OHCHR updates.
He also emphasized the need for observer access to better understand and respond to the current human rights violations. The High Commissioner also acknowledged the challenges posed by restricted access to the Occupied Kashmir, noting that the OHCHR is constantly monitoring the situation but faces many hurdles.
Altaf Hussain Wani, who is part of an eight-member Kashmiri delegation taking part in the UNHRC session, asked the High Commissioner to advocate for permitting human rights organizations to visit the Occupied Kashmir.
Turk has assured him that the OHCHR is in talks with both the Pakistani and Indian governments to address these issues.
The meeting also highlighted the current difficulties in monitoring human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir which India has sealed off from international observers.
The United Nations has previously called for observer access to the disputed region, especially after New Delhi’s controversial abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A in 2019 which heightened tensions and worsened the human rights situation in the region.
