Behind the Kashmir Conflict

Mohammed Amin was killed slowly over three days, kicked, pummeled, beaten, cut. They asked him where he had hidden the weapons. He said he had no weapons. They tortured him. They asked again, "where did you hide the weapons?" And again, he said he had no weapons. And again they tortured him. He was taken to his house so he could show the soldiers where the weapons were buried. But there was nothing to show. And again, they tortured him. The soldiers took Mohammed to the outskirts of his village, tied him to a tree, and emptied their cartridges into his body. They left him there, still tied, slumped over, full of holes, covered in blood. And this is how his family and friends found him. "...his body was riddled with bullets, his bone protruded from his forehead, one eye was out, and all the fingers of his left hand were missing. His cape was full of holes." That is the description a witness gave to the human rights organization, Human Rights Watch, which documented Mohammed Amin's killing.

Amin had been a member of the Hizb-ul-Mujahedin since 1993. In 1995, he was arrested and detained for one month. During that time, his family was not allowed to see him. When he was finally let go it was clear he'd been badly beaten. He was given electric shocks, his body had been crushed under heavy weights, and he'd been forced to drink his own urine. Over the next year, Amin was arrested and tortured eight times, each time leaving him a broken man.

His final arrest came on February 20, 1997. On that fateful day, Amin was called in to the local army base to see the commanding officer, Major Shekawar. Three days later, villagers found Amin's body. His family was not allowed to untie and bury him. The army came back and took the body to the police station where an officer filled out a report saying Amin was a released militant who had been re-arrested. The report says Amin was asked to take the army to a hidden cache of arms and that he did so. On the way back to the base, says the report, Amin tried to shoot soldiers using one of the guns from the cache and was killed. A witness attempted to file a second report on Amin's behalf but police refused saying a report was already on record.

Human Rights Violations:

The Kashmir conflict continues to produce serious human rights violations including summary execution, rape, and torture. Until 1996, Indian forces were concentrated in the Kashmir valley. But after Pakistani-trained militants started crossing over into Indian-occupied territory, India's focus has turned to the border areas.

Militants have engaged in kidnapping and killing civil servants and suspected informers. These actions have led India to be even more determined to eliminate security threats through any means necessary.

The brutal tactics being used by the Indian Security Forces (ISF) in the border districts resemble those used in the early 1990s in the Kashmir valley: indiscriminate shootings and assault, rape, and arson.

The Indian army, operating under the Jammu and Kashmir Disturbed Areas Act and the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act, continues to conduct cordon-and-search operations in Muslim neighborhoods and villages, detaining young men, assaulting other family members, and summarily executing suspected militants.

In January 2000, after conducting its own investigation, the Indian army announced 56 of its personnel in Kashmir would be punished for human rights violations. The punishments ranged from discharge to denial of promotion. The national and state human rights commissions, were barred from investigating army and paramilitary personnel.

Custodial Killings:

The account of Mohammed Amin's "custodial" killing is not unique in Kashmir. The way he died is all too common in this Indian-occupied land. According to Human Rights Watch, custodial killings, the summary execution of detainees, are a central part of the Indian government's strategy for dealing with the current insurgency in Kashmir.

Because of the immense difficulty associated with documenting such killings, human rights groups are unable to give exact numbers. But groups in Kashmir and elsewhere in India estimate that such torture killings number in the thousands.

There has been no effort on the part of the Indian army to curb these killings. Indeed, they have the sanction of senior Indian officials who justify them by maintaining that there is no other way to deal with serious "terrorist" threat.

"Disappearances" and Torture:

"Disappearances" remain a serious problem. People who have been detained on the suspicion of some type of "terrorist" behavior or those simply taken in for questioning often disappear without a trace. Families attempt to locate their loved ones through the court system but almost without exception they are unsuccessful. There is no accountability for the hundreds of cases of "disappearances" that have taken place since 1990.

The ISF also engages in brutal forms of torture which have the sanction of senior officials. They justify the practice on the grounds that there is no other way to obtain information from a suspect. In fact, torture is also routinely used to punish suspected militants and their supporters and to extort money from their families. In virtually all of the cases of "disappearance" in Kashmir, it is likely that the victim was executed and the body disposed of in secret.

The security forces routinely flout legal protections that would provide safeguards against disappearances. Detainees are frequently moved from one detention facility to another, sometimes under the authority of different security agencies; records of arrest are either not kept or falsified; security forces ignore writs of habeas corpus and refuse to produce detainees even when ordered to do so by the Jammu and Kashmir High Court. According to the Jammu and Kashmir Bar Association, hundreds of writs are pending before the court, some dating back several years.

Rape:

Indian Security Forces have raped Kashmiri women during search operations, particularly in remote areas outside major cities and towns. The documentation of such cases is difficult. The victims are unlikely to seek medical attention unless their injuries are severe and they are reluctant to report assaults because of the shame and stigma. The army authorities have demonstrated some concern about rape and have initiated a number of courts-martial of soldiers for rape. However, the many reports of rape, particularly those committed by federal or local police forces, are never investigated. The prosecution of security personnel is rare.

Summary:

Despite the election of a civilian government in Jammu and Kashmir in September 1996 and claims by the Indian government that "normalcy" has returned to the region, abuses by the army, federal paramilitary forces, and the newly constituted police are rife. Indian forces also continue to arm and train countermilitant militias to assassinate suspected militant activists and intimidate local residents. The ongoing brutality and repression by Indian troops continues to fuel popular discontent and fear.

As they have gained greater control of the cities, Indian forces and countermilitants have fostered a climate of repression. While retaliatory shootings of civilians are less, targeted executions continue. Detention and "disappearances" have left residents fearful of talking to international human rights organizations. Little human rights documentation is done because activists and lawyers have been killed or threatened as have doctors who treat torture victims.

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