NEW DELHI: India reacted defiantly to the recent U.S. calls for protection of human rights in Punjab and Kashmir and against proliferation of atomic weapon in south east Asia.
When the U.S. Congress carried a resolution appealing for stoppage of financial assistance in the event of Delhi continuing with its nuclear development program, India’s reaction was that it could not be bound down to any such restrictions. India argued that it did not face danger only from Pakistan. It hinted that China nuclear weapons and any bar on India would militate against its defense interests.
Since Several U.S. speakers had of violations of human rights by India’s security forces when the house had a discussion on the nuclear proliferations, the Indian Government authorities as well as the media kept silent on the human night’s aspect of the U.S. debate.
But Delhi reacted violently to the amendment passed by the U.S. House of Representatives recommending President Bush to ensure that the International Military Education and Training Program covered an enhanced appreciation of human rights by India’s security forces. India said the IMET program was merely an exchange scheme which benefited not only India but also the U.S. and was based on reciprocity. The U.S. defense personnel also received training facilities at the National Defense College and the Wellington Staff College, in India, it said.
An external affairs ministry spokesman said that “the amendment, by implication, casts an unwarranted slur on India’s armed forces who, in the face of sustained and widespread “terrorist” violence and extreme provocation, have been acting bravely and with a utmost restraint”. The forces, the spokesman added, were operating against “terrorists” who were infiltrating from across the border after being trained and armed heavily and seeking shelter, behind innocent citizens, Describing the Indian armed forces as thoroughly trained and disciplined, the spokesman stated that they needed no lessons from others in compassion, morality or application of human rights. Significantly, according to a spokesman of Punjab Human Rights Organization, India did not ensure even one conviction for the violation of human rights in hundreds of cases involving killings of innocent persons and other excesses against civilians during the past one decade.
In numerous cases even official enquiries indicted the personnel of the security forces. Either cases, were not registered against the errant men or they were allowed to go scot free, Most often the registration of cases was designed 4$a means to silence protest rather than to deter wrong-doing. Often such wrongdoers were publicly honored. The media mostly controlled by India’s privileged castes, lent full support to the security forces.
Official enquiries were held mostly in the cases involving isolated cases of excesses against members of the Hindu majority community. It was extremely rare that enquiry was held when the victim happens to be a member of the minority communities.
No wonder, India had a great deal to conceal from the world. It was entirely understandable that international human rights organizations were not allowed to investigate the excesses committed by the security forces, the P.H.R.O. spokesman added.
Meanwhile, according to a report from Jammu as many as 250 Muslim families in the Raja auri-Poonch region of Jammu and Kashmir moved into Pakistan recently evidently to escape from death at the hands of Indian security forces. According to reports, about 150 Muslim youths were missing from the area. The Muslims believed the youths had been picked up the Indian security forces and were either killed or detained, one villager from Mehandar was quoted as saying that the migration was the result Of police harassment who pickup Muslims, accused them of involvement in terrorism and were made to part with their meager Savings. They were left with the only choice of moving into Pakistan, he said.
Article extracted from this publication >> July 5, 1991
